Mishnah Avot 1:2
שִׁמְעוֹן הַצַּדִּיק הָיָה מִשְּׁיָרֵי כְנֶסֶת הַגְּדוֹלָה. הוּא הָיָה אוֹמֵר, עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד, עַל הַתּוֹרָה וְעַל הָעֲבוֹדָה וְעַל גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים:
Shimon haTzadik (the Righteous) was one of the remainder of the Great Assembly. He used to say: upon three things the world stands, upon Torah, upon Service, and upon deeds of loving-kindness.
The Mishnah highlights Shimon haTzadik’s status, not only his moniker as a righteous person par excellence but also as one of the last members of the Great Assembly. Both of these qualities, the Mishnah intimates, should encourage us to heed his words carefully, to take them seriously.
The World Stands
There are a number of examples where the rabbis describe the world’s existence as tenuous. That it exists due to the actions of a few or for a limited purpose. The rabbis understood that our actions have consequences that ripple out into the world. What we do matters.
So too here, the rabbis remind us that the world exists, its purpose is via three core activities:
Torah
When the rabbis use the word Torah, what does it mean? To what does it refer?
Like with the previous Mishnah, we can understand it to mean the literal words of the Torah, the lessons and teachings handed down, and it could mean the broader endeavor of Jewish life as related to Judaism. There are good arguments for each of these.
In this Mishnah, I think that we’re being asked to remain attached to Torah (in the broad sense of Torah learning), to develop a relationship with it, and to let that interactivity guide our lives.
For the Torah to be one of the pillars of existence, we are reminded that it should be a pillar of our lives.
Service
The word used is עבודה avodah, which can be translated in lots of ways. This term, in this context, refers to the Temple Service of the priests. There are many parts of Jewish life that connect back to the Temple Service: the fact that we pray three times a day and two challot on Shabbat are common examples. However, other than imagery and metaphor, I am not particularly interested in rebuilding the Temple.
So how can we understand Service? Service means the giving of one’s time and resources for the sake of God and community. It is a reminder that our purpose is to be in service to others.
The world stands on Service as an imperative to see ourselves as a part of something larger, more expansive than we can imagine. That being a part of that larger collaborative effort, we can understand our role.
Deeds of Loving-Kindness
The world stands on deeds of kindness. It is hard to imagine a phrase more important, more foundational, and more challenging than this.
גמילות חסדים gemilut hasadim, acts of loving-kindness is a complex phrase to parse. In rabbinic literature, it is understood in relationship with hesed, loving-kindness. But even still, we can break down this concept into two parts, deeds and loving-kindness.
We can do actions begrudgingly. No one enjoys cleaning the bathroom, but we do it because it needs to be done. Even deeds that are a little less neutral, but even positive, we can do begrudgingly. You can give to charity without really wanting to.
Loving-kindness, however, is not something you can falsify. It is something that pours out of you and fills you up simultaneously. The power of deeds of loving-kindness is that it changes you, the recipient of that kindness, and the world as a whole.
The world stands on deeds of loving-kindness because it is transformative. It instantly makes the world a better place. Each act, each kindness given adds to a profound whole.