THE GIFT OF FREEDOM m ¨Orer §l We should always be in awe of God in private as well as in public; speak the truth aloud and mean it in our heart. i ¦d §i Our Living God and God of our ancestors, help us to live according to Your teaching and to hold fast to Your commands. Let us not come into the power of sin or wrong– doing, temptation or disgrace. Let no evil within us control us, and keep us far from bad people and bad company. Help us hold fast to the good within us and to good deeds, and bend our will and our desires to serve You. Give us today, and every day, grace, kindness and mercy in Your sight and in the sight of all who regard us, and grant us Your love and kindness. Blessed are You God, inspiring Your people Israel with love and kindness.
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KEx ¨A :mi ¦aFh mi ¦c ¨q£g Ep«¥l §n §b ¦z §e mi ¦aFh mi ¦c ¨q£g l ¥nFB .dedi d ¨Y ©` :l ¥` ¨x §U ¦i FO©r §l m¨Orer §l L’olam y’hei adam y’rei shamayim ba–seiter k’va–galui, umodeh al ha–emet, v’doveir emet bilvavo. i ¦d §i Y’hi ratson mill’fanecha, Adonai eloheinu veilohei avoteinu, shetargileinu b’toratecha v’dabb’keinu b’mitsvotecha, v’al t’vi’einu lo lidei cheit v’lo lidei aveirah, v’lo lidei nissayon v’lo lidei vizzayon, v’al tashlet banu yeitser ha–ra, v’harchikeinu mei’adam ra umeichaveir ra. V’dabb’keinu b’yeitser ha–tov uv’ma’asim tovim, v’chof et yitsreinu l’hishta’bed lach, ut’neinu ha–yom uv’chol yom, l’chein ul’chesed ul’rachamim, b’einecha uv’einei chol ro’einu, v’tigm’leinu chasadim tovim. Baruch attah Adonai, gomeil chasadim tovim l’ammo yisra’el. The Gift of Freedom
and the ‘inclination towards evil’, a powerful drive within us that needs to be channelled. This drive provides the energy that leads to procreation, human creativity and positive actions in the world ( Genesis Rabbah 9:7), but unless controlled it becomes destructive. This struggle continues throughout life, but, in the rabbinic view, the teachings and practices of Torah lend support to the ‘good inclination’.
One of the morning blessings thanks God for not making us a ‘slave’, a celebration of our freedom as human beings to choose how we conduct our life. The first two passages in this section explore how this freedom is to be used in the service of God, choosing the way of goodness and the affirmation of life. In the rabbinic view there is a daily struggle within human beings between the ‘good inclination’, basic to our humanity,
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