Chasing the Wind

  Mysterium Tremendum et Fascinans If you chase the wind , this is where the wind winds up; nowhere and everywhere. We have to come to an end . Qoheleth is a master of assemblies . Ecclesiastes is an address to a community . Ecclesiastes' words are wise, but don’t continue your despairing journey. Instead find the way to transcend and rise above the wind. This is the conclusion of the matter. Fear God and keep his commandments (12:13).  The last time we spoke, our conversation moved towards (the topic of) prayer . But now it has moved towards fear? The fear of God? Recall that in Ecclesiastes God is called Elohim (rather than YHWH). Elohim is a plural form of God, a plurality of communion . The scriptures teach that the Fear of God is the beginning of Wisdom . "Keeping God’s commandments " is the torah or teachings. In this case, the reference to commandments is mitzvah , like a bar mitzvah (or bat mitzvah ) when a young person becomes responsible for keeping the teachin...

  “Looking for something?” A simple question that may speak to our simple lives. What are we searching for? What are we missing? The spiritual nomad engages in ceaseless wandering. Such is the book of Ecclesiastes. Hevel . But v apour is so hard to grasp; therefore, we seek the tangible. Solomon built a majestic temple for YHWH Elohim , the one true God. It was a tangible house for His Glory to dwell in on earth.   But Qoheleth remains on a quest. He is looking for the true temple of God-Elohim. He says: “Frankly, a human being cannot understand what happens on earth, because however hard a man works to discover it, he will not find out. Despite what he thinks he knows, he will not be able to figure it out.” (Ecc 8:17) What is missing is a God that is not ‘far off' but who is close, nearby (7:24). But God is immortal, invisible, and dwells in inapproachable light (1Tim 6). Hence, Qoheleth feels lost, discouraged, and far from his home.  King Solomon knew that the kingdom ...