Abraham Joshua Heschel - an outstanding expert on the theology and philosophy of Judaism, a poet, a social activist, and a descendant of the most prominent Polish Hasidic families - is still considered one of the greatest Jewish thinkers of the 20th century. Heschel, whose name is being opened at the Catholic University of Lublin, was also a pioneer interreligious dialogue - during the Second Vatican Council he played a key role in the declaration "Nostra Aetate".
"No religion is an island," said Abraham Joshua Heschel, who titled one of his most famous essays this way.
- We are not to flatter each other or refute each other's claims; the goal is mutual help, sharing intuitions and science, cooperation in scientific endeavors at the highest level and - what is even more important - a common search for springs in the desert, sources of piety, treasures of solace, the power of love and care for man. We need nothing more urgently now than to find ways of supporting each other in the face of the terrifying experiences we are experiencing here and now, through the courage to trust in the Word of the Lord, which always endures, also here and now - wrote Abraham J. Heschel, referring to the dialogue of Christians and Jews .
- Abraham Joshua Heschel combined attachment to Jewish tradition and the desire to preserve everything valuable in it with active involvement in all important problems of the modern world - said historian, publicist and translator Henryk Halkowski, who was an expert on Hasidism and Jewish culture in Poland. The researcher also recalled that Heschel took part in, among others, he participated in protests against the Vietnam War, fought for the civil rights of African Americans (collaborating with Martin Luther King), and was also one of the first to stand up for the rights of Jews in the Soviet Union. - He felt responsible for everything - and he never refused if he believed that his participation could help a good cause - added Halkowski.
As a theologian and philosopher, Heschel explored with great passion the secrets of religion as such - "a living and dynamic relationship between God and man."
- Religion is the answer to man's ultimate questions. As soon as these questions fade in our consciousness, religion ceases to have anything to tell us and its crisis begins. The main task of the philosophy of religion is to rediscover the questions that religion provides answers to, full stop. For this purpose, it is necessary to explore human consciousness, at the same time penetrating the teachings and attitudes contained in the religious tradition - wrote Heschel in "The Theology of Depth".
This thinker also eloquently appealed for authenticity in practicing faith. In the book "God in Search of Man" we read: Religion is disappearing not because it was opposed, but because it has become meaningless, bland, stuffy, bland and banal. When personal faith is replaced by catechism, heartfelt reverence is replaced by discipline, and love is replaced by routine; when the crisis affecting us today is ignored, clinging to the glorious past; when faith becomes an element of tradition and not a living source; when religion speaks only with the voice of authority and not with the voice of compassion - then what it communicates ceases to have any meaning.
In the 1960s - during the Second Vatican Council - he was involved in the preparation of an important document for the Catholic Church, "Nostra Aetate", which discussed the attitude of Christians towards non-Christian religions, especially Judaism.
- Heschel reminded the Church that "the very miracle of Israel, of Jewish existence, of the holiness that has survived in Jewish history, is a constant confirmation of the miracle of the Bible. The revelation given to Israel continues as a revelation through Israel," said Eugene J. Fischer, an expert on the dialogue of Christians and Jews, who He was active in the US National Conference of Catholic Bishops. He also recalled that the above words of Heschel constitute the main message of the "Nostra aetate" declaration.
Heschel's important demands included the fight against anti-Semitism. - Nazism has been defeated, but the process of eliminating the Bible from the consciousness of the Western world continues. Jews and Christians are called to work together to preserve the brilliance of the Bible in the human mind. None of us can do this alone. Both must realize that in our era, anti-Semitism is anti-Christianity, and anti-Christianity is anti-Semitism, he taught.
Abraham J. Heschel's work concerned all areas of Jewish tradition, religion, philosophy and theology. He was fluent in German, Hebrew, Yiddish (he wrote poetry in it) and English. Jewish tradition - in Heschel's opinion - contains many extremes that are difficult to reconcile. But - as Halkowski emphasizes - "Heschel does not want to give up anything that he considers valuable in the Jewish tradition." - That is why he tries to create such a model of reality that all these extremes and opposites can function in it on equal terms; this is what his philosophy of religion, the philosophy of Judaism, serves - added the researcher.
What is also noteworthy is Heschel's unique and unique style of reflection, giving the impression of "a constant oscillation between the external and internal worlds, sensual and spiritual, current and universal."
- His works are full of suggestive comparisons and metaphors, unusual juxtapositions of concrete and abstract, brilliant aphorisms, poetic images, concepts of classical and existential philosophy - this is to evoke in the reader a special attitude towards what is absolute, the ability to transcend, to go beyond oneself, beyond their "I" - writes Halkowski, adding that Heschel wants to influence not only the intellect of his readers, but also their intuition and feelings - "breaking them out of the mood of self-satisfaction and self-confidence, sensitizing them to those spiritual dimensions that have faded away in consciousness of modern man.
Heschel also carefully researched the Eastern European period of Jewish history. In a beautiful literary essay, "Pańska jest ziemia", he described a world that has definitely become a thing of the past - the atmosphere of small, often poor, but bustling shtetls. - Korzec, Karolin, Bracław, Lubavitch, Ger, Lublin - hundreds of small cities that were like holy books. Each place was a model, a manifestation, a path of Judaism. When a Jew mentioned the name of a city such as Międzyboż or Berdyczów, it was as if he was mentioning a divine mystery, Heschel wrote, and his translator added that although Heschel was born in Warsaw, his "true spiritual homeland was not any large city , but dozens and hundreds of small Jewish towns in Poland, in Podlasie, Volhynia and Podolia.
- Jews in Eastern Europe lived more in time than in space. It was as if their soul was always on the move, as if the secret of their heart had no affinity with things (...). "To be" is more important than "to have". Even though we deal with things, we live in our actions, Heschel noted.
It is also worth mentioning the atmosphere of the house that Heschel created - a house, as his daughter Susannah Heschel recalls, thoroughly Jewish and imbued with deep spirituality. - Parents realized how valuable time was and they never wanted to lose even a minute. Time is life, they said, so if you do something to pass the time, you are committing murder. Sometimes they went to the theater, but only to see serious, valuable plays, never just for entertainment. My father distinguished between entertainment, which is passive, and celebration, which requires involvement. At home, all three of us celebrated various celebrations, wrote the rabbi's daughter, adding that her parents avoided too colloquial expressions in conversation. - Words create worlds, my father used to say, every word has some impact, so you have to be careful what you say - she recalled.
This is how Heschel's life and work as a "jewel from God's treasury" was summed up by his student, secretary and research assistant Byron L. Sherwin: When he ended his life on December 23, 1972, God lost the mediator of his mercy, Jewish science lost one of its most original scholars, a versatile and penetrating mind, the victims of social injustice and moral scandal have lost an advocate, students have lost a teacher, and students have lost a master.
- His life was a symphony of noble deeds and sublime thoughts. Both in words and in action, he was exceptionally effective at combining the wisdom of the past with the problems of the present. He was a rabbi who could explain the most difficult issues of Jewish scholarship, a philosopher who could analyze complex medieval concepts, and an author who mastered the art of creating classics - summed up Sherwin, also describing Heschel as "the prince of Polish Hasidim", whose writing and attitude to life are nothing like a wake-up call for the spiritually lethargic and intellectually lazy.