Rabbi of His Majesty
03/10/2023
One of these days we could celebrate the 75th birthday of one of our authors - the Chief Rabbi of Britain, Lord Jonathan Sacks. But he hasn't been with us for over two years. But these days are an occasion to remember one of the greatest thinkers and most influential Jews of our day.
The depth of thinking mixed with his originality - that's what struck when dealing with him. It was these qualities that ultimately predetermined the attitude of the intellectual, religious, and political elite towards him. And his behind-the-scenes conversations with the greats of this world, as it turned out, influenced the development of civilization no less than his books and sermons.
But like all of us, Rabbi Sachs came from childhood. He was born in Finchley - on the northern outskirts of London - a few years after the war, in 1948. And although he was brought up in an Orthodox Jewish family, he studied - a surprise! in a classical Anglican school. According to the official version, there was simply no Jewish school nearby. But one way or another, in childhood, the future chief rabbi thoroughly studied the New Testament. It seems that this, to a large extent, explains the commitment of Rabbi Sachs to interfaith dialogue - he believed not only in its very possibility, but also in its productivity.
Then there was a study at the London Yeshiva "Etz Chaim" and at the University of Cambridge, and he received a degree in philosophy already at King's College - in the very one where he was later to become a professor.
Speaking about the people who had the greatest influence on him, Jonathan Sachs himself named Maimonides in the first place - it was from his works that he discovered for himself how interconnected the Jewish worldview is with the achievements of modern science and world philosophy. He called Rabbi Yosef-Dov Soloveichik his second teacher - from him he learned why one should not be afraid of the conflict in consciousness that arises when Judaism clashes with non-Jewish culture. And the last teacher was the Seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe, whom he considered "the greatest Jewish leader of our day."
But one could safely add Shimshon-Raphael Hirsch, the great commentator on the Pentateuch and the founder of the modernist movement in Judaism, to this list. Sachs, of course, was close to Hirsch's idea that a Jew should master the whole complex of knowledge of mankind. In essence, it was Sachs who was the true successor of Hirsch's work. And the role of Sax at the turn of the 20th-21st centuries is quite comparable to that played by Hirsch a century and a half ago.
One of the main philosophical ideas of Rabbi Sachs, which runs through all his books, was the conviction that "Judaism gives hope to humanity in the dialogue that it has with itself", in contrast to the Greek tragedy, which "is designed to plunge him into despair ". In this "giving of hope", as well as personal improvement based on eternal values, was, according to Sachs, the universal role of Judaism.
And then - from the universalization of the Jewish worldview to the need for interfaith dialogue - there was only one step. And he did it. After all, he called Judaism the only monotheistic religion that does not claim a monopoly, and the Jews do not try to impose their faith on other peoples, which opens up tremendous opportunities for the dialogue of Judaism with all other religious movements. “The time has long come to expel from the Western worldview the demon Plato, who claims that there is some kind of universal truth, and all people are the same,” he wrote in the book “Respect the Other”, which has become a desktop for many modern philosophers.
By the way, the Pentateuch itself tells us about the respect and exclusivity of each person. Moreover, in the very first lines of the biblical chapter “Ki Tisa” read just this week in all the synagogues of the world, containing an indication of how to conduct a census: “Let everyone give half a shekel to be numbered. The rich don't give more, and the poor don't give less. Each is half a shekel. On the one hand, this implies the equality of everyone, regardless of their financial position before God, law and society. But the second message: people are not cattle, not nuts and screws to count them on their heads. Everyone is a person who deserves respect. It was this idea that Rabbi Sacks preached.
Already by the 1980s, he was a popular figure in the UK, actively publishing not only in the Jewish, but also in the mainstream media. And having taken the chair of the chief rabbi of Britain in 1991, he began to promote his ideas in practice, organizing interfaith dialogues and speaking at the most prestigious world forums. And in 2009, at the World Forum in Davos, he organized a meeting of religious leaders from all over the planet, since then bringing interfaith dialogue to a new political level.
In his sermons to the Jews, he never tired of reminding that "one should not close oneself and it is quite possible to allow contact and cooperation with the non-Jewish world." Figuratively speaking, Rabbi Sacks opened the doors and windows of the house of traditional Jewish Orthodoxy, letting in the winds from all over the world - in the firm belief that this house is able to withstand any winds. Moreover, these winds, having swept through the Jewish house, came out of it completely different! There is no need to look far for examples: if not for Rabbi Sachs, the historic decision of the Pope would not have been made that Jews do not need to be baptized to save their souls. To us, this decision seems a bit ridiculous, like a weather forecast from a neighboring galaxy, but it illustrates how much Rabbi Sacks has changed these “winds”.
It cannot be hidden that such views and ideas of Rabbi Sachs, and indeed all his open behavior, often caused discontent among fellow Orthodox rabbis. Moreover, the position of the chief rabbi held by Sachs made it possible to put these ideas into practice. Not without scandals. For example, Sachs's formula that "God addresses Christians as a Christian and to Muslims as a Muslim" provoked sharp criticism from the rabbinic community, and the case almost smelled of his expulsion from the post of chief rabbi.
The debriefing took place in the main synagogue in Manchester. And in the midst of a stormy discussion, when attacks were pouring in from all sides, Rabbi Sachs unexpectedly cited a half-forgotten quote from the classic work of Maimonides "Mishne Torah", which is taught without fail in all yeshivas: "All the words that Jesus of Nazareth spoke, and everything that the Ismaili who came after him said was nothing but the construction of a road for the coming of King Moshiach.” This is where the debriefing ended - the rabbis of our generation can no longer argue with Maimonides. Erudite Saks helped again!
Apparently, this symbiosis - on the one hand, quite a modern outlook on life, and on the other hand, classical orthodox thinking - it was this cocktail that allowed Sacks to enjoy great influence among both Laborites and among the Conservatives. Over the years, he has been an adviser to such different prime ministers as John Major, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. He also had friendly relations with many members of the royal family, first of all with Prince Charles, and now with King Charles III. However, he did not wait for the accession of his friend.
Their friendship began at a gala dinner at Buckingham Palace: Rabbi Sacks was often invited there, his position and connections were obligated. But he came there with his plates! And to the surprised question of Prince Charles, he explained: they say, he fears that the royal dishes may not be kosher.
“It will not be easy for you,” the prince said to the eccentric guest. - After all, there will be not only changes in dishes, but also changes in tables.
“Nothing, Your Highness, I will move from table to table with my dishes,” the rabbi replied.
During dinner, he did just that, which the Jewish banker who was sitting nearby did not like very much. “Drop your Jewish stuff! he hissed. “Don’t you understand that you are embarrassing us?!” But after dinner, the prince approached Rabbi Sachs, took him by the arm and asked him to stay after the guests had left - to tell him more about the Jews. Immediately the banker jumped up and joyfully told the prince:
- Your Highness, by the way, I am also a Jew!
- Yes?! the prince was surprised. “Where are your plates then?”
In 2005, Rabbi Sachs was knighted. In 2009, he became a baron and was introduced to the House of Lords. It seems that he treated all these titles with some humor. Although in essence he really was a knight - a knight of the Torah. And on his coat of arms it would be worth embossing the words that Rabbi Sacks so often liked to repeat: "The golden age of Judaism is yet to come!"