SEPTEMBER 19 • 2024 | 39

RENEWING OUR IDENTITY
When we tell the story of our peo-
ple’s past, we renew our identity. 
We have a context in which we can 
understand who we are in the pres-
ent and what we must do to hand 
on our identity to the future.
It is difficult to grasp how sig-
nificant this was and is. Western 
modernity has been marked by two 
quite different attempts to escape 
from identity. The first, in the 
18th century, was the European 
Enlightenment. This focused on 
two universalisms: science and 
philosophy. Science aims at discov-
ering laws that are universally true. 
Philosophy aims at disclosing uni-
versal structures of thought.
Identity is about groups, about 
us and them. But groups conflict. 
Therefore, the Enlightenment 
sought a world without identities, 
in which we are all just human 
beings. But people can’t live with-
out identities, and identity is never 
universal. It is always and essen-
tially particular. What makes us 
the unique person we are is what 
makes us different from people in 
general. Therefore, no intellectual 
discipline that aims at universality 
will ever fully grasp the meaning 
and significance of identity.
This was the Enlightenment’s 
blind spot. Identity came roaring 
back in the 19th century, based on 
one of three factors: nation, race or 
class. In the 20th century, national-
ism led to two World Wars. Racism 
led to the Holocaust. Marxist class 
warfare led eventually to Stalin, the 
Gulag and the KGB.
Since the 1960s, the West has 
been embarked on a second 
attempt to escape from identity, in 
favor not of the universal but the 
individual, in the belief that iden-
tity is something each of us freely 
creates for him- or herself. But 
identity is never created this way. 
It is always about membership in 
a group. Identity, like language, is 
essentially social.
Just as happened after the 
Enlightenment, identity has come 

roaring back to the West, this 
time in the form of identity pol-
itics (based on gender, ethnicity 
or sexual orientation). This will, 
if allowed to flourish, lead to yet 
more historical disasters. It is a 
major threat to the future of liberal 
democracy.
What was happening in 
Jerusalem when people brought 
their first-fruits was of immense 
consequence. It meant that that 
they regularly told the story of who 
they were and why. No nation has 
ever given greater significance to 
retelling its collective story than 
Judaism, which is why Jewish 
identity is the strongest the world 
has ever known, the only one to 
have survived for 20 centuries with 
none of the normal bases of identi-
ty: political power, shared territory 
or a shared language of everyday 
speech.
Clearly, not all identities are 
the same. Characteristic of Jewish 
identities and others inspired by 
the Hebrew Bible are what Dan 
McAdams calls “the redemptive 
self.” People with this kind of iden-
tity, he says, “shape their lives into 
a narrative about how a gifted hero 
encounters the suffering of others 
as a child, develops strong moral 
convictions as an adolescent, and 
moves steadily upward and onward 
in the adult years, confident that 
negative experiences will ultimate-
ly be redeemed.” More than other 
kinds of life story, the redemptive 
self embodies the “belief that 
bad things can be overcome and 
affirms the narrator’s commitment 
to building a better world.”
What made the biblical story 
unique was its focus on redemp-
tion. In partnership with God, we 
can change the world. This story is 
our heritage as Jews and our con-
tribution to the moral horizons of 
humankind. Hence the life-chang-
ing idea: Our lives are shaped by 
the story we tell about ourselves, so 
make sure the story you tell is one 
that speaks to your highest aspira-
tions and tell it regularly. 

W

e are just about halfway 
through my favorite 
month of the year, Elul. 
It is my favorite, not only 
because it is the month my 
first child was born, but also 
because it represents the start 
of something new. A new 
school year, new season, new 
activities. It prepares us for 
a new year as we get ready 
physically and spiritually to 
celebrate the High Holidays. 
This year, as my children 
began new schools or new 
grades, I thought a lot about 
new beginnings and how 
we mark those starts. We 
might celebrate with new shoes or 
ice cream; new backpacks or first 
playdates. Or we might celebrate with 
blessings, offering our thanks to God 
for allowing us to get to these special 
moments. 
In our Torah portion this week, we 
read from the book of Deuteronomy, 
near the end of the Torah. As Moses 
speaks to the Israelites, giving 
instructions about commandments, 
he also reminds them that they are a 
part of a sacred covenant with God. 
This mutual promise requires loyalty 
to God in return for blessings and 
reward. 
The Torah portion begins by telling 
us that when the Israelites first settle 
into the Promised Land, they should 
take some of the first fruits of the 
land they harvest and bring them to 
the priest as an offering to God with 
this message, “I acknowledge this day 
before your God that I have entered 
the land that Adonai swore to our 
ancestors to assign us.
” (Deut. 26:3). 
These ancient Israelites also marked 

their new beginnings with a prayer and 
a blessing, a recognition that this was 
a moment to be acknowledged and 
celebrated. A moment to offer a 
thanks to God for allowing them 
to reach this new place and new 
time.
The prayer the Israelites offered 
was a simple one: a story about 
who they are, what their journey 
looked like and why they are there. 
After that story, the prayer was 
recited and Moses reminded them, 
“
And you shall enjoy, together 
with the Levite and the stranger in 
your midst, all the bounty that the 
Lord your God has bestowed upon 
you and your household.
” (Deut. 
26:11). 
These verses present a four-point 
plan for the Israelites as they enter 
a new place. First, bring offerings, 
remembering there is something 
beyond us. Then, recite a blessing, 
remembering where we came from. 
Share with others, remembering we 
have obligations to others. Finally, 
celebrate and enjoy life!
What a perfect way to honor a new 
beginning. A story, a connection and 
joy. After all, with each new grade 
that my children begin, I am certainly 
sharing their stories, connecting with 
friends and teachers and parents, 
reveling in the joy of their growing and 
doing and learning.
As we look forward to the month of 
Elul giving way to the month of Tishrei 
and our new year beginning, may we 
all find moments to mark, beginnings 
to celebrate and stories to share. 

Rabbi Arianna Gordon is the director of 

Education and Lifelong Learning at Temple 

Israel in West Bloomfield.

Marking New Beginnings

SPIRIT
TORAH PORTION

Rabbi 
Arianna 
Gordon

Parshat 

Ki Tavo: 

Deuteronomy 

26:1-29:8; 

Isaiah 60:1-

22.

