"FORGIVE US"

  That request applies to so many, too many, in this upside-down world of ours. To distinguish between right and wrong, to find balance in a world gone massively atilt, to 'know' deep down who indeed warrants forgiveness, one often needs to be a Solomon, able to discern the real from the fake.

There is, sadly, too little of what Judaism calls "Hakarat Hatov" - Recognition of the Good" - done by someone or a group to and for others. We often overlook the unselfish behavior of people as we rush through an increasingly challenged world. Often left by the wayside due to exigent circumstances is the realm of morals and morality, of ethics at work, of recognition that there are those who deserve aid, deserve to benefit from that recognition, who earned it via some action or other. Good payback is a necessity, no matter the difficulty to do so.

Today I can think of several examples of those who, in the spirit of Hakarat Hatov, do the right thing, despite the difficulty involved, and those who decidedly, firmly, ignore it, often with malice aforethought. This is so wrong, so evil in intent and result, that someone, somewhere, needs to articulate a method by which this egregious behavior is stopped dead in its tracks. Unfortunately, in this world caught up in the exigencies of politics, a world gone so far off base that there seems to be no Waze, no GPS, no paper map, to get us back on the right path.

During the worst times of history, when Jews were hunted like prey, headed for extermination, their contributions to mankind overlooked, forgotten, credit stolen and ignored, there were some brave souls who risked their lives and their families, to aid desperate Jews. They hid them, fed them, be it for money or simply altruistic behavior, and there is an element here for Hakarat Hatov. That obligation is kept to and up by The Jewish Foundation for the Righteous Gentile. There remain 15 of these elderly rescuers, trapped in the ruins of Ukraine, a land where the tables have turned. These elderly folks and their families were in desperate situations, unable to evacuate due to age, to complications and dangers, and help was given. Via superhuman efforts to do so. That is Hakarat Hatov at its best. You ask, who asked for forgiveness? Read who did.

“We are at war,” read an email delivered within hours of the invasion from the family of one 93-year-old. “People are leaving their homes looking for shelter [and] they are left without water and food. Shops are closed. Everyone is leaving for safe places indefinitely. If there is any way to help our family financially, we will be very grateful to you. Forgive us. With best wishes, Oksana’s family. Peace to all of us…”

Now ask yourself, why and wherefore does the world not recognize, stress, emphasize, encourage the growth and inculcation of these values, on both sides of the matter, rather than what is now in place:  demands of war, bloodshed, payback of vicious results and motives, creating a wasteland of our world, consequences often unable to be reversed.

What do we do with those who refuse to recognize their debts to others? The principle of positive payback is alien to them. Trump, who refused to reach for any kind of moral standard at all, however low it might be. Manchin, who refutes the loyalty he owes to the Democratic Party which supported him in his various runs for office and, along with the GOP, voted as an unthinking, uncaring, selfish cowardly automaton, ignoring the needs of so many Americans, voting against the abortion rights bill that would have aided so many. Instead, we have Manchin, and five so called 'justices' - ignorant, in morals and jurisprudence and its reasoning, who vote their politics rather than the law, who turn on the very population that enables their position. 

It refers to those of the ilk of Graham et al, who at first stated that the Jan. 6 insurrection was Trump "gone too far" - mind you - too far, rather than treason, and now jumped whole hog, up to their ugly, complicit necks, into the Crazed Trumpian world of injustice, perfidy, greed, and negativity. No Hakarat Hatov here.

Perhaps we do need a revolution here in America. For sure, we have wandered far afield of the proper behavior of a nation which cares for humanity, for equal rights, for humane treatment of all. We have, instead, become a nation of wrangling states, argumentative, run by legislatures, governors, Senators and Representatives out of touch with the quiet majority of their constituents. 

The hope is that "the sleeping giant has been awakened" as Tojo warned after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Perhaps we here in America will now awaken as well, alert to the very dangerous, crumbling edge of democracy upon which we stand. Hakarot Hatov is manifestly needed, to recognize the sacrifices, the dreams, the efforts, of so many, to build this land, to endeavor to build a better world. We have gone astray, hugely astray. It can and will be difficult to find that proper path again, to reorient ourselves properly. It can be done, though, if we all remember and observe the principle of Hakarat Hatov, of goodness, of mercy, of gratitude, of loyalty to standards of morality rather than to cult figures and negative values. A bloodless revolution, albeit it powerful in intent and achievement.

Bob the Builder used to ask, "Can we build it?" and answer, resoundingly, encouragingly, "Yes, we can." There are times when we can find what we need in the less complicated world of children. A good dose of children's optimism and hope, of confidence in the lasting power of right and faith and loyalty, trust, of their country and its leaders, is exactly what we need right about now.

And here is another term from Hebrew which carries with it a stronger meaning than the simple translation. Multiply that translation by infinity; feel the powerful longing and hope contained within. A word expressing the simple hope of a nation, a people, only wanting to be left alone, to live a good, decent life, to contribute to society and recognize what is owed to those who offer it that chance. A society which will reap the benefits of Hakarat Hatov.

Halevai' - if only.

The anguish of a nation, of a people, of a battered world.  If only....