My Dad used to send me something he called “dueling proverbs.” He would find two seemingly conflicting bits of wisdom and share them both. For example: Robert Kennedy used to say, “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” But an African proverb cautions us “only a fool tests the depth of the water with both feet.”

Tonight we begin the reading of the book of Devarim. Devarim means words. It also means things. It is this second one that demands our attention here as we have two passages in Pirke Avot, the ethics of our ancestors, that offer us a trio of virtues upon which the world stands. They also present dueling proverbs. 

עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד, עַל הַתּוֹרָה וְעַל הָעֲבוֹדָה וְעַל גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים:

“Shimon the Righteous was one of the last of the men of the great assembly. He used to say: the world stands upon three things: the Torah, the Temple service, and acts of loving kindness. (Avot 1:2)

 עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד, עַל הַדִּין וְעַל הָאֱמֶת וְעַל הַשָּׁלוֹם

Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel used to say: on three things does the world stand: On justice, on truth and on peace, as it is said: “execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates” (Avot 1:18)

Are these dueling proverbs? There are some clues. The setups are not completely the same. In the first one, the one we all know and love, it says “עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד” Three things on which the world stands. In some versions, the second one is slightly different: עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם קיים Three things on which the world endures. A small difference, but a significant one. The sages offer us the explanation that the world stands on three things, that is,  the world was established based on: Torah, avodah, and gimilut chasadim. What allows the world to continue, or is necessary for its continued success is the trio of justice, truth, and peace. 

Does that then mean that our obligations to Torah, Avodah, and G’milut Chasadim are over? If those were the necessary ingredients for the creation of the world: Good job, God! You did it! I think we can all agree that those virtues are not one-time deals and of all people, the Rabbis, are not going to let us get out of them. And they do not. Study of Torah? Check. Not only as an academic discipline or a ritual matter, but as a means to being “the true guardians of civilization.” Prayer, our stand-in for the Temple Sacrifices? We are supposed to pray three times a day. Even if we do not, we are still all here, so there must be something to it. And when it comes to acts of loving kindness, we are taught: אֵֽלּוּ דְבָרִים שֶׁאֵין לָהֶם שִׁעוּר: there are things without measure, of which a person enjoys the fruit of the world, while the principal remains in the world to come. They are honoring one’s father and mother, engaging in deeds of compassion, arriving early for study, morning and evening, dealing graciously with guests, visiting the sick, providing for the wedding couple, accompanying the dead for burial, being devoted in prayer, and making peace among people. (Mishnah Peah 1:1) Torah, avodah, and gimilut chasadim still seem pretty relevant. More likely though, it is as Rabbi Joseph Karo suggested, that Torah, Avodah, and Gimilut Hasadim are the building blocks of a society, the latter three are part of preserving that society. 

Indeed the world does stand on those things: Torah – not necessarily the literal words, but its moral message, its lessons and wisdom, those inform us and guide us. We have seen what happens when people abandon its ways of pleasantness and its paths of peace. Prayer? Someone who was definitely NOT St. Ignatius said, “Pray as if everything depends on God, Act as if everything depends on you. The one who rises from prayer a better person, that prayer has been answered.” And acts of loving kindness, I think every one of us can think of a small, simple thing that someone has done for us and how outsized the impact was. Without those human gestures, our humanity is lost. 

Justice, truth, and peace. We learn about those from Torah, from prayer, and from kindness. HaChassid Yaavetz, a 16th Century Greek rabbi, likened it to a pot of water. A tremendous amount of heat is necessary to bring it to a boil, but much less keeps it boiling. 

While it is essential for us, the world can live without Torah. But our society cannot survive without justice, truth, and peace. 

There is a story of a woman who complained to a rosh yeshiva, the head of the rabbinical school, who had convinced her son to become a Jewish educator, instead of a doctor. “How could you do this?” she asked. “What if he had discovered the cure for cancer?” 

The man told her a story: once upon a time, a man sent his son from their shtetl to study at a university in Berlin. He was the first in the village to go to university and everyone in the little town was so proud. When he came home for vacation, his father was eager to hear all about it and life in the big city. He asked his son about the Jewish community there.

“There are over 300,000 Jews in Berlin.” The son said.

“Such a community!” The father exclaimed. “How many non-Jews?”

“Three million,” his son answered. 

“Three million?!? Why do they need so many gentiles?”

The rosh yeshiva turned from his story and explained to the mother, “Adonai also made non-Jews. Who says that a Jew has to find the cure for cancer? The problems of our community though, can only be solved by Jews. Let those with the gifts to do so, do.

We do not need to be Torah scholars. We need not enroll in yeshivot and devote every moment of our lives to study. But we do need to live what the Torah says. We do not have a monopoly on those issues. But we do have a unique relationship with them and a moral and religious duty to live them visibly in the world. Many people can live righteously, but only we can live the Torah.