56 Spirituality Studies 9-2 Fall 2023 Patterns of human behavior are initially shaped by each individual’s experiences within the family and their larger society. These experiences interact with their natural drives, those that Sigmund Freud named Eros and Thanatos, especially in his 1930 book Das Unbehagen in der Kultur (Eng. Civilization and Its Discontents). Each generation, unlike the accumulation over time of scientific and technological knowledge, cannot merely build upon the life-decisions of previous generations. The standards and decisions of our ancestors, of course, serve as a guide in our lives, but since human life is very dynamic and changing, each generation must develop its own responses to life and adopt for themselves the values upon which to build their existence. The Bible teaches us about this human characteristic. God made a covenant with the people of Israel at Mount Sinai. God revealed to them the principles according to which they should live their lives. In this way God was made known to them. The Children of Israel committed themselves to observing these maxims (Exodus 19–20). Forty years later, a new generation that was preparing to enter Canaan renewed the covenant (Deuteronomy 29:9–28). This, in turn, was renewed by the next generation at the end of Joshua’s days (Joshua 24:1–28). The process that each person experiences of building an individual identity with a distinct personality and set of values also occurs collectively at the level of the people and nation. Just as individuals resist being mere imitations of their parents, the Bible speaks about the renewal of the covenant as each generation appears. This means that the degree of spirituality attained by one generation does not automatically become integral for the next generation. This dynamic is vividly expressed in the biblical story of the cult of the golden calf before which the Children of Israel prostrated themselves barely forty days after having experienced the presence of God on Mount Sinai. What, then, is the path that individuals and societies must follow to be spiritually and ethically mature? A famous Talmudic passage (Makkot 23b–24a) describes a discussion among the rabbis about the essence of all the precepts, the mitzvot, that Jews must observe. Rabbi Simlai concludes that all the teachings of the Torah are epitomized in Amos (5:4): “Thus said the Lord to the house of Israel, seek me and you will live.” The Hebrew verb DRSh, which I have translated in Amos’s words as “seek”, is used in the Bible in various ways. In many verses it refers to the search for the presence of God in human existence (e.g., Genesis 25:22; Exodus 18:15; 1 Samuel 9:9; 1 Kings 22:8; Hosea 10:12; 1 Chronicles 22:19; 2 Chronicles 12:14; 2 Kings 1:3). This sincere and authentic search inspires individuals with values that move them away from the evil and the madness to which rampant low passions can drag them. According to the Bible, to seek God without being willing to embrace what is fair and merciful, what is just and good, is the same as walking after an idol. Those who seek the presence of God in their lives through the enhancement of their feelings and deeds are able to participate in God’s creation of peace on the face of the earth. In 1931, the International Institute of Intellectual Co-operation was established by the League of Nations’ Permanent Committee for Literature and the Arts. Its purpose was to facilitate the exchange of letters between representative public thinkers “on subjects calculated to serve the common interest of the League of Nations and of intellectual life” (Freud 1964, 197), and to publish these letters periodically. At that time, Albert Einstein was very well known around the world for his contributions to physics. He was considered one of the planet’s most outstanding intellectuals. Therefore, he was invited to correspond with whomever he wanted on the subject of his choice. In the early 1930s, many had already predicted that a new world conflict would soon break out. Social tensions in Europe were of such a magnitude that the shadows of a new world war darkened the horizon. Therefore, Albert Einstein chose Sigmund Freud as his dialogue partner on the topic “Why war?” as the topic for them to correspond about. In his letter to Freud, Einstein gave an extensive analysis of the different conflicts of interest among peoples. These included the insatiable appetite for power, the desire for domination on the part of leaders, and the destructive drives that are part of human life. It is on this last point especially that
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