By Sanford Goodkin

How do you spend the year in between these days of awe? Do these days of contemplation and asking for forgiveness ever improve us as a people or as individuals, or is there so much fear of God’s retribution-never mind Katrina and Rita- that we really never really change for the better? Are Jews doomed to be fearful of every tomorrow? Are we in love with God or worried about what He’ll do if we aren’t fearful of Him? Is Torah the recitation of ancient fables, fears and warts or is it the review of what can be better, with less fear and more effectiveness?

We are a humorous people even with all that fear. We bury our worries with humor. So many of the great comedians are Jewish, or do they just know how to promote their gags as a living. I heard the lovely Terry Gross interviewing Phillip Roth, on PBS,  recently. She asked him whether he was anti-Semitic because so many believe he is. His books are like the comedians' routine of making fun of the Jews. I was just sworn in as an honorary Deputy Sheriff and heard another Jew, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Kolender, make some wonderful humor about Jews and Gentiles, since he occupied two important police jobs with which Jews are not usually occupied .

My feeling is that our humor is a reflection of our fear and our consciousness; after all Jews cannot feel secure, when God promises His constant attention to our fidelity to what we are supposed to be, as well as to our covenant with Him.

My own take is that we are special, as we travel through our lives, making choices of good and stupid, stubbornly clinging to our violations of our Torah and God’s commandments, practicing our humor. Well, what can He expect? We are only human.

God sits in judgment of our actions towards each other, rather than towards Him. He would love to see us practice that rule of gold, rather than be in awe of His power. It’s time to relax and to partner His ideas 365 days. Then awe will be replaced with the practice of love and tsedakah—righteousness—and He will shed His countenance upon us and our and His wait will be over.