the Titanic sunk. That great luxury ship struck an iceberg, letting
ocean water plunge in. The tragedy resulted in the loss of about 1500
lives. The prevailing theory had been that the hull of the ship had
been gashed open by the iceberg. The new theory offers a different
explanation.
When divers actually examined the ruined vessel on the bottom of the
sea, they did not find a huge gash at the front of the ship. Rather,
they found small rows of thin openings that had let the sea water into
the ship. What caused these rows of openings? It seems that the rivets
that were used to hold the boat together--failed. They snapped under
pressure, opening seams in the ship's hull. A study of the archives of
the shipbuilder found that the company used stronger steel rivets at
the sides of the ship, but weaker iron rivets in the front and back
sections. This compromise in standards may have been a way of saving
money; or a way of saving time, since steel rivets may not have been
available in large enough numbers without causing a delay in production
of the ship.
This decision to use iron rivets instead of insisting on the stronger
steel rivets cost 1500 lives. The decision must have seemed small when
first made; but when those rivets failed and the ship sank, the error
of the decision became clear in a very stark way.
The shipbuilders did not skimp on the frills and luxuries of the ship.
All the amenities were built to high standards of fashion and opulence.
But when it came to the strength of the foundation of the ship, the
shipbuilders settled for iron instead of steel rivets.
There's a lesson in this.
We sometimes make a serious error in judgment by emphasizing the
superficial frills and being careless when it comes to the essentials.
Before Passover, my wife was shopping at a large New York grocery store
that sells kosher and non-kosher products. She noticed a woman loudly
scolding the store manager because the store did not have any more
shank bones, and she needed a shank bone for her Seder plate. My wife
saw, though, that this complaining woman had a shopping cart full of
non-kosher meat! This complaining customer was adamant about fulfilling
the custom of having a shank bone on her Seder plate; but was not at
all concerned about transgressing Torah laws relating to kashruth. Her
emphasis was obviously on the symbolic form of her Seder plate, not on
keeping a kosher home in line with the Torah tradition. She was
satisfied with external symbols, and did not think it was necessary to
bother with the real laws of the Torah tradition.
Ignoring kashruth laws is like ignoring the quality of the rivets in
the Titanic's hull. Kashruth is one of those basic religious
institutions that serves as the foundation of a Jewish way of life.
Especially in our day, when kosher foods are so readily available, it
seems strange that Jews would walk right past the kosher meat section
in order to buy non-kosher meat. They don't seem to understand that a
kosher home plays a vital role in the continuity of Jewish tradition;
that compromising on kashruth is tantamount to using defective
rivets--it endangers the structural strength of the Jewish home.
People sometimes think they can compromise on kashruth, or Shabbat, or
ethical commandments, or Jewish education for their children--and
somehow keep their Jewish families intact. Yet, every poor quality
rivet put into the ship's hull creates a potential for disaster. It is
not easy for Jews to pass on Jewish identity and teachings from
generation to generation. It requires tremendous effort, and tremendous
concern for quality control.
If we want to build a first-class ship, we need to use first-class
materials. If we want to create first-class Jewish families, we need to
maintain first-class standards of Jewish observance and Jewish
commitment.
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