"In the place where a baal teshuva stands, even the perfectly righteous cannot stand", says the Talmud. This enigmatic statement hides a profound symbolic message that is misinterpreted by many, and yet, it is not possible to decipher it without understanding Jewish theological symbolism.
Baal teshuva means "the master of return" or "the master of repentance" and refers to a person who has embraced the traditional Jewish teachings after living a non-religious life. This term is often used to distinguish those who were born in an Orthodox Jewish family and have always been observant (also called "frum from birth") from those who became observant later in life. But what is so special about a baal teshuva?
Orthodox by Choice
When a person is born in a very religious family and is taught all about the Jewish laws and practices from birth, this person will probably have few opportunities to escape from the right path. Sometimes for fear of God, other times for respect to tradition, and other times simply because they know no other possible way.
While many Orthodox Jews achieve their highest aspirations through Orthodoxy, the scriptures, when interpreted symbolically, call attention to the fact that there is no real merit in being righteous out of fear or lack of opportunity. True righteousness emerges from a conscious exercise, one has to choose to be righteous rather than being imposed through cultural automatism.
Cultural automatism can be understood as an automatic introjection of beliefs, practices and values. In all religions and cultures people who are born in a certain faith are subjected to the acceptance of teachings and religious practices without having the chance to examine them for themselves, because the religious teachings were assimilated before they were old enough to rationally accept such premises.
Certainly, not all Orthodox person is necessarily "righteous by accident" – and many Jews who were born in observant families are perfect examples of righteousness – but a baal teshuva will necessarily have become righteous by choice, and the process of accepting the traditional teachings without the imposition of the family and cultural background requires a level of intellectual understanding and introspection that many people are not capable of achieving.
The Importance of Repentance in Judaism
In Judaism, repentance has a very important meaning. No sin is unforgivable but the sinner, having acknowledged the sin, must go through a process that includes confession and prayers, but most importantly, the promise never to sin again.
Many baleei teshuva (baleei teshuva is the plural for baal teshuva) return to the traditional Judaism after they repent from their non-observant life. A baal teshuva, then, has made a conscious choice to clear the past mistakes and leads a strict life because he has learned through experience, the real meaning of righteousness
The scriptures bring many messages about how the contrast between good and evil provokes consciousness, and an analysis of the symbolic message behind the story of Adam and Eve may provide clues about the role of the baal teshuva.
Meaning and Symbolism
According to the Jewish creation story, Adam and Eve lived happily in paradise until they decided to eat the forbidden fruit. In theological symbolism, the tree that provides the fruit is called "tree of the knowledge of good and evil" because its fruit brings an experience that teaches Adam and Eve the difference between good and evil. This experience is the fall into the physical world, where humans are given free will in order to return to the source through their own means, as they do not remember their divine nature.
Humans, on the physical plane, experience the contrast between sacred and profane, death and immortality, instinctive and spiritual, and it is through this contrast that consciousness of the divine arises. When finally, a person chooses the good path (sacred over profane, spiritual over instinctive), he or she will have achieved the goal . This, according to many philosophical systems of the ancient world, is the purpose of the physical existence – provide an experience that will give people the tools to achieve the consciousness of God.
A baal teshuva embodies the path of all humans – the birth in a righteous environment, then the fall into the worldly pleasures, then the return to the right path by choice. So, baleei teshuva are the personification of the path that leads to the final destination of all humans – the reunion with the Source.
Sources and resources:
Jewish Virtual Library
Telushkin, Joseph. You Shall Be Holy. New York: Bell Tower, 2006
Jacob, Louis. The Jewish Religion: A Companion, Oxford University Press, 1995.
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