Over the years, I’ve heard the word “lapsed” used to describe a person who is not particularly connected to his or her faith.
Recently, however, I’ve come up with something else. I am going to start to use the word “dormant.”
Faith never truly exits a person. Even when they feel disconnected, it lies in wait for the right moment to reconnect.
The miracle of seeing one’s children being born. Living through a virus in which millions of people die, but you are still alive. A recognition that this world is too complicated to go at it alone. These are all moments when we “wake up.” They shake us out of our dormancy and into the realm of connection.
Studies demonstrate that Americans as a whole feel disconnected from organized religion. This does not mean that we are lapsed. It does not mean that we have suddenly all become atheists. It means that we are still waiting for the right moment in our lives to start.
As we approach Rosh Hashanah, I am reminded of the words of the Machzor Lev Shalem (and here, I paraphrase) the secret that Adam and Eve taught us was not how to begin but learning how to begin again.
There can be no greater challenge than waking up when we have become dormant.
But given all that has happened in our lives, this year, let us find a way to try.
