FREE ESSAY ON JEWISH PHILOSOPHY AND SOCIAL WORK

JEWISH PHILOSOPHY AND SOCIAL WORK

Jewish Social Philosophy 
For centuries, mankind as a whole has always desired or searched for love at some given
point if not for their entire life span. Love is a concept that while the dictionary will
give you various definitions, can not really be defined, but rather felt. Even if we
believe we are experiencing feelings of love at some point, there is no guarantee that
the experience then is an ever-lasting true love. Love grows and changes throughout one's
life starting hopefully with ones parents leading to peers, and on to life partners. Over
time, many philosophers have looked into this topic, trying to explain and break down
what exactly the concept is. It is the object of this paper to look at both Soleveichick
as well as Maimonedes, and apply their views to both a modern day perspective and social
work. 
Love being a concept that has been around since the beginning of time according to some
may have been a divine idea. If you look at the way Soleveichick breaks down the
character of first man into Adam I and Adam II, I think my point can be clearly seen.
According to Soleveichick it seems that Adam I is the utilitarian character by action and
attitude, I will return to him later. Adam II on the other had is an existential
character by his nature. By that it seems to mean that Adam II in the case of love would
be the more romantic character, the one which many at some point of life desire this type
of a loving relationship. This is the character where love comes truly within; it is a
spiritual kind of love, where one really needs nothing in return but the love itself. In
today's standards these are the people one would just buy flowers for, take long walks on
the beach with, as well as exploring and experiencing issues as well as acts of intimacy
with. These are the people we desire as life partners (does not necessarily have to be
for a marital type of relationship.) at times. I know that from my personal experience at
this point in my life I am having my first experience of true love other than the
parental one I had. The person I am referring to is now my fiancee. The feeling I have
towards her are one's of total joy which run through my body, that words can not do
justice. It is that burning desire within to constantly see, be with, and hold on to her.
For me I believe that it is mostly an Adam II type of a relationship we are having. Of
course love in this manner for different people can have different feelings as well as
meanings, after all every man has their own characters. Another thing derived from the
character of Adam II that it was Gods intention to find someone they love and eventually
spend the rest of their lives with this person. Maybe God was even saying in a way that
one can not go through life and be complete without a partner. I quote in Genesis
(chapter 2 vs.22-23) "and he took one of his sides and he filled in flesh in its place.
Then Hashem, God fashioned the side that he had taken from man into a woman". Not only
did this end first man's utilitarian loneliness, it also may have been showing us how we
should feel about a loved one. The second person whether she was actually created from
the first persons rib or side is unimportant. What one can derive from this is that not
only was there a creation made at this point but a strong bondage as well, bonding man to
his fellow man. Scripture seems to be saying that when we love someone it should be as if
they are in fact a part of ourselves, as if they are physically attached to us. It seems
God's doing the creation in this manner was giving an important message. It seems to be
saying that an individual can not lead a healthy, comfortable life without sharing it
with love ones. We see that first man was not content on his own even though he had the
entire world in his hands, neither are we. I am not saying that this love must exist
between man and woman per say, nor am I saying that the only form of reaching this
feeling is through marriage. Rather I am saying is we can not go through life alone,
without love, it is simply not in man's nature. Adam I on the other hand asks more of the
question, what will I get out of this relationship, what is in it for me. It is here
where I can see Soleveichick referring to more of a Freud Id driven character. This is
the type of person that will say I am going with this person for she will cook for me
every night. I will bring a personal example to this scenario as well. I love my father
for he is the provider of my family. I will not go into the issues of why I really feel I
only love him that way I ma just pointing out that that kind of love can exist. Of course
the characteristics of Adam's I and II can be combined into one relationship, and it
seems that it is often the case. 
Returning to the concept of life partners once again we could go again to Soleveichick
concept of loneliness. Continuing to use Soleveichicks characters of Adam I and II, the
utilitarian/ Adam I aspect of loneliness can be taken care of through loved ones,
especially a lifetime partner, making us physically not alone. The person we have
feelings of love toward we desire to be with, we yearn for. These people who are able to
resolve ones loneliness can also act as friends or even co-workers. So at least it is
possible to conquer the Adam I type of loneliness with being around others. It is the
Adam II aspect of loneliness which may be far more difficult to conquer. Soleveichick
accepts this aspect of an internal loneliness and uses it positively, turning him to a
better relationship with God. He believes that God is essential here , due to his faith
he can not come to terms with this loneliness in any other manner. He feels that humans
can not dispel it ultimately because it is part of humanity only through God can this
loneliness be shared. There are many people whose belief and faith in God are not as
strong, or simply there are those who do not believe in any God. It is here were ones
immediate reaction might be to turn to the social worker. It would be great if we could
just say that the person suffering with the Adam II loneliness may simply fear the
unspeakable or the underlying unconscious has some kind of unresolved issue that needs to
be looked at. It would be easy to try a psychoanalytic approach and go through ones
history to try and find the root of the problem. If one can in fact connect to God, why
can he connect to man as well? Why can't empathy as well as a strong model of
intervention relieve this loneliness? Why can't man be the one who will listen in a way
taking the place of God?
It seems that we would only be looking at Adam I's problem here. The loneliness of Adam
II according to Soleveichick is a more spiritual one that man to man can not resolve. So
if someone does not believe in God and this loneliness still exists, is this the point
where we have to tell the person that the problem can not be resolved? No, the only thing
is the problem of the loneliness here must be resolved on one's own. There are many ways
that one can going about doing this and as social workers we can make people aware of
these ways, since we are still helping the client it could be considered our duty in
fact. One method which I will bring to example is meditation. Through years of studying
martial arts meditation became a regular activity. It was there when I was done I left my
head feeling totally clear, I did not in a sense feel this loneliness. It is spiritual
activities such as these where it seems that people could turn to as well. Adam I is
where normal interventions of therapy would hopefully work 
Maimonides, in his writings brings up the topic of love a few times. The first time he
discusses love, it is in relation of man's love of God. In his "Sefer HaMitzvah"
Maimonides brings in from Deuteronomy how we are required to love God. He explains that
by studying and immersing ourselves in God's commandments, we fulfill this. This will
give us an image of God, and as we truly discover God, reach a level joy. This can be
tied to Soloveichick's article in regard to a cure for existential loneliness. Maimonides
continues and says that loving God is obligatory. With that statement, I see a problem.
How can we be required to love God? Is not love something that must be earned and
developed? When somebody has a tragedy happen to them, can they still love God? From a
personal note, I was diagnosed and treated for a form of cancer. If God caused me to go
through that pain and suffering, couldn't that be construed as God not loving me? When I
think of how much I love my fiancee, I say to myself that I would never be able to hurt
her intentionally, and when I do it accidentally, I feel horrible for it. God is supposed
to be perfect, so when bad things happen these are not mistakes. When speaking to many, I
typically heard that maybe this was a substitute fore something worse. So if we think in
this way, those that believe in God, with all of modern medicines cures, people are given
a second chance and they should love God for it. This seems to make the commandment a bit
easier to understand. That still doesn't answer how we are required to love God. If a
parent abused a child, must that child still love them, no. So too with God, it seems
that we should not be forced into loving God. Love should come from within, not be
commanded. Maimonides answers through though of God, one will come to understand God and
eventually love him. The love Maimonides describes seems like Soloveichicks Adam II type
of love. He describes it as a mighty and great love, so great that our soul feels
attached to God. A love so great that one strives for it all the time. I see this as a
true definition of love. The bible goes on to show many cases of this type of love. An
excellent example being the love of David and Yohonatan, making it seem as a divide
concept. Over here, man is required to love God. In conjunction with that it is written
in Genesis, that man was created in God's image. Maybe what that is trying to say, is
that we should love all men as we love God. If society truly felt this, there would be no
wars, no hatred, it would be a perfect world. Maimonides goes into speaking about loving
ones neighbor. This commandment says that we should love our friends as we would
ourselves. In these times, many people will go into counseling due to problems of
remaining in a healthy relationship. Maimonides says that by this love, one should love
by having compassion and well wishes to others as he would unto himself. Psychologically
speaking, a good deal of interrelational problems may stem from how people feel about
themselves. We can use this as a therapeutic route to solving ones problem. 
It is one of the goals in life to go through loving relationships. Of course by love I'm
not referring to a Freudian based sexually driven Id feeling. After all, plenty of people
go through life never having had sex at all, but have had loving relationships. Priests,
especially the Pope himself are examples of this. They have given up sexual activity for
a greater relationship with God. Even without the sex, they are still able to have loving
relationships between fellow men. 
Working with the homeless was probably my best experience in dealing with people
receiving no love. They were lonely in a utilitarian sense of the word. Quite
surprisingly though, many of the clients were not lonely in the existential manner.
Whether it was good or a place for them to turn to, this was a place for them, it was
their refuge. My job was to assist, at times when it was utilitarian love that they had a
problem of dealing with. After their family and friends threw them out, at times, our
agency is where they turned to. Some times, as their social worker, it was merely showing
them empathy and messages of empowerment which really helped. Finally, somebody was not
turning them away, and they no longer felt alone.
When people feel alone, or are having trouble with loving relationships, there are many
approaches a social workers can take to intervene. For example, one of my clients was a
substance abuser for forty years. I decided to use a life history approach to try to find
the root of his problem. It turned out that the client has always had trouble making
friends. In college, he became popular among other drug users. He felt that this was the
route which he had to take to make friends. After a few months of treatment, he came to
realize that this behavior was not necessary. Soon after, his drug tests were coming back
negative. 
To conclude, Being lonely, and the concept of love is nothing new. According to
Soleveichick, these ideas have in a sense been around since creation. Many other
philosophers have looked at these concepts as well. There are also the many paths the
social worker can take if one is troubled in this area. The exact way of helping when
these issues can in fact be resolved person-to-person is up to both the client and the
social worker.