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16
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Supposing is a thing of wonder,
An aptitude for genius, passed on to us, we dare say,
All the way from Adam and from Eve,
Our suppositional progenitors who risked presumption
And “supposed.”
And toward that end, required wisdom, the fruit of a tree
That, they were warned, they ought not taste.
But, being human, they had no choice,
Supposing being the gift of God’s imagination,
And the very mental stuff of what we know ourselves to be.
They now are us, ever-after exiled,
And supposing that this mortal condition we call exile is not altogether bad.
True, God banished us from Eden,
But with knowledge far beyond what Eve and Adam grasped,
Ever-growing wisdom for the purpose of supposing:
Suppose, then, betterness . . .
For the world, for the planet, for God’s creatures, for us all.
Suppose the possibility that our lives are not mere accident;
Suppose the very thought
That each new age of this, our College-Institute, is slated for greatness;
Suppose that we are gathered now for just that end.
V’hu hayah, v’hu hoveh, v’hu yih’yeh!
God “was, and is, and will eternally be”
With us, the Jewish People by God’s side.
How richly blessed we are to see today
And to suppose tomorrow.
B
enediction
Rabbi Norman J. Cohen, Ph.D.
Acting President (2000–2001); Provost Emeritus;
Professor Emeritus of Midrash, Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion
“
Lift your hands toward Israel and bless the people.
Bless the people with everlasting love.
For the love of peace, the pursuit of peace,
For the love of all creation drawing close to the tree of life.”
Ohev shalom, v’rodef shalom
Ohev et habriyot um’korvan latorah.
,
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