Peaks Mill High School Commencement Address

To begin with, one has to wonder how it happened that a high school in a small rural Kentucky village happened to have a rabbi from a city probably an hour away come to deliver an address to fourteen graduating seniors. Whatever the answer to that mystery may be, his remarks are no less passionate than had they been delivered to hundreds. His thoughts about living in a complex modern world are as relevant today as they were in 1949 — the need for independent thought, for tolerance, for service, and for valuing the freedoms of democracy.

We are free to think as we please, but if our freedom is to be preserved we must all accept the freedom of others to do the same. 
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I CONSIDER IT A GREAT PRIVILEGE to have been invited to be with you on this important milestone of your lives. Anyone who is asked to present a message on an occasion like this has had a great honor conferred upon him and a great responsibility also. I think back, as I stand before you this evening, to the day when I, like you, was waiting for an old-timer to speak words of wisdom and, like you, I was hoping he would hurry and get it over with so I could get that bit of paper for which I had labored so long. One feels a certain amount of regret when he notices how many years have gotten away from him, but this regret is balanced by the thought that comes to me of how much easier it must have been for me to go to school than for you. For look what has happened in the last several decades. Look at the tremendous advance in all branches of knowledge. Look at the complicated pages that have been added to the history books, look at how many developments have occurred in all the sciences. No twenty-five years in all the history of mankind has shown such an amazing tempo of development in every field that affects the life of man as has the last twenty-five years. It was, therefore, much simpler, I think, for me to graduate school than it was for you, and for this, at least, I can be thankful.
 
Because, however, the world is so much more complicated, it is important that we go out into it with more than a satisfaction that we have passed the final examinations and have acquired a diploma. I hope our education has meant something more than a few facts of knowledge stored away and “readin’ and writin’ and ‘rithmetic” mastered. I hope, along with these, certain attitudes have also been acquired which I believe are indispensable to being a valuable citizen in the world of today—attitudes which were always desirable and important, but which we today, in an atomic age, need more than ever.
 
These are, first of all, a desire to think for ourselves. The rabbis of olden times said that there were four types of students, and these were a sponge, a funnel, a strainer, and a sieve. A sponge which sucks up everything, a funnel which lets in at one end and out the other, a strainer which lets the wine pass out and retains the dregs, and the sieve which lets out the coarse bran retains the fine flour.[1] It is obvious which type is to be preferred. We must be able to sift what comes to us, reject what is coarse, and retain only the fine flour. We must be able to show some discrimination in judgment or else the whole educational process has served no purpose.
 
We are faced today with an overwhelming abundance of the printed word, and with a constant barrage of the spoken word from the radio. A multitude of thoughts and ideas are available for anyone who would consider them, and this makes it all the more important for us to be able to sift and to select for ourselves those worthy of our attention. The same facility which exists for many people to express themselves also makes it possible for a few energetic people to dominate our thinking. We are in danger today of letting newspaper editors think for us, of letting the book clubs select our reading for us, of digests choosing our magazine articles. It is altogether too easy for anyone skilled in propaganda techniques to take hold of and to mold the opinions of large segments of our population. We must, therefore, always be alert to preserve our independence of thinking. If we fall into the habit of always accepting the thoughts of others what virtue is there to living in this great democracy rather than in a fascist or communist nation where thought control is of the very nature of things. In a democracy we believe in independent thinking and we must not unconsciously sacrifice this cherished principle.
 
It is not always easy to think for one's self and to refuse to follow subserviently the thoughts of others. In extreme cases men have suffered greatly for daring to be independent in thought. Think of Socrates, of the great Hebrew prophets, of the Founder of Christianity, of Galileo. They were not encouraged in their thinking and yet how different the world would have been had their thinking been lost to us. Such men are rare in history and the chances are that none of you will attain their stature, but the world, nevertheless, will be different, will be better or worse, depending upon the thoughts you think, depending on whether or not you will use your own minds or follow blindly after others. And so whatever question we consider, whether it be political, or economic, or social, or religious, I pray for you the courage of independent thinking and the courage of your convictions.
 
Secondly, what we need more than ever in this complicated world is the attitude of mind which leads us to seek more friendly and tolerant human relationships, with whatever individuals or groups the business of life brings us into contact. If we have learned to think for ourselves and not take for granted all we hear from others, this second attitude will be simpler to acquire. If we have learned anything in the past few years with regard to the human race it is how varied it is and how interdependent it is despite these variations. The world has been so narrowed down by our great advances in transportation, by our ability to jump from one corner to another, that we have to know more intimately men of different nationalities and of different racial strains and of different creeds. And we have to accept them and respect them for what they are rather than expect to make them over in our own image. And in a democracy this applies to our neighbors also, not only to those who live far off. As the world stands today, we must take the knowledge we all have of each other and build it into something good, for if we draw apart from each other in disdain and distrust we shall undoubtedly all suffer alike. In these critical days it makes no sense to be thinking in terms of our own individual superiority and to look down on our fellow man, to spurn him because his religious thinking or his skin is different, or because he does not accept certain other principles which we hold so dear. We must learn the good qualities of our neighbors, to expect human differences as something natural and desirable, and to learn to work together in one world despite these differences.
 
This does not mean that we are to be self-effacing before others in order to curry favor. It does not mean that we are to abandon all principal in the effort to keep peace. But it does mean that to all men of good will, to all who are willing to live and let live, we shall extend a hand of friendship. We may each feel that our own way of thinking or living is most desirable, yet at the same time we must accord to others the right to the very same feeling, and we must each go our way with tolerance and respect for each other. We are free to think as we please, but if our freedom is to be preserved, we must all accept the freedom of others to do the same. In a world as interdependent as ours has become, there is no alternative to such procedure, but chaos. The seeds of prejudice and intolerance whether they be directed toward one person, or a group, or a nation as a whole, can only scar our own souls and disturb our own peace of mind. The ancient rabbis asked, “Why did God create only one man at the beginning instead of a number at one time?” And they said because God wanted to show that all men have a common ancestor and all are brothers in the sight of God. Without the development of such a sense of brotherhood among men we cannot hope to clear the world of its problems.
 
Thirdly, we must not only think for ourselves, and be tolerant of other people's thinking, but we must also have a desire to be of service to others. Education is supposed to help us make our way in the world. Through education we presumably equip ourselves with the knowledge which gives us earning power and helps us make a living so that we may have a home and a family and enjoy the pleasures of life. But we dare not let ourselves be overwhelmed with the thought that all there is to living is the acquisition of material goods for ourselves alone. We cannot ignore all others but ourselves. There are individuals with stricken lives who need us. There are community projects that depend on us. We must be ready at all times to think in terms of the good of large numbers and not merely of ourselves. Selfishness is not even a good policy from a selfish point of view. Emerson once said, “The selfish man suffers more from his selfishness then he from whom that selfishness withholds some important benefit.”
 
Bruce Barton once told this parable about two seas.[2]  
There are two seas in Palestine. One is fresh and there are fish in it. Splashes of green adorn its banks. Trees spread their branches over it. The River Jordan makes this sea with sparkling water from the hills. Men build their houses near it and birds their nests, and every kind of life is happier because it is there.  The River Jordan flows south into another sea. Here is no splash of fish, no fluttering leaf, no song of birds. The air hangs over its waters and neither man nor beast nor fowl will drink. ‘What makes this mighty difference in these neighbor seas?’ the parable asks. Not the river Jordan. It empties the same good water into both. But this is the difference—the Sea of Galilee receives but does not keep the Jordan. For every drop that flows into it another flows out. The giving and receiving go on in equal measure. The other sea is shrewder, hoarding its income jealously. It will not be tempted by any generous impulse. Every drop it gets it keeps. The Sea of Galilee gives and lives. The other sea gives nothing. It is named “The Dead.”
There are two seas in Palestine. There are two kinds of people in the world. And the concluding question is,  “Which kind are we?” That is a question that we ought to ask ourselves frequently in checking on ourselves. Only a Cain asks, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” But if we want to live meaningfully, if we want really to feel the joy of living, then we must be ready to assume our responsibility in being of service to others whenever we are called upon.
 
One last thing that I hope you have gained from your education and if you have this, perhaps, all the others will come naturally. And that is a proper appreciation and understanding of the greatest form of government history has ever produced, the democratic form under which we live today in these United States. It may sound strange, but I don't really think that all Americans understand fully what democracy means. They know it has something to do with everybody voting, but I don't think they have all caught the spirit of the Declaration of Independence, which says,
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men….
These words are from a political document, but are they not what the Bible meant when it said, “Proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” Democracy is after all the political expression of religious truths which both Judaism and Christianity have taught, that human personality and human dignity must be respected at all times, that all men are children of the same God and therefore brothers. And this means all men regardless of race, religion, or social standing. Democracy is the American ideal. We know that in some respects we fall short of the ideal, but we ought, at least, always be aware of it so that we may constantly strive to improve ourselves and to come closer to it. The great hope of the world today is democracy, an upsurge of a truly democratic spirit and conscience.  And the more effectively we practice democracy here, the less will be our danger from other sources. In the early days of our country a noted Frenchman once asked the poet Lowell how long he thought the American Republic would endure.[3][4] He replied, “As long as the ideas of its founders remain dominant.” Our national security more than on anything else depends on our devotion to democracy. And I hope that out of your schooling has come to you an understanding of what life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all men really means, and that you will hereafter be moved by these ideals in your own participation as citizens in the political life of this land.
 
Let me conclude with a story. Pierre van Paassen tells the following story.[5] His grandfather was a clergyman in Holland. Every so often it was his grandfather’s custom to go to the village tailor and order himself a new pair of trousers. On one occasion when he did so, he waited for the tailor to inform him that that the trousers were ready, but he did not hear from him at all. And so he went back to the tailor shop to inquire. The tailor put him off. Just a few more days, he said. A few days later the clergymen came back, but still the trousers were not ready. The man’s patience was at an end, and so he rebuked the tailor and said, “How is it that God created the world in only six days, but you have not been able to finish these trousers for so many weeks?” “You are right,” said the tailor, “ God created the world in six days, but look at what a mess it’s in!”
 
The world is not in very good shape. Many problems face us in the future, but you today go forth in common with thousands of others of graduates and will give this world new blood, new manpower, and new ideas. And so we take hope and we pray that you will go forth to take your place in this world with free minds, with tolerant spirits, with a desire for service, and a devotion to the American ideal. We pray also that God’s blessing will be upon you, that your contribution will be a noble one, and that success and happiness will be yours.
 
 


[1] Pirkei Avot 5:15

[2] Bruce Fairchild Barton (1886 –1967) was an American author, advertising executive, and politician. He served in the U.S. Congress from 1937 to 1940 as a Republican from New York.

[3] François Pierre Guillaume Guizot (1787–1874) was a French historian, orator, and statesman.

[4] James Russell Lowell (1819 – 1891) was an American Romantic poet, critic, editor, and diplomat.

[5] Pierre van Paassen (1895 –1968) was a Dutch–Canadian-American journalist, writer, and Unitarian minister.

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