The Quest for Wonder

Abraham Joshua Heschel. Just look at that sly fox.

One of the authors I have taken great pleasure in reading lately has been Abraham Joshua Heschel. If you haven’t heard of him, Heschel was a prominent Jewish rabbi, theologian, and professor during the 19th century. He authored a number of books – most notably his treatise on the importance of a holy day, The Sabbath, in which he compares that holy day to a “sanctuary in time,” one that we are called to uphold so that we may find ourselves coming closer to God.

An Orthodox Jew living in an increasingly modern America, Heschel worked to fight against the constant busyness we find in our everyday lives. When I read The Sabbath last year, I found myself craving more of Heschel’s words. I got ahold of an anthology of his (which I highly recommend). It was shortly afterward I ran across this quote of his:

Never once in my life did I ask God for success or wisdom or power or fame. I asked for wonder, and he gave it to me.

Abraham joshua heschel

And it hit hard. As in, deep-in-the-pit-of-my-stomach hard.

I had asked for success, or for wisdom, or for power, or fame, or wealth, or health. But I had never asked for wonder. But it seemed to me as if wonder was not a one-and-done sort of thing. Or, at the very least, I felt as though it shouldn’t be.

So essentially, that is what this website is. This site is a quest. It is my journey as I slowly and hesitantly learn to ask for wonder. Continually, repeatedly asking for wonder. Because as long as we’re asking, I believe He will give it.