Finding Your “Why”

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” In our achievement-oriented culture, we often ask children about their expected aspirations as if identity were solely determined by occupation. Yet the etymology of “vocation”—from the Latin vocare, meaning “to call”—points to something deeper: the idea that we might be summoned to a particular purpose by something beyond ourselves.

This concept of calling finds powerful expression in the reflections of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks—the former Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth and one of the most influential Jewish thinkers of our time—on the first verse in the Torah portion Vayikra (Leviticus 1:1-5:26). The portion begins with an intriguing redundancy:

Why mention that God both called to Moses and spoke to him? Why not just say that God spoke to Moses, what does the fact that he called to him add?

Rabbi Sacks suggests that this distinction reveals something profound about human purpose. The “calling” signifies more than mere communication; it represents a personal summons, an invitation to a unique mission. Moses wasn’t just receiving instructions; he was being entrusted with a divine purpose that would give his life direction and meaning.

While reflecting on the nature of calling, Rabbi Sacks shares his own unexpected journey. As a university student studying economics and philosophy, with aspirations to become a British courtroom lawyer, the rabbinate wasn’t on his radar. Yet a pivotal conversation with Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Rabbi of Lubavitch, in 1978 redirected his entire life. The Rebbe vetoed all his career plans, instead instructing him to train rabbis in Britain—a task that seemed neither desirable nor aligned with his talents at the time. The Rebbe recognized a calling that demanded Rabbi Sacks’ unique contributions—a vocation he would not have chosen for himself, but one that gave his life profound purpose.

The theologian Frederick Buechner wrote that vocation is “the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” A calling asks not “What would make you successful?” but rather “What broken thing in this world needs precisely the repair that only you can offer?”

This theme of divine calling resonates throughout the Hebrew Bible. Abraham was called to leave his homeland; Moses was summoned at the burning bush. The young Samuel was called by God, initially mistaking God’s voice for that of his mentor Eli, and the prophet Isaiah, in his mystical vision, heard the words: “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” to which he responded with the timeless words: “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8). These stories remind us that being called often means stepping beyond our comfort zone into a larger purpose.

Perhaps no one understood the life-saving power of purpose better than psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. As a Holocaust survivor who endured the unimaginable horrors of Auschwitz, Frankl observed something remarkable: those who survived weren’t necessarily the physically strongest, but those who maintained a sense of meaning—those who believed they still had something to accomplish.

This wisdom found renewed resonance for the Israeli hostages held in Gaza. On their 52nd day of captivity, Hersh Goldberg-Polin shared Frankl’s famous quote with fellow captive Or Levy: “He who has a why can bear with any how.” After his release, Levy revealed that this sentence became his survival mantra. “My ‘why’ is [my son] Almog,” he explained, “and I knew that I would survive anything—no matter how difficult it was—for him.” Tragically, Goldberg-Polin was later murdered by his captors, but his transmission of Frankl’s wisdom created a profound chain of meaning that transcended the unimaginable suffering of captivity.

How does one discover their vocation? Rabbi Sacks cites Michael Novak who suggests that a calling has four characteristics: First, a calling is unique to you. Second, you possess the talent for it. Third, when you engage in it, you experience renewed energy rather than depletion. Fourth, your true vocation may not reveal itself immediately—you might follow many false paths before finding the true one. As Logan Pearsall Smith observed, “The test of a vocation is the love of the drudgery it involves.” We are willing to make sacrifices when we sense that a specific role or task is what we are called to do.

In our contemporary world, where many struggle with questions of meaning and purpose, Rabbi Sacks’ exploration of divine calling offers valuable insight. It suggests that fulfillment comes not from pursuing self-interest or following societal expectations, but from attentively listening for the unique way we are being called to contribute. As Rabbi Sacks explains, we don’t invent our calling; we uncover it.

For those seeking direction in life, Rabbi Sacks offers this wisdom: “Where what we want to do meets what needs to be done, that is where God wants us to be.” By heeding these summons—whether they come through religious tradition, inner conviction, or human need—we discover that our lives were meant not merely to be lived, but to be given as gifts to the world.

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