Rabbi Freedman at TBJ

Occupy Wall Street

2011-11-12T20:02:00.003-05:00

Occupy Wall Street and Veterans Day

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

Rabbi Larry Freedman

November 11, 2011

Veterans Day is not Memorial Day. Memorial Day we remember those who gave up their lives in defense of our country. Veterans Day shows appreciation to all those who serve in our military. And, I have to say, as a member of the military it is nice to be appreciated. When in uniform I do have random people come up to me and say, “Thank you for your service.” Everyone likes to be appreciated. As a chaplain, I am also very appreciative of the families of military members. They put up with a great deal of stress that strains a marriage and family. The deployments of six months, nine months, a year away from family is very difficult. Two weeks ago I was away for training to be an instructor for a course on helping couples stay together so that the stress of military life doesn’t cause divorce. If you want to thank a veteran, be sure to thank the family as well.

Military members take an oath to defend the Constitution and they serve to defend the country from harm. But the military does more than that. There is what is called mootw, military operations other than war, which can range from drug interdiction to supply flights to Antarctica to training other armies to natural disaster relief. All of these things are done to further our national interests. The military, ultimately, is there to advance and defend our national interests as determined by our civilian leadership. This is not my opinion. That is what the military itself has expressly taught me. To serve in the military is to be part of that vast organization that advances and defends our national interests.

There are also uniformed members of the US Merchant Marine as well as the US Public Health Service. They too serve to advance the national interests of our country.

Of course, these are the people who serve in uniform. They are the ones who follow the orders of superiors as decided by civilian leadership. That leadership is chosen, ultimately, by the people. Therefore, we all take part in advancing and defending our national interests. All of us who live here should constantly be paying attention to what is going on so that we can speak on the issues of the day that affect our national interests and influence policy. Most regularly, we do so through the ballot box. But every now and then, a group of people feel frustrated and decide to exercise their right to assemble and they create a movement. We have seen two such movements arise in the last couple of years. One is the Tea Party and the other is Occupy Wall Street.

These are two groups on either side of the political spectrum but leaving specifics aside, they both talk about being a grass roots expression of public sentiment. They both are distrustful of government and they both tap in to frustration felt by the citizenry.

The Tea Party talks about defending America. OWS supporters tend to stay away from nationalistic lingo but they too feel they are defending America. It’s hard to find a piece of paper with a platform for OWS. The horizontal structure and commitment to consensus means that the will of the assembled is the platform of the group and thus it is dynamic but in large part they speak of economic injustice and they fear for the future of democracy if corporations are freed from oversight by the government -assuming government is an extension of the will of the people. They worry about the income gap in this country and they fear the accumulation of so much wealth by so few Americans is not in the national interests of our country.

We have all heard the statistics I hope. From the Congressional Budget Office[1] we learn how the disparity in the income gap has grown over the years.

Using 1979 as the baseline year and 2007 as the last year of the survey, the share of total income the top 1% of households making a bit under $2 million a year today has gone up over 120%. The top 20% of household income share has gone up almost 20%. That alone tells us that even the gap between the rich and very rich is huge. Meanwhile, the next 20% has, since 1979, lost almost 10% of its share of income and the rest of the households lost more than that. Another way of looking at income during those years is that between 1979 and 2007, the top 1% had a 281% change in after tax income. The top 20% had a 95% gain during those years. The bottom 20% had a 16% increase.

The situation in 2007:

Percentile % of Total Income

Top 0.1% 11%

Top 1 % 23.5%

Top 10% 50%

This change is not accidental and it is not due to hard work and innovation alone. It is due to changes in our tax codes as well as a variety of regulations that allowed the richest to earn even more and pay less in tax. In 2007, the top 10% of income earners earned half of all income in this country. The top 1% earned 23.5%, close to half of what the top 10% got and then the top 0.1% of earners had 11% of total income, again almost half of the top 1%.[2]

I hasten to add that neither I nor Judaism is opposed to rich people getting rich. You should all live and be well and make as much money as you can. We should understand that Judaism doesn’t favor any particular economic system. How you arrange your economy is less important to Judaism than the moral basis of that economy. Sharing the wealth is no more of a value in Judaism than accumulating wealth. What matters is that a sense of justice and morality prevail.

That’s why the question becomes, are the rich getting richer in a way that benefits the whole country? Is it in our national interests to have such huge disparity in income? And then we have to ask if the rich are paying their fair share of taxes. Yes, it is true the small numbers of the rich contribute more tax dollars than the large numbers of the poor but that is because they are rich. The poor cannot contribute nearly as much. We hear that 47% of Americans paid no taxes at all. That is not true if we count social security and Medicare as taxes but leaving that aside, many Americans paid no Federal income tax because they are poor or retired or disabled.[3] We can hardly expect those who earn little to no income to pay on a level similar to those making $2 million a year.

And then there is the matter of wealthy people having access to professionals who know how to shelter money to avoid paying taxes but that is another topic. And then there is the issue of corporations who have access to off shore strategies to reduce if not completely avoid Federal taxes. These are complicated strategies though some easy enough to understand with a clear graphic in a magazine. New York magazine recently explained how to lesson or avoid US taxes.[4] That is also another topic.

The situation we face today and that OWS wants to point out is the vast disparity in wealth distribution. Something is not right if the middle class who work hard and pay their taxes are not seeing the benefit of our country’s economic growth. There is something wrong with our laws that allow a CEO to earn tens of millions of dollars while sending a factory and its jobs overseas. There is something not right. This is the frustration we are hearing.

Occupy Wall Street is, at this point, an international phenomenon. There are occupy groups in hundreds of cities all of whom are expressing a general frustration with the economic status quo that they argue is maintained by cheating, by unfair advantage and by policies designed to keep this disparity maintained. For those of us who make less than $2 million a year, shouldn’t we all share some of this outrage?

Isn’t in our national interest to be sure that everyone pays his or her fair share in taxes? Isn’t in our national interest to be sure that giant corporations contribute to the tax rolls as much as small businesses do? It’s not about being punitive. Not as far as I’m concerned. It’s about fairness and smart thinking.

The Jewish attitude to all of this is also pretty clear. I found an essay by Dr. Meir Tamari, an Orthodox economist who has written extensively on this. Dr. Tamari is former chief economist in the office of the Governor of the Bank of Israel. I ordered his book which may make for some interesting discussion. He wrote an essay that coincidentally comments on this week’s Torah portion.[5] He begins by quoting Mishna (Avot 5:10) that says that the attitude of “What is mine is mine and what is yours is yours” is the value of a mediocre person. (I should add that person who says, “what is mine is yours and what is yours is mine” is called an ignoramus.) The person who says, “What is mine is mine and what is yours is yours” is called mediocre because while this person does not infringe on others, neither does this type of person see an obligation to share. This type of person thinks people should stay to themselves and forgets the social obligation we have to each other. Indeed, the Mishna goes on to suggest that this is the attitude of the people of S’dom, the people we read about this Shabbat. The evil of the Sodomites was not the graphic thing people like to talk about but the attitude they had that spurned attention to others. They would not let anyone enter their town and refused to share. They were interested only in themselves and forgot the very Jewish value of looking out for others. In S’dom, the people would not share the benefits of their wealth. They spurned others and kept them out except, of course, when Lot came by. Lot was a wealthy man. Lot was welcomed in.

Dr. Tamari goes on to say that having selfish people in a society is not a problem. Societies will always have selfish individuals. The problem sets in when the society itself internalizes that selfishness. When society becomes selfish there is moral decay and society will collapse. Capitalism is our economic system and justly celebrated but markets should never be so free that we forget compassion and obligation to one another. Capitalism without compassion is simply greed. Business and government need to strive for economic fairness: not always equality but fairness. And we need fairness not because capitalism demands it but because morality demands it and certainly Judaism demands it.

Yes, parnassa, making a living, is a value in Judaism. Everyone should be free to make a living and free to make a good living. But we should never be free to make that living by cheating others whether legally or not. It is a Jewish value to care for the workers, to look out for the poor and that is a moral stand we take and it is a moral stand we must choose to impose on capitalism.

Just down the river an international phenomenon is happening. They are speaking about fairness and justice. I want to see what’s going on.

I’m told it’s dangerous. Yup, there have been some arrests for criminal activity and assaults. But is the entire enterprise a cauldron of danger? There is no evidence of that.

I’m told it’s anti-Semitic. Yup, some people had some anti-Semitic signs but the stated platform of the General Assembly tolerates no such abuse, there was a sukkah, there are Shabbat gatherings and over 600 people turned out for Kol Nidre services. There are anti-Semites and then there is an anti-Semitic movement. I’m not convinced about the movement being hateful. But we’ll see, won’t we?

I’m told its hurting local businesses and so it is bad. I’m not sure how the local businesses are hurting given all the people in the area but we’ll find out.

I’m told that most people are just hangers on. Thousands of people go in and out. There are all these working groups and organized areas. Are they all done by hangers-on? We’ll find out.

Mostly I’m told that we should stay away from it all. But I want to see what’s going on. So tomorrow, I’m going. Anyone who wants to join me can. If not, not.

But more than curiosity, I want to go because what the OWS movement speaks of is a very Jewish value. The idea of holding government and business accountable so that all of us are treated fairly; the idea that corruption violates Judaism on every level; the idea that we all have the responsibility to look out for the poor and downtrodden; the idea that you cannot take advantage of people. These are Jewish values. As a Jew, I certainly support OWS on that level. And as an American on this Veterans Day, I support the rights of people to express their grievance. As a citizen, and patriot, I am called to watch for things that will harm our country and our way of life. Greed, corruption, inequality, unfairness are damaging to our democracy and to our national interests and that is why I want to go down. You should join me tomorrow on the 10:57 train to Grand Central. Let’s go see what is happening for ourselves.

[1] Found here: http://www.thefinancialphysician.com/blog/?m=201102

[2] The statistics can be found in numerous places but are collected in this location: http://acivilamericandebate.wordpress.com/2011/04/10/the-30-year-growth-of-income-inequality/

[3] http://www.politicususa.com/en/half-americans-taxes

[4] http://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/topic/irs-dodging-strategies-2011-10/

[5] http://www.myjewishlearning.com/practices/Ethics/Tzedakah_Charity/Themes/Judaism_on_Greed.shtml

Yom Kippur Morning Power of the Day

2011-10-09T13:29:00.000-04:00

Power of the Day

Yom Kippur 5772

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

Last year, as you know, my father died erev Rosh Hashana. All sorts of people stepped in to take over for me during the next day because my family wanted to gather and begin making arrangements right away. Astonishingly, the Jewish funeral home was open on Rosh Hashana so off we went to the upper west side of Manhattan.

Now, I am fond of telling you to withdraw from the world when Shabbat or our holidays arrive. I try to get you to engage Rosh Hashana or whatever holiday it is. I like to tell you about what takes place in your soul when you engage your heritage and withdraw from the workaday world. I know it is refreshing because I taste that joy every week and I relax with family every Shabbat and I have a chance to tell the world it has no pull on me; I do what I want on Shabbat and holidays. But every now and then I am placed outside of that warm cocoon and I am put back in the real world. Not often but it happens. And so, as I travelled down to Manhattan, I left Rosh Hashana.

You leave the environment we create here and, of course, the whole rest of the world just keeps going on. No one out there cares that it is Rosh Hashana. The funeral home didn’t care. Manhattan didn’t care. It looked like any other day. There were a lot of fun things going on out there, interesting things, important things, entertaining things. Looked great, actually.

It is very easy to think that what we do, what goes on in here is really very lame. The world continues, emails fly, money is made, homework is assigned while we hunker down in here ignoring reality. Crazy, right? If your head is in the world out there, then the High Holidays in here are really just one big annoyance and not connected to anything real. This experience will not be meaningful and as soon as you can, you’ll race out of here immediately entering into the outside world with Yom Kippur a distant memory. Give a couple hours to it and you’re done; head back to school or work, catch up on emails from home. Plenty of Jews do just that. I am aware.

But at the same time, plenty of Jews want to get their head out of the world out there. They crave the quietness Yom Kippur brings and they want to luxuriate in the novelty of spending an entire day away from the world thinking deeply. A lot of Jews and, to be sure, quite a few non-Jews are finding meaning in an experience of the mind, an engagement of the soul. There is more to us than just work. There is our soul that we need to water, every now and then so we can better meet the world. That is what we do here. We take that moment and use it to involve a different part of our brain for a little while.

I think most people who have trouble getting into the spirit of Yom Kippur struggle because they don’t really understand the ideas behind it. Yom Kippur is often viewed as thrust upon us, something to be endured. But if we understood the ideas connected with it, it could be something we chase after and seek.

Shalom Ansky in 1914 wrote a play called the Dybbuk. In it he wrote a soliloquy for his character Rabbi Azrael. Rabbi Azrael describes the ancient Yom Kippur but he is speaking about more than just that. Ansky through his character empowered Yom Kippur and in effect empowered every Jew who showed up at synagogue on Yom Kippur. He took it from being one day of making an appearance to a beautifully captured portrait of the original symbolism of the day. I want to read you the soliloquy. Keep in mind that it carries words and phrases that are true to its time. I found sanitized versions out there but I wanted to read a faithful translation. The original was in Yiddish.

Ansky will write of the Holy of Holies, that chamber deep in the Temple in Jerusalem that held the Ten Commandments. He will speak of a number of languages and peoples which we know is not accurate but it is the traditional number that signifies many. Finally, some of you may notice that Ansky has his rabbi distinguish among holy and not. Rest assured that while Hebrew is considered the holiest language, that does not denigrate other languages but you can’t expect a Jew to think any less of our special tongue, now can you? But most importantly, look at what Ansky, a socialist, has his rabbi do with the power of this one day.

“The world of God is great and holy. In all the world, the holiest land is the land of Israel. In the land of Israel, the holiest city is Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, the holiest place is the Temple. And the holiest place in the Temple is the Holy of Holies

There are seventy nations in the world and among them the people of Israel is the holiest. And the tribe of Levi is the holiest of the twelve tribes of Israel and among the Levites the holiest are the cohanim, the priests. And among the cohanim, the holiest is the high priest, the Cohen Gadol.

There are 354 days in the Jewish year, and among them the holy days are sacred. And Shabbat is holier than the holy days. And the holiest of all the holy days, the Shabbat Shabbaton, is Yom Kippur.

There are seventy languages in the world and the holiest among them is Hebrew. And the holiest work in the Hebrew language is the Torah and its holiest part is the Ten Commandments and the holiest word in the Ten Commandments is the name of God.

Once a year, on Yom Kippur, the four holiest sanctities gather together precisely when the Cohen Gadol enters the Holy of Holies in order to pronounce the ineffable name of God. And at this immeasurably holy and awesome moment the Cohen Gadol and the people of Israel are in the utmost peril for even a single sinful or wayward thought in the Cohen Gadol’s mind at that instant might, God forbid, destroy the entire world.

Every piece of ground on which a person stands when he raises his eyes to Heaven is a Holy of Holies; everyone created in the image of God is a Cohen Gadol; every day in a person’s life is Yom Kippur; and every world which a person speaks from his heart is God’s name. Therefore, every sin and every wrong committed by a man brings the world to destruction.”

This is the essence of what we do when we gather. We re-enact a moment when one special person in one unique place on only one day said just one word. The heart of Yom Kippur is this moment, imagining we are there in the Temple in Jerusalem watching as the Cohen Gadol goes in to say God’s name for our sake. And we tremble, that if anything goes wrong, if he faints, if he mispronounces, if he gets the jitters, the whole thing falls apart. It is like scaffolding being set up against a building. There is a moment, one brief moment between secure and not secure and in that moment, brief though it may be, that we hold our breaths.

This was the Cohen Gadol’s task, to intone God’s name in order to seek a good year of blessing for all the people. That is an amazing moment but it is even more amazing if you can put yourself there and feel that trepidation and remember that Ansky did not make up this story. It really happened. It happened for a thousand years until we lost the Temple during the time of Hanukah. Want to know why Hanukah is a big deal? Because until the Maccabees won, we couldn’t have that powerful Yom Kippur moment. But after the Hanukah rebellion, the Cohen Gadol again lived out this Yom Kippur moment until the Romans destroyed the Temple for the second time. We, the Jewish people, were dispersed without the Temple so we recreated the experience of that one day with one word at one place with one person with dramatic prayers and powerful music where we all gather together on one day to recite prayers that won’t be said for another year.

We recreated that nervousness with Kol Nidre, interminably standing while we carefully ask that our mistaken vows be forgiven so that we can enter the body of our nerve wracking day clean. We substituted the Cohen Gadol’s intoning of God’s name with our intoning prayers and acknowledgements of our mistakes and promises to be better. We don’t eat to mimic death that might come should this whole thing go badly and then we eat at the end of the day to proclaim: we have survived; all is right. We have another year to begin.

And this, all of this power and drama and tension is found in our day here at synagogue on Yom Kippur.

If you know that, this day is awesome. If you don’t know that, this day is boring.

Now you know.

And then look at what Ansky, the socialist and playwright does with the last bit of the Rabbi’s speech. He takes that power of one day with one person at one place with one word and recasts it for all of us, anywhere, anytime with every word: “Every piece of ground on which a person stands when he raises his eyes to Heaven is a Holy of Holies; everyone created in the image of God is a Cohen Gadol; every day in a person’s life is Yom Kippur; and every world which a person speaks from his heart is God’s name. Therefore, every sin and every wrong committed by a man brings the world to destruction.”

Be bad, and you, you, diminish the world and bring us that much closer to destruction but you, you behave well and positively and righteously and you bring us that much closer to a better world, to a peaceful world. And all this happens not miraculously but simply because you choose to live your life that way. It is not a miracle, it is an act of will and volition.

This is the secret of Jewish living. It is an act of will and volition. Here at the synagogue we will continue to find interesting activities and attractive approaches to our heritage. I will continue to try to make it engaging but ultimately, you have to step forward to be engaged. It comes down to will and a desire to be in the game, this game, our heritage.

That is what you should be doing here: engaging the day. Are you? Challenge yourself to think about something you don’t normally think about. Challenge yourself to give up eating and say my mind is in control of my body, not the other way around. Embrace the reality of what is in here. When you go home, don’t turn on the television because that is the gateway to out there. Can you do it? Make a list of what you hope to accomplish. Talk to a spouse about your dreams are for the next year. Call a friend to keep up a friendship. Yes, it may not be what you normally do but that is the point.

Shalom Ansky beautifully explained the thoughts and imaginations we should all have on this day. And then he offered his challenge to remember that we are in control of our lives and our destinies. If we want to experience the richness of Yom Kippur it is there for us. If we don’t, it will evaporate. If we want a meaningful day, it is up to us. How we act is up to us. How we think is up to us. What we experience is up to us. What we feel is up to us. No one can make you feel the awesomeness of this day. You have to make it happen. So many Jews ignore this day. They are out there and they have lost the power of this day. But you, you are here. You are well on your way to engaging the power of this day. Will you do it? Can you do it? Will you let yourself feel the awesomeness of this day?

Kol Nidre Sermon: Your Jewish name

2011-10-09T13:19:00.000-04:00

Hebrew Names

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

Yom Kippur 5772

Back in June, I went to summer camp for staff week. My assignment: explain Reform Judaism to Israelis. This is a challenging assignment because most Israelis think Reform Jews are just bizarre in their very strange habit of doing religious things non-religiously. For most Israelis either you are religious -meaning Orthodox- or you are not.

So my task was to explain liberal Judaism to this curious bunch who carried no understanding of why we weren’t Orthodox but still said motzie and birkat ha-mazon and had tefillot and all that. It was not a simple one.

Here’s how I started. I asked them, “What is the Jewish Question?”

A moment for some history.

The Jewish Question first was asked in 1750 in Great Britain. It asked, as the enlightenment was evolving, how Jews, a group always apart and separate from the rest of the population, would fit in to the larger society. As the Enlightenment took hold, could Jews ever be, for example, English or would they forever be Jews who lived in England? Could a Jew be a Frenchman or simply a Jew, foreign, apart, distinct, who happens to live in France?

I asked the Israelis if they ever heard of the Jewish Question. They had not which, honestly, really surprised me. So I framed the question for them. The Jewish Question is simply this: How can a Jew live in the modern world? That is the question. How can a Jew live in the modern world?

Many people have tried to answer the Jewish Question. The Communists had an answer. They said that Jews can certainly live in the modern world but Judaism cannot. There was to be no room for religion in the communist revolution.

The Nazis had an answer to the Jewish Question. They said, simply, Jews cannot live in the modern world. Jews as a group are sub-human and therefore the modern world must not have any Jews in it hence the Final Solution to the Jewish Question.

The Zionists had an answer to the Jewish Question. The answer was, good luck. The world hates us, nobody loves us, anti-Semitism will rage forever so the only answer is to create our own sovereign territory where we can live out our own culture and defend ourselves when necessary. It’s a shame, said the Zionists, but that’s how it is. The only way to live in the modern world is on our own.

The Reform Movement was fast developing in 1750 and through the 18^th and 19^th centuries, we also tried to answer the Jewish Question. How can we live in the modern world? Our answer? Adapt. We have to adapt. The founders of Reform argued that everybody hates us because we don’t fit in and we don’t fit in because we are old fashioned, backward and insistent upon ignoring the modern world. The Reform Movement said we have to acculturate, to take on the best parts of the modern world and make them our own.

Quite famously in 1885, just forty years after the founding of this congregation, the Pittsburgh Platform boldly rejected and removed all sorts of things that put an impediment between us and our neighbors, things we thought might be too old fashioned. Yarmulkes, tallit and all that was abandoned as making us stand out too much, making us too provincial and just not allowing us to live in the modern world. We made changes. The main service Reform Jews attended was on Sunday with a proper long academic lecture so that you like your neighbors all would go to “church” on Sunday. We became Americans of the Jewish faith which was much more modern than the idea that we are part of the Jewish people, a people that lives all over the world connected by religion and custom and history and so on.

And how has that Reform Movement experiment worked out for us? Well, good and bad, I have to say.

It’s good when we shorten Yom Kippur tefillot by removing prayers we don’t believe, use English, enjoy a sense of Western decorum and so forth. Looking at our Yom Kippur experience and we see that our way really does speak to the modern Jew.

On the other hand, we have lost intensity. For every person who appreciates the thought behind the changes to the Yom Kippur liturgy, there’s ten others who are just grateful it’s shorter. Not to be insulting but I’m pretty sure I’ve only had one person ever ask me to extend Yom Kippur into actual nightfall. However, cutting it short, I’ve had plenty of requests.

Part of our lack of intensity comes from lack of knowledge. If Reform Jews knew more, had a deeper understanding of things, we would find Jewish life more moving and enriching. Okay, no problem. I’ll just have to keep teaching and you’ll have to keep learning so that we all understand why we do what we do. We can do better with Jewish knowledge.

But assimilation is another reason. We have done so well in assimilating that we have lost a sense of intense connection to the Jewish people. We are losing a sense of uniqueness. We should remember that the Jewish Question asks how can we be Jews in the modern world? We know very well how to be in the modern world. We are quite successful at living in the modern world. It’s the Jewish part we struggle with. We have to be careful that we don’t answer the Jewish Question by saying, “I won’t bother to be Jewish.” Lots of Jews do just that. They just walk away and that’s a shame but I’m not going to talk about them. They are not here. I want to talk to you and help you keep up our own intensity so we can live as Jews in the modern world.

There is a midrash, a rabbinic sermon from the 11^th century writing Pesika Zutra that talks about what it means to be a nation and what it takes to stay unique as a nation. The rabbi was commenting on a very famous line. We read it every Pesach during the seder. We read: “My father was a fugitive Aramean. He went down to Egypt with meager numbers and sojourned there; but there he became a great and very populous nation.” (Deut. 26:5)

Never mind how you can be Jewish in the modern world. How exactly did they manage to stay distinct in ancient Egypt? The midrash offers this: the Israelites “became a nation - this teaches that they were distinct in that their clothes, food and language were different from the Egyptians.” Clothes, food and language. Notice, it doesn’t say faith or worship or holidays. Clothes, food and language. These are the hallmarks of culture. Those enslaved Israelites grew to be the Jewish people because they maintained their own culture: clothes, food, language.

In another place, the rabbis ask why, in any event, did God redeem the Israelites from Egypt. We know the Torah says that their cries grew loud and God responded but I suppose God could have heard the cries, looked down at the Israelites and decided, no, there really is no need to redeem them. They can stay where they are. Why did God think the Israelites were worthy of redemption?

The midrash from different rabbis over different centuries offers some ideas. Here they are:

Midrash Tehilim Rabba states: “R. Elazar Ha-kappara said: The Israelites were considered worthy to be redeemed from Egypt for four reasons: they did not change their names; they did not change their language; they did not reveal their secrets and they were not licentious in engaging in incest.”

Midrash Exodus Rabba states: “R. Huna said in the name of Bar-kappara: The Israelites were redeemed from Egypt for four reasons: They did not change their names and they did not change their language and they did not reveal their secret and they did not renounce their wives.”

Midrash Leviticus Rabba states: “R. Huna said in the name of Bar-kappara: The Israelites were redeemed from Egypt for four reasons: They did not change their names and they did not change their language and they did not engage in evil talk and no one could be found among them who committed incest.”

All of the midrashim reflect the rabbis asking: what was the secret of the Israelites in Egypt? How did they manage not to assimilate away while under difficult circumstances? The rabbis asked themselves that same question in the 8^th century and 11^th century and the 21^st century. The answer seems to be: culture. Maintain your culture. How do you do that? How do you retain your culture?

The secrets referred to may have to do with sharing internal issues with outsiders something of a problem when the midrash was written. The issue with wives has to do with staying true even if they were tempted to renounce their wives in favor of Egyptian wives.

And the other answer to how they maintained their culture: they did not change their names. What does that mean?

Names are powerful. Names send a message. Names tell a story. They reflect culture. They reflect history. They reflect family when we name after a relative.

Ashkenazi Jews, Jews whose families come from Europe, customarily name after the deceased. Sephardi and Mizrachi Jews, Jews from North Africa and Arab countries name after a living relative. Either way, it is a powerful moment to see a baby and remember a grandparent. It is powerful to be a grandparent and say, “one day, my name will be given to the next generation and I will live on.” It speaks of continuity and it reminds us that we are not alone but rather part of a larger continuum.

One time I was working with a family where a grandfather was dying as a new baby was born. The parents wanted to name the child after their father, the ailing grandfather of the baby but he had not died. They didn’t want to seem callous as though they needed him to die to name the baby. I suggested they ask the new grandfather what he thought. It was one of those moving moments where, with tears, the new grandfather got to see his grandchild and hear his own name conferred. The name passed on to him was passed on to the next generation. When we name after a relative, that name, in one form or another, has travelled for thousands of years through thousands of ancestors. Even if it is just the first consonant, it has been travelling.

We are not taking about the secular name, mind you. What kept the Israelites Israelite was their Jewish names, their Hebrew names. It is the Hebrew name that makes us unique and carries our culture. Our secular name doesn’t make us unique. Everyone has a secular name. What makes us unique is our Hebrew name, the name that proclaims our connection to the Jewish people. In fact some argue that our Hebrew name is our real name. Our secular name is the name we use for convenience and I believe that. Here, my name is Lawrence. In France it is Laurent. But in a synagogue around the world, it is Leib. In full it is Leib ben Kalman v’Pesiah. When Jews gather to celebrate our Judaism, for a birth, a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, a wedding or even mourn at a funeral, it is our Jewish name that is invoked. The joy of a babynaming is the joy of welcoming a child into the Jewish people and while we are pleased with the secular name, it is the Jewish name that is the highlight of the ceremony. Even El Al asks you if you know your Hebrew name as a signifier of Jewish connection. Hebrew Schools often use Hebrew names for the kids instead of secular names. We have to work on that. It certainly helps the kids remember their names.

How can we be Jews in the modern world? Fitting in to the modern world is no problem. Maintaining a sense of Jewishness is the challenge and having a Hebrew name is a big part of that. It says clearly, I have another name, another connection, another aspect to my life. I have a name that reflects an important part of my identity. I have a name that carries my culture.

So, what’s your Hebrew name? Many of you know your Hebrew name. You know who you were named after, you know the story of that person, what he or she was like. Many of you, however, do not know your Hebrew name. Sometimes people don’t know. Sometimes men ask their wives which is weird because why would she know better than him? Sometimes people have forgotten and that always seems a little sad. You’ve forgotten your name? You’ve forgotten this connection to your past?

We have to do something about this. We have to work to make sure that every Jew knows his or her name because what we really are talking about is remembering culture. We are remembering the link to our own family and we are remembering the link to our people.

Here are some suggestions.

If you have a new baby, have the babynaming and then put a photo of the namesake in the baby’s room. You’ll always remember the Hebrew name and the story behind it and soon enough the child will ask, “who is that?” and you will tell the story.

Don’t have a photo? There are any number of ways parents put their child’s name in the room. There are many gift items out there that celebrate a child’s name. Get one of those with the child’s Hebrew name on it either in Hebrew or English letters.

Use an initial to connect the Hebrew and secular name. People often ask me for the translation of a secular name so they can match it to the Hebrew name. Don’t do it. No one ever remembers etymology. Just use the first letter. So if you are naming after Pinchas, use a P or after Rivka, use an R. Using the first letter is the connector. People remember consonants easily. And by the way, your Hebrew name connects you to the Jewish people but today many children are named after non-Jewish grandparents. This is not a problem and a sign of the times and a moment of celebrating all of a child’s ancestors.

Not sure of your Hebrew name? Go find your Ketubah. Today, people have beautiful ketubot that they often hang on the wall. Earlier generations had standard ketubot the rabbi pulled out of the file cabinet and they often got shoved in dresser drawers or bank vaults. Go find it. If you can’t read the Hebrew, bring it in and I’ll give it a look.

Bar or Bat Mitzvah certificates usually have Hebrew names on them. For our kids I make sure the Jewish name is there in Hebrew and English transliteration. People call up all the time asking if we have a record of a Bar Mitzvah from the 1950s because the person wants to know his Hebrew name. We do not have those records. Save those certificates.

Don’t have a Hebrew name at all? Pick one. Maybe you never got a Hebrew name. Let’s look back to see who you were named after and adopt that name. Don’t know who you were named after? Then let’s choose a Hebrew name you will use among your people.

In your machzorim are cards asking for your Hebrew name. Fill out a card. Find your Hebrew name and the story that goes with it. Do it for your children, your grandchildren and yourself. Connect to your history. Protect your future. Put those cards in a good safe place and enjoy talking with your family as you learn about your own name and how you got it.

Your name is more than an honorific. It is more than a ritual device. Your name speaks to who you are in this world. You are many things. You present to the world in many ways. One of those ways is being the bearer of a 4000 year old heritage. Wear that proudly. How can we be Jewish in the modern world? It’s not always easy but one way to succeed is to have our Jewish name as a symbol of who we are and who we will always continue to be.

Rosh Hashana Sermons

2011-10-02T22:21:00.002-04:00

Below are my Rosh Hashana sermons for those who wish to read them (or pass them on to others; I'm flattered).

I hope all our members enjoyed a wonderful experience. Sorry about the chair situation. We haven't had that many people in some time! We will have the doors open for YK, of course.

Chatima Tova. May you be inscribed for good. See you for Kol Nidre.

Rosh Hashana Morning: The Akeidah

2011-10-02T22:10:00.001-04:00

Akeidah

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

Rabbi Larry Freedman

Rosh Hashana 5772

There are no fundamentalist Jews. What that means is that we don’t like to read a text and just believe whatever is written there. We always go for commentaries. We always want to learn what others have said and thought. The most devout, indeed the most observant of observant Jews first goes to the commentaries to understand what the Torah really means.

Our Torah study group, which requires no prior knowledge and no Hebrew (a shameless plug) is becoming very familiar with Rashi, that is Rabbi Shlomo ben Yitzchak born in France in 1040. He’s a first stop in trying to understand the deeper meaning of Torah. Rashi is thought to have memorized the entire Torah, which allows his text to bring in words and phrases from one part of the Torah to the next. He was also brilliant both in bringing in his own ideas as well as being an aggregator, bringing in ideas others had written before him. Reading Rashi you get a good introduction to Torah darshanut, that is the ability to create a drasha, a sermon out of the text because it is not enough for us to read Torah and say, you must believe. Rather, we read Torah and then ask, “but what does it mean?”

And we have to because we are not fundamentalists. The akeidah, that means binding, is the name of the mere 19 p’sukim (verses) that tell the story of the binding of Isaac, the horrifying story we read every Rosh Hashana. God tests Abraham, already a mean spirited choice, by asking him to kill his son. And to this grotesque request we get a meek response of acquiescence. But in the last moment we get God sending a ram and because of that we have a shofar and that’s why we read it. Really? Are you kidding me? We read this terrible story in order to justify a shofar?

Well, no. We don’t. We read this story for many other reasons.

Here’s one. It’s a fable in reverse. At the time of Abraham, there were idolatrous tribes who did, in fact, practice child sacrifice. The idea that you would give something precious to the gods was customary in order to curry favor or show dedication. Many scholars presume that Abraham did not speak out against child sacrifice because the request would not have been a surprising one. Indeed, one could imagine Abraham, who was still trying to understand what this new God was all about, sighing as he learned that this God was no different than all the other gods who wanted child sacrifice.

But here, the end of the story gives Abraham a clear lesson. This is NOT what you should do. This is not the way we will operate. Do not ever offer a child and make sure that no Israelite ever does. The story has accomplished that goal. We have eradicated the very notion of child sacrifice around 3000 years ago. I share that historical use of the Akeidah because it is one of the best ways to discover that the lesson in the Torah is extremely profound even as it is wrapped around a very distasteful example. Unfortunately, that means we hardly need to read this story anymore to learn that lesson.

Fortunately, and you had to know this was coming, there are more lessons in the Akeidah. I could spend the rest of my career speaking about the Akeidah on Rosh Hashana. I just might do that. We’ll have to see.

In the meantime, let’s start with a little Rashi who can’t get past the first phrase. And honestly, I almost wish he had because he brings in a real humdinger of a comment. The first phrase is: va’yehi achar ha-d’varim[1], and it was after these things... That is to say, okay, we just finished a story and now we begin another story. But of course, anyone who knows even a little Hebrew knows that d’varim means things and it means words. So the akeidah could easily be understood to begin with the phrase, “and it was after these words.” Now, no good commentator ever takes the easy way so Rashi quotes earlier sages who asked, “what words and who said them?”

What words and who said them indeed. Rashi says this: There are those among our rabbis who say this means after the words of the Satan.

Satan exists in Judaism, a surprise for many of us. There is a notion of Satan as an adversary, a foil, as it were, for God. It is the not the story of a fallen angel, Satan is not the source of evil in the world. Indeed, all angels are ultimately part of God so Satan for Jews could no more be an opposite of God than my finger is the opposite of me. Satan is part of God. It’s just that sometimes aspects of God peel off and stand alone so that God can have a conversation that we can read and discuss. This is one of those times. A part of God, we’ll name that part Satan, peels off God to challenge God. Here’s the whole Midrash, the rabbinic imaginative sermon:

Abraham and Sarah, well into their 90s have a child Isaac. On the day Isaac is weaned, Abraham makes a party that includes a feast including some of his animals. This is a completely innocuous event. Perfectly normal but Satan causes trouble, stirs the pot. “You know,” Satan says to God, “With all that food and those animals roasted, I noticed that not a single thing was offered in Your honor. Does Abraham honor only his son?” God seems peeved and answers back, “Never mind sacrificing an animal to me. If I were to say to Abraham, ‘sacrifice your son’ he would do it.” And from there Satan says, “Prove it.”

I just can’t get over this interpretation, that the terror placed upon Isaac, the grief placed upon Sarah, the horror placed upon Abraham not to mention the annual repetition of this difficult story every Rosh Hashana is all based on a metaphorically testosterone fueled competition to show up the other guy. It is boasting and using human beings as a tool to make a point by God.

Of course, this is not the only interpretation. Rashi follows this amazing interpretation with another idea that is the complete opposite where Isaac willingly takes on the role of the sacrifice to make a point but we’ll save that one for another year.

Back to our first interpretation, after I calmed down from the idea that God is suckered into the events of the Akeidah, I could begin to see something else. There is an idea that no one is going to keep God from making a point, the idea that God leaps to prove Abraham’s faith. In a strange way, God is rushing to show that Abraham’s faith is complete and God will not tolerate even a hint of a rumor of a thought that Abraham could be anything but loyal, ready to live out God’s request.

I have to say, it’s nice to have someone rushing to have your back like that. It seems a bit stressful but it’s nice to have the support.

Abraham, meanwhile, does not complain but rather also wastes no time in showing his loyalty. Assuming he knew that this sort of thing was common, he could have tarried, he could have delayed, he could have quit the new monotheistic experiment right there. He could have said, well, this faith is no better than faith in those idols so forget it; I would rather have my son. And who would fault him for that? But that is not what he does. He keeps the faith. He keeps his faith and then some.

The text says, “vayashkem Avraham,” Abraham arose early. The word used, vayashkem, has a root word that implies early. That is more than just getting up in the morning. Vayashkem means rising early. Another word with the same root, hashkama, is used to mean reveille in modern Hebrew. And why did Abraham rise early? Because he had zrizut, he had a desire to jump on the task, to move swiftly. If this is what God asks, then Abraham was not going to tarry but use his sense of zrizut, alacrity to get to the task even if it is odious. That one word is a signal of how Jews are supposed to act when given a chance to do a mitzvah. We are supposed to jump at the chance. There’s an entire sermon in that one word, in that one idea that we should not hesitate to do a mitzvah. Offered the mitzvah of an honor to come up to the bima? We should accept with zest. Have a chance to give Tzedakah? We give willingly. See injustice? Loudly speak up. When you see a wrong do you rush to make it right or let it go? The Torah has hundreds of ethical mitzvot so the answer should be; we rush to make it right.

God knows that God has to stand up to Satan and squelch even the beginning of a rumor. Abraham knows he has to leap to do a mitzvah because he looks forward to doing a mitzvah and he doesn’t want people to imagine he is anything but dedicated. And isn’t that a good lesson for us? When someone starts to spread a rumor, we should rush to squash it. I don’t recommend creating the same sort of drama God opts for but we all hear things that we know are false or certainly don’t sound plausible and we all ought to challenge the speaker. We are called to stand up to falsehood and libel. As we reflect on our lives this Rosh Hashana we should consider not just the actions we have taken that are bad but the inaction as well. When did we not stand up to correct false information? When did we not stand up to defend a demeaning bit of gossip? When did we choose to enjoy gossip even though we knew it was hurting people?

And we should be like Abraham, filled with zrizut, rushing to do a mitzvah. And this may be our biggest challenge.

On the High Holidays, everybody comes out. We are all here together. And most of you enjoy the experience. Many of you express the same surprise that you really enjoyed being here for the reflection and the fellowship. You think maybe you’ll come on some Shabbat. And then many of you don’t.

The cantor and I will work to create compelling, meaningful experiences. We have great things planned: interesting courses, and lovely social gatherings. We have prayerful moments of reflection, opportunities to honor ancestors and a system of holidays that teaches ethical lessons while offering texture and joy to our lives. We are always striving to make these things more engaging.

What else do we need? We just need you to act with a sense of zrizut, acting with a sense of desire to do a mitzvah. We have to do it together. When was the last time you danced with a Torah on Simchat Torah? Many of you will say, last year. Many of you will have to scratch your heads to remember. This is one of our great joyful moments but too many of us just shrug our shoulders. Parents of our children aren’t bringing their children and adult members are just letting it go by. The same can be said for Purim and Sukkot and even Hanukah. I’ve had conversations with parents who never lit candles during Hanukah of all things because they were too busy. How can you be too busy for Hanukah? A little zrizut will make sure you won’t be.

Now, I don’t mean to yell. Yelling isn’t the point and guilt is worthless. What we need is a sense of purpose, a sense of desire and a sense of value. We have lost, among the Jewish people, a sense of value. Purim comes and too many of us think it’s either for children or we just don’t think it is worth celebrating even though it’s great fun and a story of self-reliance. This year we are going to add a quieter megillah reading in the daytime for those adults who want to have fun without 50 screaming kids. A yartzeit comes and we just don’t have the time to say kaddish for a parent mostly because we have lost the reason why that is valuable. We lost the reason of connecting with their soul through kaddish. Hanukah comes and we can’t see the reason why we should celebrate. We pass on the beauty of the candles and the story of strength. And then, of course, there are many intermarried families where the non-Jew is intrigued and interested but the Jew lacks motivation. For you we have a Mother’s Circle Class at the JCC. Three sessions for non-Jewish mothers raising Jewish children.

Lack of connection is a problem everywhere in the Jewish world not just here but as we come together at a new campus, as we enjoy seeing our neighbors and friends in the hallways of our new home, we have a chance to capture some of the zrizut we’ve lost. And this is a chance for you to share with me what you are looking for, what you hope to gain out of your synagogue.

This year we will try a new approach to family Shabbat where we will have an art project for the young ones during tefillot and lean towards the more contemporary side of our musical repertoire as well as an age appropriate sermon and include the kids with parts for them to lead. We have our introduction to Judaism class which is part introduction and part refresher for those who want to learn about Judaism from an adult perspective and I’m scheduling an adult trip to Israel in February 2013. By going at a more off-season time, we’ll save a lot of money and it won’t be too hot.

We are going to have a series about marriage and family issues and a gala vow renewal wedding ceremony in the spring.

We have great moments of spirituality where we try to understand our place in this world. We have social moments where we can gather among friends who share our heritage. We have moments of prayer where we can struggle with God and offer our most deeply felt concerns. We have a heritage that can improve the quality of your life, a heritage that adds richness and meaning to your life. Nothing less. Will you act with zrizut to capture this? Will you act as Abraham acted to embrace a mitzvah even if you are not quite sure how it will all work out?

Will you fight off your own personal Satan, that thing that holds you back, that little voice that keeps you from showing off your fullest potential? Because what we’ve got going here is magnificent. It is lofty and grand and important and meaningful. Grab it with the stirrings of zrizut and you will find yourselves blessed as Abraham found himself blessed more than he ever could have imagined.

[1] ויהי אחר הדברים

Erev Rosh Hashana Sermon

2011-10-02T22:07:00.002-04:00

Moving On

Rosh Hashana 5772

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

Change, try, experiment. Say it with me: change; try; experiment.

George Silverman’s widow walked into the synagogue a couple of years ago, took a sharp breath and said, “It’s George.” It’s as if she saw a ghost of him right there in front of her.

Who is George Silverman? George Silverman was the architect of this building. When Mrs. Silverman walked in she saw his handiwork, his craft, his style literally in every corner. It was a lovely way for her to remember him and a poignant moment.

In just three years, I have met a lot of people who have had poignant moments. I’ve met untold numbers of visitors who became Bar or Bat Mitzvah here. I’ve met people married here. I have people stop in during the day because they are on vacation and want to see their Confirmation Class photos or who want to see their parent’s Confirmation Class photo or who want to see their grandparent’s Confirmation Class photo. There are a lot of people out there who have warm memories of this place.

And then there are all of you. All of you who have memories of this place. All of you who are not visitors but members, supporters, the reason we exist. You have celebrated weddings right here on this bima and you have watched a grandchild be blessed right here before the ark. You have sat next to a casket right there and you have danced with the Torah all around the room. You have sent your children to this school and you have celebrated untold numbers of simchas just there in the social hall and broke any number of Yom Kippur fasts over there as well.

And then there are the ones who are no longer here. Many of you hear the echoes of friends who were so important to keeping this place going and their voices still reverberate off these walls. Many of you see family members, children, spouses, parents lingering in these halls.

There are memories here. There are feelings here. This place, these walls carry memories. They carry the souls of those who came before. That is what makes moving from this place difficult. But just like the time arrived to move from South Street, the time has come that we need to leave this place and begin a new phase in our history. We’ve been a congregation since 1854 and we haven’t only been in this place. We have moved and prospered and we will move and prosper again.

Moving to 290 North brings all sorts of interesting issues. First of all, we need (and the members of Agudas Israel need) to wrap our heads around the idea that we are moving to 290 North Street and not to Agudas Israel. We will all have to understand that their walls are our walls and our walls are their walls. More on that in a moment. A new corporation is being created called Kol Yisrael at 290 North Street. The name is a small pun. It means the “voice of Israel,” that our new joint venture will be the voice of Jewish Newburgh and surrounding towns and it means “all of Israel,” that all of us will be in one location. Kol Yisrael will oversee the physical plant and be in charge of the operations of the building. Each organization will operate independently. For you, this means that your needs will be met by Temple Beth Jacob. For congregants, everything is the same. For the Board of Trustees, Kol Yisrael will be the place to turn to for issues like keeping the parking lot plowed and the bathrooms clean.

But before we talk more about the future, a little lesson from the rabbis of old because before we go there, we have to leave here.

The Talmud has a lot of discussions about selling a synagogue under the general heading of selling holy things. In brief, the rabbis in the Talmud discuss the difference between tashmishei mitzvah and tashmishai kedusha[1]. A tashmish is an accessory, something used for a purpose. Tashmishei mitzvah are those things used to do a mitzvah and can be, when the mitzvah is completed, thrown out. The Talmud gives as examples: a sukkah, lulav, tzizit on a tallit and surprisingly, a shofar. I would also add a kipah. These are things that are not really holy unto themselves but rather allow a mitzvah to take place. We use them for a purpose but they are not holy themselves. As we start to clean out closets, it will be to our advantage to identify what are tashmishei mitzvah and can therefore be tossed.

In contrast to this there are tashmishei kedusha, accessories used for holy objects. The lectern that the Torah sits on is one of those things. The ark holding the Torah scrolls is one of those things. A plain case or something boring and utilitarian isn’t a tashmish kedusha but something that raises the stature of the Torah is a tashmish kedusha. The other day I wrapped a Torah in my rain coat because I had to carry the Torah outside and it was threatening to rain. My raincoat didn’t become a tashmish kedusha but the decorated cover that is always protecting the Torah scroll definitely is.

What’s interesting here is that there seems to be a great deal of leeway in deciding what can be thrown out and what needs to be put in a geniza, that storage area for holy objects that eventually get buried in a Jewish cemetery. As we clean out our closets, we have a chance to not worry about some things and also very much show our love and respect for the holiness of other things. This may make life easier. If you’ve ever cleaned out your basement or attic you know how slow going it is. Everything has a story and a memory and we will be tempted to save it. Perhaps this will help us focus so we don’t worry too much about what needs to go.

At the same time, we have a chance to express our love of Judaism with a willingness to proclaim things holy. There is a dictum in the Talmud that one may elevate in holiness but not decrease meaning that you can’t take an item used on the Torah and reuse it for a regular book. It cannot go down in holiness. A lot of the things on this bima, since they are on the bima, can’t go down in holiness. The Torah holder, the ner Tamid, the two tablets. The nature of what they are suggests they cannot go down in holiness so we will have to find a suitable lateral if not elevated use for them. Chairs, to me are utilitarian and so have no such concern. The ark is a built-in but the lining may need to be removed as part of the process of deconsecrating the building. The doors should find a proper new home. They can not be disposed of.

In my opinion, the stain glass windows are tashmishei mitzvah, they help us fulfill the mitzvah of prayer but I don’t think they are tashmishei kedusha. By themselves they are not holy. But, we really, really like them so they will go with us. The plaques on the walls are emotional memories and their placement in this room is an aesthetic choice not a requirement. They are not tashmishei kedusha. They are not holy. However, they are very meaningful and so they will come along with us. Our design committee will work to find a proper location.

And so it goes on. There is a lot of work ahead of us and I suspect there will be no lack of volunteer hours needed to bring things from here to there so please be generous in your time.

Once we arrive at 290 North, we have all sorts of new questions. What art should go on the walls is just one. We need to express our liberal Reform Movement attitude and we need to walk into a space that reflects our values. Of course Agudas Israel and the JCC need to feel like it is home to them as well. There will be a lot of discussion on this as we decorate a building to reflect three points of view.

Another interesting issue will be customs. We act one way when in a synagogue. Members of Agudas Israel act another way. Can we create a space that is open and tolerant of all these customs? We better. There will be an ongoing challenge to find the graciousness inside all of us to abide by the ideal of “live and let live.”

There’s a joke about the guy stranded alone on an island for 10 years. When he’s finally rescued, he proudly shows his rescuers how he survived. Here was his water supply, here was a small garden, and here was his shelter. Then one rescuer asks him, “What are those three buildings?” And he says, “Oh, those are synagogues.” “You have three?” “Yes. That one I belong to, that one I don’t and that one I wouldn’t be caught dead in.”

The joke speaks to the unfortunate reality that while the Jewish people love to support each other, we also love to belittle and mock each other. We love to be on our very high horse and proclaim that we have the better approach while they are the fools. This is an attitude that too many Jews share and it is among our worst traits and one we need to get rid of. Instead of clucking our tongues at something we see them do, our attitude has to be one of utter disinterest. As Bart Simpson has offered to the modern lexicon, meh. If it doesn’t affect our experience, if it doesn’t conflict with our practice, what do we care? Live and let live.

Within the same walls, different minhagim, customs, will be seen. Meh. Different even opposite attitudes will be expressed. Meh. They do this, we do that. Meh. We need to find a way to have the sharing enthusiasm of a commune and the complete disinterest of New York City neighbors. We will be intimately connected sometimes and completely detached at other times. That will take some getting used to because we are creating a new culture. That takes time but that is what we will do. There will be moments when it is a Temple Beth Jacob program in the sanctuary with our siddurim, our customs, our music. And then the next day in the same space it will be an Agudas Israel program. And the day after that, the JCC will use the space.

It will be a little confusing when we deal with three different levels of kashrut. It may be confusing when we all are running programs at the same time. Attitudes, customs, traditions, issues, points of view will all be different depending upon which room you enter. But don’t forget, there will also be cross pollination and synergy and that impossible-to-plan-for creativity that happens in the hallway. It’s going to be like a college campus with amazing things happening wherever you turn.

Change, try, experiment.

There will be change and experiments. Lots of change and lots of experiments. We are going to try all sorts of things. We are going to try everything until we get it right. We may pray in one room one week and another room another week. We may put this class here but then move it there. We may have a joint program with Agudas Israel and it will be a highlight of the year and we may have a different joint program with Agudas Israel and it will be a colossal flop. Who knows? But we will try everything and bring in change everywhere. So if you don’t like change, get used to it because we have an opportunity to recreate ourselves, to shake off things that don’t work and strengthen what is best about us. This endeavor cannot be just about location. It has to be about reinvigoration and reimagining. It has to be about you and what you want, your needs. And how will we meet your needs?

Change, try, experiment.

As just a small hint of what can happen, this past year we had a request for a Classical Reform Shabbat. Honestly, I was not thrilled. Other people thought it would be a nice idea. Afterwards, I kind of enjoyed the experience as celebrating our heritage. Some of those who thought it would be nice, did not enjoy it. Good. We’re experimenting, we’re learning. We’re not afraid to try new things and we are willing to try ideas that you, the congregants, suggest. So, get ready for new ideas, your ideas, get ready for change and get ready for the thrill of reimagining. Eventually, things will shake out and we’ll have found a good rhythm but I hope that rhythm never loses the thrill of experimentation and new ideas. Say it with me now, change, try, experiment.

And get ready for the experiments and new ideas that will arise by being with Agudas Israel and the JCC. We already have had a joint Tisha b’Av service with Agudas Israel and a Shabbat luau with the JCC over the summer. They were great successes. People enjoyed seeing friends, a new experience, a novel approach. I should also tell you that there were a couple ideas that have been discussed and rejected. It doesn’t matter what they were but suffice to say that the limits of sharing are found at the edges of our integrity. I had a couple ideas offered. I worked them around in my head talked them through with Rabbi Weintraub and realized we would lose more than we could gain. There are some things we need to try in order to see if they will work. Others things are obviously destined for failure. At those moments, I’ve said no because sometimes you have to say no but on the whole, I look forward to change, trying and experimenting with new ideas.

All this experimenting means we are going to be influenced by the other two groups and they will be influenced by us and that is going to be great. We will learn from each other and we will come out on the other end a Reform Movement congregation more sure of ourselves and we will have the other two organizations to thank.

Or not. Or we could all walk around suspicious. We could be on the lookout for slights and insults and I-have-no-idea-what but I’m watching out for it.

One of the great ethical lessons in Judaism is avoiding lashon ha-rah, avoiding evil speech and that is hard. It is far too easy and tempting to speak badly of someone. It is practically entertainment for some people who want to hear the latest gossip. Not the latest news, not the latest updates, mind you. They want to hear the gossip. It could be true, it could be false as long as it’s gossip they want to hear it. Some people look forward to hearing anything that they can twist it into dirt. This is what we have to resist. We have to resist it every day but certainly when we join together we have to resist the temptation to speak with only partial knowledge and resist the temptation to find excuses for bad mouthing because if we want this to work, it will work but if we want it to fail, it will fail. If we look for every problem, every glitch, every issue, then we will find them and we will gloat and the whole thing will flop. But if we instead look for every solution, smooth over any glitch, address and correct every issue, then this will be an amazing success and a role model for others across North America. It all depends on us. It depends on you. It depends on each one of you. Your attitude, your words, your approach will make or break this new stage. If you want this to work, if you are excited to join together on a campus, it will work. Not we, the synagogue leadership. Not me, the rabbi. You. Each one of you. It is your approach to this that will make or break it. It is your attitude that will decide. It is your willingness to try new things, support and strengthen old things and embrace the future with eager anticipation.

The new year is 5772 and I’m pretty excited. Join me in that excitement. Let’s make this new venture an overwhelming success together as we change, try and experiment.

[1] Megilla 26b תשמישי מצוה and תשמישי קדושה

Sermon from June 24, 2011

2011-06-27T13:49:00.002-04:00

Every now and then, by request, I put up a sermon. Here's the latest.

Korach and a Rich Mess

I was at Crane Lake Camp yesterday explaining Reform Judaism to 25 Israelis. That is always an interesting experience since for most of them, this was their first chance to learn about Reform Judaism as opposed to being amused.

The first major issue I discussed was the lack of desire for a third Temple in Jerusalem and no interest in restarting animal sacrifice. Why I picked that I don’t know but it turned out to be a really great choice because while these Israelis were all over the place in terms of what they know about Jewish religious practice they all know about the charedim, the ultra orthodox going on and on about the third Temple. When they found out that Reform Judaism wants to be serious about Judaism without the third Temple, they were impressed; that was a huge eye opener for many of them. They really had new appreciation for what we do because they realized that while they still were suspicious of our crazy music and changing prayers, they had to respect that we were not crazy like those other guys. A whole new level of disrespect would have to be developed or, actually, perhaps, a whole new appreciation.

I had a conversation with a student this week who didn’t believe in God which really isn’t a big deal and here’s why. When I heard the description of God he didn’t believe in, I responded that I didn’t believe that either. We have so many of our people, children and adults, who received or created an image of a personal God wielding supernatural powers they just can’t accept. So many of us have some juvenile idea that doesn’t seem consistent with what really happens in the world today. So I tried to explain that the vision of God in the Torah has evolved, that lots of Jews believe in a more transcendent vision of God or a more mystical view of God; anything but the antiquated portrayal of God in the Torah. After all, in the Tanach itself, God’s portrayal changes quite a lot from being a personal character talking directly to being a sense found in a vision by the prophets to being noble ideas expressed in Proverbs to being absent in Esther. There is no reason to stick with just one vision of God. I’m hoping that my student develops new reasons to disrespect Jewish theology or perhaps develop a whole new appreciation.

I was going over the parashah today and noticed how God is portrayed as livid and quick to destroy all the Israelites. This is terribly rash and only the quick thinking of Moses gets God to decide to skip killing everyone in favor of killing the guilty. When it comes to knowing God, even God isn’t sure about how God acts. Moses knows that God isn’t just one thing, that God is not limited to one single definition. In this context, where God is a personal God, you can be angry at God and disrespect God but this characterization of God who listens and changes and is open to better thinking forces us to develop new reasons to disrespect God in the Torah or perhaps develop a deeper awareness and appreciation of just how God is portrayed.

I’ve been working with boys and girls who are slogging through their preparations to become adults in the Jewish community and whether they come with large amounts of attitude or so shy they barely squeak, you can’t help see their pride at having accomplished the goal. On the one hand, we certainly don’t need this semi-ancient ritual done in an organized way to acknowledge budding adulthood. A backyard barbecue could suffice. But on the other hand, seeing how the kids embrace their role and walk through the moments of this organized rite, how parents and family find meaning in their child doing what so many others have done, how embracing and celebrating the organized aspects of our people connects us to something beyond ourselves, we gain a deeper awareness and appreciation of what is happening before us.

I’ve been preparing to give blessings to people as they embark on a new experience, accomplish an 18 year goal, get ready for a new stage in their lives I wonder, why me? What blessings do I have to give? If Korach came to me I would have had half a mind to say, fine, you do the blessings. Who am I that I can channel a personal God since I find meaning in the more transcendent, mystical understandings anyway? But then, I remember that what is truly important is not just this blessing but the moment. The words are words of the personal God, but the moment is the moment of a transcendent God, where we gather in a special place for a special purpose with people going through a special time and we invoke the words as a mantra that lift us up and away from the words and out into the sense that these people are blessed not in some magical way but by being connected to all of us who have graduated high school, gone to Israel, stood under a chuppah. The words are formulaic on purpose. They are familiar to the point of fading away so that the experience takes precedence. Few of us remember the blessing we received under the chuppah but we remember the power of being there. We remember little the brave words spoken to us at our high school graduations and the solemn words of wisdom offered by this or that relative but we remember being connected with the ceremony and being offered those words of wisdom as though we had arrived to the point where we were worthy of such conversations.

The blessing is a ritual and the ritual connects us to the past and the future. It fulfills a promise to our ancestors and makes a promise to our descendents. It says as it was your time, now it is my time and one day it will be my child’s time. It says our values and ethics are good and we will continue to live by them and we will teach them to those who follow. It says that being part of a community means we are never alone and that our community exists wherever we go around the globe. Yes, you can do a back yard blessing and it will be nice enough but making the effort to come here, to this special place, for this special purpose, elevates it to a spiritual level as it connects us with something much larger than ourselves. And we affirm that, we agree with that, we second that as we say amen, and so let us all say, amen.

We are a people of a rich mess. What we say and what we do means more than what we say and what we do. Sometimes what we say and what we do is not believed on any literal level but leads to deeper understanding oh so meaningful to those in the know and at best curious and at worse nonsense to those who do not understand. We have multiple levels of understanding and meaning and value to the exact same practice or ritual. We hold deep feeling that is felt uniformly but experienced completely uniquely. We are a rich mess so complicated to understand and so powerful once you do. We are a complicated, sophisticated, intelligent, multilayered which takes thought and energy to truly understand and that’s pretty cool.

Shabbat Shalom.

Chag Sameach

2011-06-13T16:52:00.001-04:00

Shavuot and Confirmation were wonderful. Mazal Tov to our students.

Finish the counting with Shavuot

2011-06-03T17:10:00.000-04:00

Finish our counting with Shavuot, 7:30, Tuesday, June 7. Our Confirmation class will be leading and you will be very proud of them. Also, we will have our Yizkor service that evening. Please join us to remember your relatives.

What TBJ means to Sherrill Murray-Lazarus

2011-06-02T20:04:00.001-04:00

Today is the 45th day of the counting of the omer, that is six weeks and three days.

Simply put and sincerely said, Temple Beth Jacob is home to me. Home - where my family greets me at the door and where I belong uncondtionally and without question, I belong. TBJ is more than a place that I call home, it is a people to whom I belong. TBJ is comfort and caring, compassion and kindness to me. As Dorothy said in the wizard of Oz, "There's no place like home." Similarly, when I think of what Temple Beth Jacob means to me, there's no place like home and to me TBJ is home.

what TBJ means to Alan Siegel

2011-06-01T20:04:00.000-04:00

We're back. For awhile there, the blog wasn't working and I couldn't even tell you it wasn't working. But we are back with two final writings.

Tonight begins the 44th day of the counting of the omer, that is six weeks and two days.

Temple Beth Jacob to me is a home away from home. An extended family and supportive community whose commitment to Jewish values, education and culture are deeply rooted. I am proud to be associated with such a great community and great clergy.

Still following?

2011-05-22T22:23:00.002-04:00

Today, beginning the evening of May 22, is the 34th day of the counting of the Omer, that's four weeks and 6 days. I have two more writers left. You'll see them Wednesday and Thursday night. Don't forget this Friday night, I'll be discussing my trip to Kuwait with photos.

Getting close to Lag B'omer

2011-05-18T20:04:00.001-04:00

Today is the 30th day of the omer, that is 4 weeks and two days.

Do you subscribe to 10 minutes of Torah? The URJ publishes this small bit of Torah every day on different topics. Here's the link: http://urj.org/learning/torah/ten/

And here's an example. It's a short essay on counting and waiting.

Subscribe | Donate

May 17, 2011 | 13 Iyar 5771 | Week 392, Day 2

Lag B’Omer: Yet waiting but choosing joy
By Jordana Schuster Battis
Discuss on Our Blog

For 49 days, beginning on the second day of Passover, we count. Seven times seven weeks—each day, one more sheaf of barley; each day one step farther along the path from the Egypt to Mount Sinai; each day one setting sun closer to Shavuot and the giving of Torah. This is the Omer, the period of waiting between the barley harvest at Pesach and the wheat harvest at Shavuot.

Traditionally, this is considered a time of mourning, though what we mourn for is obscure. Are we mourning the disciples of Rabbi Akiva (2nd century), who died in a plague or in unsuccessful revolt against the Romans? Mourning the souls who, according to Roman custom, walk the earth during this season each year? Mourning the losses of life during the Crusades? Not mourning at all, perhaps, but fretting that what we have planted in spring won’t make it to harvest in summer?

Then, on the 33rd day of the Omer— lamed (counted as 30) + gimmel (counted as 3), spelling “lag”—on the 18th of the month of Iyyar, we arise from our mourning for the day, and we celebrate. Our reasons for celebration are as obscure as our reasons for distress. Has the plague been lifted? Have the students won a battle? Have the souls returned to earth? Is there hope yet for our harvest? This day is one on which, traditionally, Jews have cut their hair, gotten married, lit bonfires, played in the fields with toy bows and arrows, and made merry—but made merry over what?

Whatever the period between Pesach and Shavuot is, it is a period of waiting. During these seven weeks of spring, those in cold climates wait for consistently warm weather. Students and teachers await the changed schedule of summer. We wake each morning to an earlier sunrise, but there is a sense of the more-light to come. We have made it out of Egypt, but our purpose in freedom has not yet been revealed. It is only with Shavuot—when every one of us is not only freed by an outside force from oppression, as we are on Passover, but each has the chance to actively choose to accept Torah and peoplehood—that, according to our yearly narrative, our purpose in freedom is found. During the Omer, we wait, and we count the days toward the light and thunder of Sinai.

Waiting is stressful.

Waiting is about being between.

Waiting is the long stretch of road trip between one destination and another. It is the doctor’s waiting room, before you know if it serious. It is unknown results of a test already taken, a presentation already made.

Waiting is being unable to do anything, but just having to accept that what has been, has been, and what will be, will be.

On the 33rd day of waiting, of anxiety, of distress, we shrug it off. Over halfway to Shavuot, the end of journey to Sinai is in sight, but it is indeed darkest before the dawn and we can sit with our distress no longer. On the 33rd day, we act rather than sit. We actively choose, rather than wait—and we choose joy! We choose hope rather than waffling between optimism and despair. We choose celebration rather than depression. We choose to choose rather than accepting the paralysis of anxiety.

The wait is not over. Our mourning is not yet complete. The results are not yet in. But Lag B’Omer is a reminder that even within our sadness, we can choose joy. Even within our despair, we can choose hope. Even within our fear, we can choose courage. Even within our Wilderness, we can look onward toward Sinai and see light.

Rabbi Jordana Schuster Battis was ordained this spring at HUC-JIR in Los Angeles, where she also earned a Masters in Jewish Education. She will be moving to the North Shore of Chicago this summer with her husband, Seth.

Enjoy a summer of learning and renewal! Join us for the Summer Learning Institute, July 6-10, 2011, Princeton Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, Princeton, NJ. Our programs include Kallah, an Adult Learning Retreat, Had’rachah, ritual training for lay leaders, and Schindler Fellows for Conversion Certification, training to provide support for conversion candidates. Registration is now open!

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What TBJ means to George Levy

2011-05-17T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 29th day, that is four weeks and one day of counting the omer.

TBJ has been the thread that holds my faith together. It is a thread that I have tried to weave through the lives of my family. Watching my children today demonstrates that the spirit of TBJ passed down to my children is rising to the top of their lives as they both light Shabbat candles. Their stories of the fond memories of growing up at TBJ tells me my thread of faith continues to sew my family's Judaism together.

What TBJ means to Kitah Hay

2011-05-17T07:38:00.000-04:00

Today is the 28th day, that is four weeks of the counting of the Omer.

Kitah Hay, 5th grade, has some ideas about TBJ.

Zach: Temple Beth Jacob means to me that I pray. It also means I socialize. I finally see friends.

David: Here's what Temple Beth Jacob means to me. Temple Beth Jacob means you can socialize with friends, praying on Friday nights and learning the Hebrew Religion.

Ben: Temple Beth Jacob means to me that I come here every Sunday and Tuesday and learn. It also means that I socialize and pray.

Richie: TBJ means I have to come to the temple every Sunday and Tuesday and pray with friends.

Logan: We pray, play, socialize, learn prayers and cook. We also make crafts and sing songs.

Halana: Temple Beth Jacob means that you get to learn songs in Hebrew and that you can learn about the Jewish culture. You also get to have a good time with friends.

Zach: Temple Beth Jacob is a great place to learn and socialize. It's lots of fun and it's a great place to make friends. The teachers are nice as well.

What TBJ means to Mona Rieger

2011-05-12T20:04:00.003-04:00

Today is the 24th day, that is three weeks and three days of the counting of the Omer.

TBJ is my home away from home. There is nowhere else that I feel as comfortable - everyone is like a family member (that that anyway you want!). I have travelled with "strangers" who became brothers and sisters after 10 days in Israel. We have rejoiced and mourned together, loved and lost. This was not always the case for me - that is why it is all the more precious to me now.

Today is 22

2011-05-11T07:32:00.002-04:00

Whoops! So many things going on last night that I missed adding in the Omer counting. But never fear. Today is the 22 day of the counting of the Omer, that is three weeks and one day.

What was going on last night? NFA had a wonderful dance and movement presentation. May I just say that my son has creative vision and a bit of the divo attitude that gets things done. I was duly impressed.

BUT before that, I was with a very nice crowd that came out to celebrate Israel's Independence at TBJ. Talk about community!

I've been chatting with a rabbinic classmate who shares the view that Israel's independence is as worthy to celebrate as Canada's and by that she means, not much. That's a shame but not unusual as our connection to Israel is lessening for many reasons not the least of which is that our place in America is strong and Israel's place in the world is strong so we don't worry about it. Still, while I do appreciate Canada for many reasons, Israel is a place of cultural inspiration, religious connection and political strength for Jews around the world. We should not under estimate how it important it still is to us. That is why you must, if you have never done so, make a plan to visit. You have got to see what is going on there.

Working with Confirmation Class

2011-05-09T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 21st day, that is three weeks of counting the omer.

After Shabbat and Sunday morning I prepared for Shavuot services (the 50th day of the Omer and what we are counting towards) with Confirmation Class. The kids are great and very excited. I'm looking forward to it. Please come out to celebrate Shavuot and support the students, 7:30 PM June 7. We'll include Yizkor so you have the chance to say kaddish for close relatives.

One thing I noticed among our Confirmation class is that none of them will be going to Israel this summer. The cost is the thing. Let me remind everyone that while NFTY in Israel is my suggested trip, I have two other really good options that are much less money and Federation has very generous scholarships. As we count the days to receiving Torah once again at Sinai, we need to teach our students and the parents of our children to count the days until our 16 year olds go to Israel. It is a crucial part of a young Jew's education and must become part of what is expected. Is it expensive? Yes. But so is college and we save for that. We need to see Israel not as a vacation but as a significant experience that helps our children "confirm" they will be proud and strong members of the Jewish people. And it's a lot of fun. Fun and meaningful. The perfect combination.

What TBJ means to Kristen Mayer

2011-05-08T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 20th day of the counting of the Omer, that is two weeks and six days.

A second family. Truly a second family. TBJ is a safe calming place where I feel always welcome. It's a place I feel I can come to get more spiritually balanced. I love that Judaism offers solid reason behind customs and prayers. TBJ encompasses the whole person. I've been shown how this religion touches every part of everyday life. It's comforting and calming. It feels like home.

Kristen Mayer has been a member for 12 years.

Shabbat Tekuma during the Omer

2011-05-07T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 18th day of the counting of the Omer, that is two weeks and four days.

Today is Shabbat Tekumah, the Shabbat that falls between Yom Hashoah, Holocaust memorial day and Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israel Independance Day. Shabbat Tekumah is hard to translate but it could be "birth of a nation" Shabbat or "Establishment" Shabbat. It is the Shabbat that marks the transition from our lowest low to our greatest high, the re-establishment of Jewish political sovreignty after 2000 years.

We here in America are becoming a bit too estranged from Israel. For many, it's more fashionable to criticize than to support. For others, the reality of a strong Israel requires vigilent criticism to keep it honest and avoid the corruption that politics can devolve into. For some, the Jewish urge to protect the weak leads us to champion others since we do not perceive Israel as weak with the unfortunate side effect of turning our backs on our own people.

This week, let's remember let's try to remember or imagine a world without Israel, Jewish life without the strength Israel gives us all and let's remember to support Israel in words and deeds even as we are honest in fair criticism. The Salute to Israel parade is coming up, always fun. Start there!

What TBJ means to Kita Vav students

2011-05-06T07:15:00.005-04:00

Today is the 17th day of the Omer, that is two weeks and 3 days.

Alec: Temple Beth Jacob is an educational place that teaches me about my religion. Also Hebrew teaches me about my culture.

Elias: Temple Beth Jacob is a place where we can learn how to understand the religion and learn how to read and write Hebrew. It also gives us a place where we can pray and have a place to celebrate special occasions.

Ben: TBJ is my home. I eat, pray and learn here. Twice a week I come here to gain knowledge about my Jewish heritage. Every time I arrive here, I am in a good mood. TBJ means a lot to me.

Justin: Temple Beth Jacob is about my Jewish heritage. It also gives me freedom and NOBODY judges me by how I am. Temple Beth Jacob is a place of worship. That is what TBJ is to me.

Skyler: Temple Beth Jacob means everything to me. The temple gives me a veritable plethora of much needed information. Temple Beth Jacob also is a place where I can see friends that I rarely see. Learning is fun here because everything is interesting. Temple Beth Jacob really means a lot to me.

Abby: Temple Beth Jacob is holy to me. All the talk about God, Israel and revelation. On Tuesdays, we come to learn our holy language, Hebrew and study for our Bar/Bat Mitzvah. On Sunday we come to learn about holidays, our religion, and the Torah. We go to services to pray to God, honor our Torah and holidays and talk about our religion. The is why Temple Beth Jacob is holy to me.

Back from Kuwait

2011-05-05T20:04:00.003-04:00

May 5, the 17th day of the counting of the Omer, that is two weeks and three days.

Back from Kuwait and leading seders for the troops. A very unusual experience except that it wasn't really that unusual at all. We had a nice table set, we had wine. Kedem sweet stuff but wine nonetheless. We had one child and a hunt for the afikomen. We had Jews and non-Jews and lots of energy to set up and lots of singing to wrap up. Just like your seder. Of course, we were thousands of miles from home in the middle of a conservative Islamic country wearing uniforms. Most of the people there were in the middle of a full year deployment so they were away from family and friends which meant that we were the family for the night.

What does TBJ mean to people? It's home. That is, it ought to be a home and I hope to help make TBJ feel like home for more people. Some people treat TBJ and synagogues in general as a place where you get this service or that need met. But a real synagogue is a home, a family. That's what we have for many and and that's what we will try to make for all.

In the meantime, back at Camp Arifjan, home was in the desert, the congregation was a collection of people making an enjoyable evening far away from where they rather be. But it was, for a moment, home. It was fun. It was meaningful. Just like your seder at home.

What TBJ means to Kitah Dalet

2011-05-04T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 16th day of the omer, that is two weeks and two days.

This is from Aileen Rein's dalet class:

Leah - TBJ is an important part of life for me because we can celebrate our religion. We learn different holidays and where we came from. All the Jewish values. We also learned about how the Jews escaped from Egypt.

Brandon - TBJ is an important part of my life. The reason why is because I can celebrate my religion in fun ways. For Purim and Passover we are doing a play. Going to TBJ is fun. I like going here, it is a fun way to learn about our religion.

Matthew - TBJ is important to me because it lets me practice my religion. My family can spend time here. Temple is an important part of my life.

Garbriel - Temple Beth Jacob means a lot to me because a whole lot of my family came here over the years. There are so many memories. One of them is selling bagels with my grandmother Sarah Levy.

Kate - When I think of Temple Beth Jacob I think of my religion and my friends. I have so much fun here learning about Jews and things they did. I love learning with my friends and Rabbi. I like to have fun and it means to learn about your religion and I will be so sad if I leave and start something else. That what it means to me.

What TBJ means to Kristine Cohen

2011-05-03T20:04:00.001-04:00

Today is the 15th day, that is 2 weeks and 1 day of the counting of the Omer.

What Temple Beth Jacob means to me... Well, it's all about the kids. We have 2 children that, lets say, "March to a Different Beat" than most children. They both have Aspergers which is a form of Autisum. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad thing, but everyday challenges can be difficult at times. We have been members for almost 7 years and I have watched my boys grow, make friends, find spirituality, laugh, play and learn at (T)emple (B)eth (J)acob. It is a place where they are allowed and accepted to be be themselves.

What(T)emple(B)eth(J)acob means to me? It's a place (T)o(B)e(J)acob and a place(T)o(B)e(J)ustin.

Counting weeks and days

2011-05-02T20:09:00.000-04:00

Today is the 14th day of the counting of the Omer, that is 2 weeks.

Why do we count days AND weeks? Why not just days? Don't forget that we are counting not only the days since we left Egypt and slavery, but we are counting towards and anxiously awaiting our arrival at Mt. Sinai when we receive Torah on the 50th day. We count a week of weeks, that is 7 cycles of 7 days, as we moved towards the holiday of Shavuot, a word that means "weeks." Shavuot, the Festival of Weeks, is the culmination of ticking off the weeks. And we can't wait! So we don't just say, week one is gone, week two is gone, we count excitedly, one week and day, one week and two days! Our anticipation for Torah is expressed every day!

What TBJ means to Nancy Gross

2011-05-01T20:01:00.000-04:00

Today is the 13th day, that is one week and six days, of the counting of the Omer.

Temple Beth Jacob is my home away from home, its members are my second family. It is here that I celebrated many of my own milestones (Bat Mitzvah, confirmation), it is here that I have made my closet friends, it is here that I am now joyfully raising my own family and celebrating their simchas.

Nancy Gross has been a member for 37 years.

What TBJ means to Susan Levy

2011-04-30T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 12th day, that is one week and five days, of the counting of the Omer.

TBJ is my shelter- in a personal storm I find comfort and strength. When there is joy and happiness I have “ Family” to share it with. TBJ completes me and my family.

Susan Levy reports that she has been a member for "many years."

What TBJ means to Sherrill Murray-Lazarus

2011-04-29T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the 11th day, that is one week and 4 days, of the counting of the Omer.

Simply put and sincerely said, Tempe Beth Jacob is home to me. Home where my family greets me at the door and where I belong, unconditionally without question, I belong. TBJ is more than a place that I call home, it is a people to whom I belong. TBJ is comfort and caring, compassion and kindness to me. As Dorothy said in the Wizard of OZ, “ There is no place like home” Similarly, when I think of what Temple Beth Jacob means to me. There is no place like home- and- to me, TBJ is home.

Sherrill Murray-Lazarus has been a member since 1980.

What TBJ means to Madeline Kronegold

2011-04-28T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the tenth day, that is one week and 3 days, of the counting of the Omer.

TBJ has become my extended family, one I can always count on to share life's joys and sorrows. I have no family in NY and life has been quite the roller coaster these past few years. It is so amazing to know that TBJ and my friends I have come to know and love will always have my back and will be there to share their joys and sorrows with me.

Madeline Kronegold has been a member for 10 years.

What TBJ means to Gan and Kitah Aleph

2011-04-27T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the ninth day, that is one week and two days, of the counting of the Omer.

Gan is our kindergarten class. Kitah Aleph is first grade.

Noah: I like the Jewish star.

Victoria: I love making stuff.

Sarah: I like making projects.

Jonah: I like the cantor.

Paris: I like making stuff like food in religious school.

Zachary: I like to put tzedakah in the tzedakah bin.

Ryan: I like seeing my friends.

What TBJ means to...

2011-04-26T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the eighth day, that is one week and one day, of the counting of the Omer.

Some people preferred to remain anonymous in their thoughts. Here is one of them.

The comfort in knowing familiar faces; those that have shared simchas and sorrows.

A structure that whispers voices of generations past calling our future to hold tightly to their dreams.

What TBJ means to Jeff Rubin

2011-04-25T20:04:00.000-04:00

Today is the seventh day, that is one week, of the counting of the Omer.

The temple resonates with deep significance for me and my family. The importance of celebrating our mitzvahs and sharing our sorrows. The sense of mishpucha whenever we are present with our fellow congregants is both spiritual and soulful.

Jeff Rubin has been a member for 31 years.

What TBJ means to Wendy Rosario

2011-04-24T20:00:00.000-04:00

Day six of counting the Omer.

Being connected to people who are like minded, staying close to my religious roots.

Becoming a better person.

Having a place to go on the holidays.

Being educated and educating my children.

Making new friends and having a support system. (It's family for me as I have no family.)

It's cultivating a relationship with the God of my understanding.

I appreciate what the temple has done for Leah and Gabriel. They have met great friends and their participation in the music program has been GREAT!!

Wendy Rosario has been a member for 5 years with her children but a whole lot of years with her mother Sarah Levy

What TBJ means to Brenda Seiden

2011-04-23T20:04:00.000-04:00

Day 5 of the counting of the Omer.

Temple Beth Jacob has been in my life for lots and lots of years. During my college years, I taught Religious School in the basement of the South Street TBJ - all the classes men in one large room with pull down walls to separate the classes - three walls to each class. In 1953, I married and moved to Poughkeepsie but my husband and I came back to TBJ. Two years later we moved to Yonkers but still came back to TBJ. In 1959 we made yet another move back to Newburgh and became a permanent part of TBJ. Two years ago I was given the extreme honor of being named as a Lifetime member of the Board of Trustees. It is my job to remain a part of TBJ as long as I am able.

What TBJ means to Kitah Zayin

2011-04-22T20:04:00.000-04:00

Day 4 of the counting of the Omer.

Kitah Zayin is our seventh grade class.

Temple means many things to me. It means that I will be preparing for my Bar Mitzvah.

Temple Beth Jacob means to me religious freedom. And it also means to me a place to go on Sunday mornings.

TBJ means a lot to me. It teaches me about my religion. I appreciate the teachers’ hard work and the time they spent teaching me throughout the years. Nava has been a great teacher this year for preparing me for my bat mitzvah. Thank you.

TBJ means many things to me. It is the place that has helped me teach my bat mitzvah and meet many friends. Also this place has taught me about my culture and religion and helped me reach my bat mitzvah. This is what TBJ means to me.

Temple is why I have my bar mitzvah. It is where I grew up. I went to that temple for a long time.

Temple Beth Jacob means many things to me. First it means Hebrew school where I prepare for my Bat Mitzvah.

What TBJ means to Gail Oliver

2011-04-21T20:04:00.000-04:00

Day 3 of counting the Omer

Temple Beth Jacob is where my Judaism truly shines.

It is where I can sit on Friday evenings and holidays and pray and sing and relax and see old friends and make new ones.

It is where I can sit every Saturday morning and learn about the Torah and ponder and argue and laugh.

It is where I can send out an urgent message about the special needs of a congregant and immediately receive tons of e-mails of caring members who wish to help.

It is where I go when the homeless and needy of Newburgh are cold, or a village in Guatemala needs a school and clothing, and within a few days of my e-mail I have the lobby filled with clothing and school supplies and toothbrushes.

It is where I go when I need a delegation of "Jewish Ladies" to brighten the holidays for women with developmental disabilities who love being pampered with a beauty makeover.

It is where I go when I am down in the dumps and need a hug on Shabbat or support from a Rabbi and Cantor who truly care for their congregants.

Temple Beth Jacob is where what Judaism is all about - caring & learning & joy & prayer - comes to life...

Gail Oliver has been a member for 17 years.

What TBJ means to... us all.

2011-04-20T20:04:00.000-04:00

From Rabbi Freedman

The counting of the omer is a curious tradition. It has numerous explanations all of which are true and none of which fully explains the reason. The main reason comes from our traditional take on our history, that we marched from Egypt to Sinai to receive the Torah. Time it took? Forty-nine days, a week of weeks, and we remember that march with great excitement as we look forward to receiving Torah again.

The counting of the omer is a semi-mourning period for some Jews. Why? Again, there are a number of reasons all shrouded in mystery. The most popular is that we are in mourning for a number of Rabbi Akiva's students who died of a plague but "plague" is probably code for military defeat at the hands of the Romans. This is the time of the Bar Kochba rebellion, an attempt to cast off Roman oppression and return to Jewish sovereignty. It didn't work. The folk custom of counting the omer as being a mourning period is a persistent memory of that catastrophe.

But for us, that explanation along with others just doesn't hold historical water and the idea of eternally mourning these deaths seems odd. Why them? Why not others? Surely we've had other catastrophes. Something about that explanation just doesn't work for us. That's why, instead, we try to focus on the positive idea of marching toward Sinai and why we've given up the idea of it being a mourning period.

But then again...

In traditional communities, the omer is a well known and observed time period. For us? Well, let's be honest. Many people reading and participating in this blog either had no or only a vague idea of the omer. Nothing motivates the Jewish community to remember like sadness. Happiness? Joy? Not so much.

And that's a shame really. When I think of what TBJ can mean, I see it as a place to celebrate uplift. I see it as a place to celebrate our values and connect ourselves to something larger than ourselves to give our lives meaning. I see it as a way of bringing joy and comfort and, frankly, fun. I fear, though, that worry and guilt and sadness and mourning are more motivating. How come we have so many more people here for Yom Kippur than for Purim? I'm glad you're here for Yom Kippur but you should try Purim. It's a lot more fun. Counting the omer is a mystical march towards the beginning of who we are as Jews. It is a march toward receiving Torah, that thing which has shaped your behavior for last 3000 years. TBJ is just the latest location to live out that Torah so that you don't just be Jewish but that you live Jewish. That's what membership in TBJ means to me.

What TBJ means to Sharon Levinstein

2011-04-19T20:00:00.000-04:00

Day 1 of Counting the Omer

What does Temple Beth Jacob mean to me? That is a very easy question to answer. For me it means memories. When I first decided to convert to Judaism, Temple Beth Jacob opened their doors and invited me in. I have always felt welcome from day one. I have many wonderful memories of TBJ. Our wedding, two Baby Namings, two Brit Milah, 2 Bat Mitzvahs, soon to be a Bar Mitzvah and in a few years a 4th. Oh and lets not forget myself becoming a Bat Mitzvah at the age of 32 and 9 months pregnant, believe me that was not easy.

Now we are starting new chapters as our children become young adults. Our Youth Group ( NewTY), Shul Ins, Kallahs, a trip to Israel, and a lot of driving children everywhere, but we love every minute of it. A very special thank you to the Freedman family for all you do. You have brought life back to our youth group, and our children have made new friends they will cherish for life.

So you see why this question is easy. Temple Beth Jacob you are my heart and soul. I believe you are part of who I am today. Most importantly you are family.

Sharon Levinstein

Help me count the omer.

2011-03-28T13:53:00.002-04:00

This year, to count the omer, send me your thoughts, essays, photos, musings, tweets, manuscript or any other form of communication that tells us, "What Temple Beth Jacob means to me." I'll include it in this blog between Pesach and Shavuot.

Thanks. Send to my email or drop off in the synagogue.

Glen Beck and Reform Judaism

2011-02-28T17:08:00.003-05:00

Glen Beck made an ill formed analogy between Reform Judaism and radical Islam. Seriously. His point was that just like radical Islam is a political sense and not a faith (assuming that to be true) Reform Judaism is political and not about faith. This is in concert with his belief, it seems, that legitimate religion should have a narrow focus on faith alone.

Well, there's lots to say but Rabbi Gurevitz did a pretty good job already so I'll post her link.

http://shmakoleinu-hearourvoices.blogspot.com/2011/02/reform-judaism-like-radicalized-islam.html

And Mr. Beck did apologise, sort of. He acknowledged that the analogy was poor but said that he's on the air so much that he can't possibly be held responsible for everything. He didn't apologize for slurring Reform Judaism or the idea that working to better the world is our expression of faithfulness to God's call to us.

Purim Gala and Carnival are coming

2011-02-15T08:24:00.004-05:00

Here's the poster for our SUPER megillah reading.

And check out the Gala promotion video below.

Efraim and Menashe

2010-12-29T15:12:00.002-05:00

When a congregant asks me to post a sermon, I'm happy to oblige so by request:

Vayechi: Ephraim and Menashe

December 17, 2010

When blessing children, there is a tradition to say, ysimcha elohim k’efraim u’menashe. May God make you like Ephraim and Menashe. Two questions may arise. Who were they and why them?

As we conclude Bereishit, Jacob is nearing the end of his life. Joseph hears his father is ill and takes his children, Ephraim and Menashe to visit. Jacob sees Joseph and the boys and asks, who are these? Joseph replies, they are mine. Jacob is overwhelmed. Having never expected to see his son again, now he is blessed to see his lost son’s children.

There are some interesting things that follow this moment. Some confusion that isn’t really confusion, for example. We’ll talk about tomorrow morning. We assume as well that there was some discussion, some chatting. We can imagine what the old grandfather would say to or ask of his young grandchildren. And then Jacob says, “By you shall Israel invoke blessings, saying: may God make you like Ephraim and Menashe.” Forever more, Jacob declares that future generations will invoke the names of Ephraim and Menashe when blessing children through the ages.

But why? Why them? Why not Joseph? Here is a man sold, lost and yet by his wits and God’s grace he rises to be second to Pharaoh. A self made man who defies fate and survives could be a good person through whom Israel is blessed. Or what about the other brothers? Are there none who have shown the sort of behavior we, the legacy of Jacob, could use for the blessing of our children? Not even Benjamin, Jacob’s favorite, the quiet one who is tossed around by Joseph but who always maintains his composure? Is he not worthy?

No. It is Ephraim and Menashe.

Rabbi Leib Ginsburg wrote a collection of commentary published in 1931 called the Yalkut Yehuda. He was born in Russia but served as a rabbi in Denver which may help to explain this comment:

Why specifically as Ephraim and Menashe? The reason is that Jacob realized that the time of the exile of his descendants was approaching and he knew that in exile, their Jewishness was in great danger. He therefore blessed them that they should be as Ephraim and Menashe – the first Jews who were born, grew up and educated in exile- and yet in spite of that, they “are mine”[as Jacob says]; they remained faithful to the House of Israel, as much as Reuben and Simeon.

The Land of Israel has always been a place of stability and inspiration and strength for the Jewish people. Gathered together we easily maintained our culture. We defended ourselves, built our towns and created our institutions. But once we left that place, once we were scattered, what would become of us? How could we survive without the ease that comes with all of us being together?

We all know that the Land of Israel still worked its magic. Our longing for it, dreaming of it served as a virtual gathering place. Jews who were alone were never really alone. Every Jew who faced towards Jerusalem was in concert with every other Jew facing Jerusalem and that was empowering. But that couldn’t be enough. Dreams and prayers alone just can’t be enough to keep Jews as Jews out in the Diaspora. So what was it? What did Joseph teach his children so that they would become the role model for blessing every other Jewish child to come?

This is the question every Diaspora community has debated ever since there was a first Diaspora and it is a very real question for us now. We are creating a vibrant community and yet are mystified why people don’t jump to join us. We are more mystified when those with us, leave us.

So what did Joseph teach his children?

He taught them to value and respect the high station they lived in, to be appreciative of their palace life but always value and respect their origins. He taught them to identify with the Jews who were workers, the Jews who were craftsmen, the Jews who were poor and the Jews who were rich. He taught his children to love the Jewish people even if some of the individual Jews could drive them crazy.

He taught them Hebrew, a window into culture and a language that feels like a secret code. It was a not a burden to learn along with their Egyptian studies but key to unlocking ideas and concepts that enriched them. He taught them that word shalom means peace but also wholeness, that one is at peace when one is whole and so we need to work to make sure people have what they need to be whole. He taught them that the word for peace is related to the word for pay, that we honor our debts, pay our workers quickly, that we don’t short change people or string them along so that they can provide for their families and so be whole. One Hebrew word shows how our ethical behavior brings wholeness to others and peace to the world.

Joseph taught them Jewish knowledge of values and ethics that gave a world view and a way to organize their thoughts in order to give them a place in that world.

He taught them to see themselves as part of a continuum. Ephraim and Menashe were not just kids alone out there but children honored to carry an amazing history. He taught them that his father was Jacob whose father was Isaac whose parents were Abraham and Sarah who gave up everything to follow a vision of a world with one God to unify all the peoples of the Earth.

He taught them that there was one God and not gods local to wherever one was. And that because there was just one God, we all came from that God and therefore, at our very core, we are all equal before that God and thus equal before each other. No one person is better than another, and so we need to treat each equally and fairly.

From that idea of one God, he taught a system of values and ethics that demanded the best of behavior to others. And perhaps he taught that to Pharaoh as well because our troubles in Egypt didn’t start until a new Pharaoh arose who knew not Joseph.

He taught his children joy in Jewish life and pride in particular cultural moments. He taught how it was fun to play along the Nile with the Egyptian children and empowering to be back home with Jewish art and Jewish food and Jewish music filling their home.

Ephraim and Menashe learned that the world did not revolve around them or their interests but that they were part of a larger community, a community that loved them and a community that needed them. They learned amongst all their privilege to serve others and work to create a healthy community and they became better because of that. They were better people when they became more dedicated Jews because they learned to think of others.

They learned joy of the texture of Jewish living and the joy of being who they are. Joseph taught them to keep faith when trouble hits and be humble when success arrives. He taught them to be confident in their skills and defer the compliments when they come.

Ephraim and Menashe never worried if they were Egyptian or Israelite. They were both. They didn’t take out their Jewish self when needed and they didn’t pass as Egyptians the other time. Joseph made sure both were always there, side by side.

He taught them that Jewish living was important and crucial. It wasn’t just faith, it wasn’t just cultural decoration, it wasn’t an interesting history or a shared story, it was a covenant between God and those boys, an allegiance to understand that Jewish living would make those boys better men and that those men would complete God’s Creation by making the world a better place. The boys understood that feeling Jewish at our core is what makes us proud to accept the mission of carrying Abraham’s mission. Those boys understood that carrying two identities makes us stronger people.

Our task today is not to maintain a Jewish outpost of holidays and lifecycle events. Our task is not to create an oasis of Jewish culture that people stop by from time to time. Our task today is to create a corner of the Diaspora where Jews learn pride, take strength, stand tall and celebrate who we are. Our task is to create excitement and dedication and personal meaning. Our mission is to be like Ephraim and Menashe. Our mission is to live up to Ephraim and Menashe’s success.

Yom Kippur Sermon

2010-09-20T13:14:00.002-04:00

On Mosques, Philosophers and what really bothers us.

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

Yom Kippur 5771

Rabbi Larry Freedman

A few weeks ago I spoke about the proposed mosque and community center called the Cordoba Initiative. I solemnly and strongly reminded Jews that we of all people should be first to champion the freedom of religion for all in this great country.

It did not go well. Let me say that part of what I spoke about was frustration at the mindless and ignorant opinions many of the protesters have. Some of our members felt I was including them among those people. I was not. I was speaking of mindless and ignorant protesters screaming not much more than lies and hate. I will presume that our members, a bit more educated than many, hopefully more sophisticated than some can come to conclusions that are thoughtful and considered. Reasonable people can disagree but none of us should give in to ideas that are false or fear based on crude stereotypes.

Why has this mosque, or community center as it really is, stirred up such passions? Is it because it is a victory statement of Islam or is there just something that makes us uncomfortable about an Islamic institution in lower Manhattan or could it be that we, ourselves, harbor, somewhere deep down our own prejudices? Now I know that none of us think that we hold prejudices. Prejudice is what the other guy has but something is bothering us. What could be a better time than Yom Kippur to be honest with ourselves as we try to understand what it is that upsets us so much.

So let’s talk about what is going on. Some people say it is a victory mosque. So then we need to ask, is Islam really at war with America?

There is at least one particular corner of Islam that surely is at war with us. Of this I am certain. That corner includes reactionary Muslims of the Wahabi set championed by Al Qaeda. I know we are in a war because they bombed the World Trade Center, blew a hole in one of our Navy ships, attacked two embassies and then, ultimately, flew four planes at targets on US soil. I know they are at war with us because this group and those sympathetic with them write and preach and broadcast every day that they are at war with us. Memri.org is just one place you can read translations. So we know that some Muslims are at war with us. But why? Why exactly is at least one corner of Islam at war with us?

The answer is found in the writings of Sayyid Qutb, a reactionary Muslim hanged by Gammal Abdul Nassar in 1966.

Paul Berman wrote an essay in 2003 that appeared in the NY Times Magazine section that has long stayed with me about Sayyid Qutb known as Al Qaeda’s philosopher. At its core, Paul Berman highlights Sayyid Qutb’s argument that the separation of the secular and religious worlds is the cause of modern problems.

Qutb’s argument begins by describing a pre-modern state where religious life and secular life was unified. In this pre-modern era the church or mosque or Jewish law, Halacha, held sway over ordinary daily life. Religious law judged everything from contract law to property disputes to proper clothing to the time of prayer. In other words, nothing was secular. Everything was a moral and religious issue. What you wore, how you treated your neighbor, what you ate, how you had fun, what you sang along with ritual practice was all in service to God’s will. There was no religious school and regular school. It was all religious. It was all regular.

Qutb asks, when did this break down? He looks to the Jews and admires the times of Moses. There was a time when Jews lived completely under God’s law and all aspects of life were unified. The mortal, the spiritual all were one and this was good. In time, though, the laws became rigid and lifeless so God sent another prophet, Jesus, to bring some needed reforms, to reset the law so that once again all aspects of life were joined. But Jews and Jesus argued and Jesus’ own disciples perverted Jesus’ message, according to Qutb, meaning that Jesus never was able to give out his true message. Qutb wrote that the disciples strayed too far from Jewish law. They created two realms, the life of the spirit and the life of the flesh and this added to the eventual separation between religious practice and secular life. The famous line, “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s” was clear evidence of this turn from a unified life. Secular life there. Spiritual life there. The body split from the soul. Day to day behavior separate from moral and spiritual thinking. Centuries went on leading to modern times where that distinction was normal and desired. Religion is one thing. Regular life is another.

Qutb despaired at Modernity, hated it because it separated mosque and state. He believed the Enlightenment and modern society meant a rejection of God’s morality in people’s personal lives. Writing in the 1960’s, he admired scientific progress and economic advancement but he felt that people had put too much faith in the triumph of human reason. (Following the Holocaust, a lot of Jews worried about that, too.)

Qutb’s ideas are not exclusive to Islam. There any number of Christians and Jews who also argue that society needs to rejoin God and religion with the secular world, that society would be better if we rejected secularism. That is fine until some followers of the that school of thought turn to violence and this is the flaw in Qutb’s teaching.

What Qutb could not know or would not accept is that religion separated from the secular world has fared very poorly. Religion away from secular life denigrates and soon discriminates against other religions and eventually develops fanatical adherents. The fanatical religious determine the secular world unredeemable and therefore worthy of attack. Within Islam it is al Qaeda who attacked us because our value of an open society is at odds with their narrow definition of a perfect society found only by a very specific kind of adherence to Islam as they define it. The 9/11 attackers were part of this group.

I guess al Qaeda sees 9/11 as a victory and some of the most vocal opponents of the community center call the building a victory mosque. But when some non-Muslims refer to the community center as a victory mosque, we should ask if Muslims in general see it as a victory mosque. They do not. Not all Muslims. Not all of Islam. Not the people building the community center. We should remember that al Qaeda isn’t building the center so it would have to be a victory mosque built by Muslims who have condemned the actions that such a monument would celebrate. Some people would disagree with that premise and insist we follow the money so we’ll wait and see on that.

Still, the victory mosque idea hits hard. I’ve read numerous references to Muslims building mosques at the site of military victories. I had never heard of that so I asked Prof. Reuven Firestone of HUC. He speaks Arabic, has lived in Egypt for a year and is a professor of medieval Jewish and Islamic studies. He never heard of such a thing either. It is true that mosques are built on top of churches and churches are built on top of mosques. When one would defeat the other, that’s what they would often do but not as a sign of military victory. It has more to do with sanctity. The location might have an aura of holiness or, quite simply, the walls and foundation of a big building were there and it is easier to retrofit than rebuild. This architectural reality, the re-use of a holy site by the next group has been around long before any monotheists were building anything.

If it is not a victory mosque then what is its purpose? Some say that the Cordoba Institute by using the name Cordoba indicates that just as Islam ruled Spain, they will do so here. But, the Muslims lost Cordoba to the Christians so that’s not a great symbol. More to the point, Cordoba references a time of great comity between communities. Yes, Christians and Jews were officially second class. It wasn’t perfect for the Jews but compared to other times it was pretty good. Cordoba represents a golden age of Spain more than oppression of non-Muslims.

So I don’t accept that it’s a victory mosque and I don’t see the evidence that it’s about Islamic supremacy. What troubles us then? The proximity.

To build an Islamic cultural center near the former World Trade Center is insensitive to the victims’ families we have heard. And I know that here in Orange County we have people who were there, people who were killed, people who responded and worked amid the horror so I tread carefully and respectfully. So, respectfully, I have to note that some families oppose the center while plenty of victims’ families are unopposed to the project. There are some families supportive as a way of spitting in the face of Sayyid Qutb and his theories.

Yes, the attacks left a terrible scar on the people of New York and we need to be sensitive to the grieving families but does that mean that the area around ground zero shall never again have any formal Islamic presence? Must all Muslims bear the guilt of some Muslims forever? And how far do we take this? Insensitivity and closeness is an imprecise thing. When they finally finish building on the ground zero site can Muslims working in an office building there have a prayer room? Can a kebab seller set up his cart on the sidewalk if it has Arabic menus?

The proposed building is two blocks away. Some say it is too close. Would three be better? Four? What is the radius that allows some New Yorkers to feel comfortable? I’m not being facetious. I’m asking serious questions. We are talking about making an area of New York City, an area of the United States, restricted from any formal Muslim presence. The majority dictating where the minority can pray is a serious thing to consider and deeply and profoundly un-American. Our Constitution and Bill of Rights make this country as great as it is. It is to our eternal credit that our country has from before its inception, with bumps along the way, allowed people to worship as they please and, subject to reasonable zoning rules, where they please. I can understand if the perpetrators, if the terrorists wanted to set up some display or a museum celebrating their attack but that is not the case. There is a spectrum of Islamic belief and practice just as in Judaism and we must resist condemning the whole because of the actions of a few. And why must these Muslims who did nothing carry the burden of terrorists they abhor?

Perhaps, maybe, many of us carry prejudices toward Muslims. Most of us don’t know very much about Islam. It can be difficult to be immune from the name calling we hear from both sides though here in Newburgh, many people do have friendships with Muslim which helps break down barriers. Most of the time, these prejudices show themselves in benign ways, small misunderstandings, inconsequential slights but for many Americans the prejudices come out as nothing less than hate. By now we have all heard of the pastor who saw it his Christian duty to have a Koran book burning.[1] We can dismiss him as a bigot but he represents merely an extreme version of what many in America believe. There is Islamophobia out there. There is suspicion about Muslims as a group even if we don’t like to admit it. And it is when we fear Muslims as a group, when every Muslim is presumed to share the agenda of the most violent Muslims, that we enter into the realm of bigotry and we leave reasonable discussion.

The mosque included in the Park 51 project is already there. It’s been there for some time as has another one in the neighborhood. The project was given a green light back in December and until a yellow journalism blog[2] started hyperventilating, everyone in any place of authority -zoning boards, community groups- approved it.

But once our own American fanatic bloggers started saying World Trade Center terror mosque and ground zero mosque and monster mosque and all sorts of other incendiary things you get people going.

For some the syllogism works like this: the terrorists attacked in the name of Islam. This cultural center will be in the name of Islam. Therefore this cultural center is a terrorist center. That is the logic of an awful lot of people. I hear them say it.

Others have expressed their concerns this way. The terrorists were Muslim. This center is for Muslims. Muslims remind me of the attacks. Therefore no Muslim institution can be in the area.

I’m not trying to belittle people who have an emotional reaction. I’m trying to understand how the presence of this center offends people unless we are lumping all of Islam, all Muslims, into one group.

This is not to say we should allow political correctness to keep us from calling it like it is. Fear of al Qaeda and the followers of Qutb is a very good idea. No one knows better than Jews that when a person says he wants to kill us, we take that very seriously. Vigilance is good. Fear of Muslims as a group is another thing entirely.

It’s Yom Kippur. It is a day to search our souls. It is a time to dig down deep and try to understand, really understand where our sensitivity is coming from. It is a day to still the shrill screaming we hear from so many opponents and look into our own souls quietly. If the cultural center is insensitive, what exactly about it is insensitive? What upsets us? Are we upset because of the rumors and false information and outright lies we’ve read? Are we upset by distance? Are we upset that Muslims as a whole haven’t sufficiently humbled themselves, that they don’t know their place? Or do we hold onto a fear of Islam, a fear of Muslims.

Nine years ago, we were attacked in the name of Islam. We were scarred by Muslims who acted as Muslims. They attacked us for our values. That is a hard thing to overcome. It is hard not to look at a mosque or a headscarf or hear an accent and wonder, what do they think? What do they really feel? And some suspicion is good. Some suspicion keeps us alive. But too much suspicion just makes us fearful and mean and we must not be fearful and mean. It is Yom Kippur. It is the time to look deep within and ask ourselves the hard questions. Why do I feel the way I feel?

[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/26/us/26gainesville.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=koran%20burning&st=cse

[2] http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/08/16/ground_zero_mosque_origins

Kol Nidre Sermon

2010-09-20T13:13:00.002-04:00

Yom Kippur 5771

Getting Excited

Rabbi Larry Freedman

Temple Beth Jacob of Newburgh

This is the sermon I was supposed to give on Rosh Hashanah. That is why, in a moment, I will reference Rosh Hashanah. My thanks to everyone for pitching in last week and especially to Linda and Aliyah for giving the sermon.

When I was little, my mother would get us new clothes for Rosh Hashana which meant we had to suffer an eternity going to stores to get a new suit or new shoes. It was interminable trying things on. I hated it. I’m a boy. Trying on clothes with your mother is no fun. It’s a circle of hell. But my mother had this peculiar thing about new clothes so, whatever, I was stuck.

I am going to cut to the chase because my mother is here and I know she’s waiting for this: Mom, you were right. I was… I was wrong.

It turns out that rabbis for centuries have had a list of things one could do and should do to prepare for Rosh Hashana. One should hear the shofar each day during Elul, the month before Rosh Hashana. We sounded the shofar every Friday night for the past month. One should visit the graves of relatives, a custom that has moved here to the Sunday between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. One should seek forgiveness from friends and relatives and begin the process of reflection, preparing oneself for reflection during Rosh Hashana. One should have one’s tallit cleaned, change the Torah covers and prepare for a festive meal and clean the house.

And, and, one should get new clothes. Indeed some say it is an obligation for a husband to buy new clothes and jewelry for his wife. Of course, we live in an egalitarian era so gentlemen, pick up something for yourselves as well.

So my mother was right. Buying new clothes is a longstanding custom to prepare for Rosh Hashana. But I didn’t know that at the time.

Let me just tell you that there is only so far I am willing to go to humble myself before my mom. At some point I have to save face.

And I think here my only chance to save face is to say that I never really knew why we were being tortured. I didn’t know that this was a longstanding custom. My mom, as I remember it, basically said something like, you’re a year older, you’re bigger, nothing fits. She probably added something in there about how we get new clothes to match the new year. Maybe, but I don’t remember it.

Let me digress for just a moment and assure my mom that I have since grown fond of nice clothes and sharp shoes so if you want to hit up Woodbury Commons, I’m all for it.

The reason for getting new clothes is really not that complicated. It’s a new year and we want to look our best as we greet the new year. The synagogue fashion show that many people hate or secretly love is really just a version of the long standing custom of putting one’s best foot forward. We come together for a festive day, seeing family and friends we haven’t seen in some time, we have a good meal, we gather for prayer and we begin the intense process of self-reflection as we, in the language of the machzor, stand before God, ready to be judged. Who wouldn’t want to look his or her best for that? The notion that God doesn’t care what we look like certainly is true but we don’t dress up for God; we dress up for ourselves, to prepare ourselves.

Time for fresh clothes to match a fresh start. Time for a new outfit that doesn’t carry any baggage from the last year. Time to wear something that promises a good future.

It’s actually a nice sentiment, isn’t it? It turns clothes and shoes and jewelry from mindless consumerism into a spiritual expression. Our very clothes tell a story of what we are doing here tonight. Like an actor who truly feels a character after putting on the wardrobe for the first time, we can use our clothing to finally feel what the day is about: formal but festive, serious but joyful.

That’s a real spiritual moment. When one can take something in the physical world and use it to develop a more thoughtful expression, that’s spirituality.

That is what we do when we are here in synagogue and for many of us, we feel that. We embrace that spiritual moment that arises from being physically present, hearing the music, wearing our new clothes. But for some who are here and for many who are not here and who will not be here or any synagogue, this moment is not very enjoyable at all. No one told them what it all means. No one explained to them or re-explained over and over the deeper meaning of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and the power our customs and rituals provide. The High Holidays are more burden than joy. No one got them excited.

It’s not that we don’t try to help everyone feel a personal connection. The Jewish community across North America has built beautiful buildings, created communal institutions, religious schools. We have dedicated and warm volunteers and lay leadership all working to make Judaism vibrant. But we’ve also created forms and paperwork and appointments and committees and boards and dues. We’ve created membership with the positive goal of creating a happy community keeping itself going only to see it misunderstood as something offputting and elitist.

Into this mix comes Chabad. As I’m sure you know, Chabad has sent a young couple to be the shlichim, the emissaries to Newburgh. We already have Chabad in Poughkeepsie and in Goshen and now here in Newburgh so we’re moving up in the world.

Chabad is an acronym for chochma, bina, deah. Wisdom, understanding, knowledge. It is the second name of the Lubavitch sect of Hasidic Judaism.

In the late 1700s, there was a revolt against the stuffy, book driven elite expression of Judaism. It was a Judaism where uneducated peasants would scratch out a living while the elite yeshiva students studied complicated Talmud in order to draw closer to God. The Ba’al Shem Tov was the rabbi who rebelled against this and created the idea that joy and ecstasy were equal to study as paths to God. He created the niggun, the wordless melody and ecstatic dance that could transport a group upwards. He taught a life of joy in the mitzvot. This movement became very popular.

In time, the Hasidic movement created a number of groups that centered on a leader, a Rebbe from a certain town. Schneur Zalman also known as the Alter Rebbe was from a Russian town called Lubavitch and the group became known as the Lubavitchers.

Hasidism grew for almost 200 years until the Holocaust devastated them. A few groups survived and moved to America. Most stayed to themselves. What little they had seen of the outside world was enough. The Lubavitchers however took a different approach. The last rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson looked around and saw the world filled with holiness, untapped holiness. He believed, as we’ll get to in just a moment, that Jews had a special gift to tap into that holiness and bring it out into this world. And his Hasidim there in Crown Heights were just the type of Jews to go find other Jews and bring that holiness out. Shlichut, this role of being an emissary, became a defining aspect of what it meant to be Lubavitch.

These shlichim are highly motivated, highly energetic and focused on a singular mission. Find Jews and make them aware of how special they are and how they can use their unique gift. And they’ll do it for free. Well, free for a little while.

Chabad’s business model is simple. They give seed money to a couple who is expected to be self supporting in about a year. The shlichim can do this because they are willing to work very hard for very little pay. It also helps that they sometimes ignore zoning laws or fire codes or town ordinances or even, at times, courtesy to neighbors by turning their homes into the central meeting place.

They are also successful because they don’t worry about all the things synagogues like ours have to deal with. Since it is a one man operation, or one man and one woman, there are no boards, there are no committees, there are no members. All of a Chabad rabbi’s time can be spent focusing on individuals. They have nothing else to do and they want nothing else to do than be with Jews, sit with Jews, visit with Jews. We have a building where programs take place but then struggle to get people to come in. Wherever they go, that’s where the program is. A neighbor’s home, Starbucks, a borrowed office conference room. And they are much better at personal, pastoral care than anybody else. Where I might spend my days moving the program forward, tending to the institution, and making appointments for the next day or next week, they meet Jews.

They also have another advantage. They are unapologetic and in love with what they do with no constraints on their enthusiasm. I promise you, Chabad children know all about new clothes for Rosh Hashanah and they are psyched about it. Indeed, that kind of unbridled enthusiasm is what attracts many Reform Jews to Chabad. They get Jews excited. It’s difference with us.

At its best Reform Judaism found a way to bring Jewish living to modern Jews. But at its worst, Reform Judaism had the unintentional consequence of limiting Jewish expression and teaching our own people to hold back on too vibrant a display of Jewish living. We have made it comfortable for Jews to put their Jewish living up on a shelf, taking it down from time to time and then putting it away until the next time.

A lot of that has changed. Reform Judaism is more forward today, leading in social justice and reinvigorating Jewish living but it can’t be denied that the enthusiasm and zest we have can’t be compared to the zeal the Chabad shlichim have. Reform Jews may be proud of being Jewish but we just don’t have the same all consuming focus and drive Chabad has. I suspect there are a few reasons for that. Let me tell you about one of them.

Rebbe Zalman, the Alter Rebbe, wrote a major work on the nature of the soul and a mystical guide to self-improvement. The work is called the Tanya and after Torah it is perhaps the most important book for Lubavitch Chasidim. I’ll be teaching an adult education course on it this year.

It is in the Tanya that I find one source of Chabad motivation that may be surprising. The Tanya teaches and Chabad believes that the Jewish soul is better than the soul of the gentile.

You heard that right. The Jewish soul is better. Let me remind you that this is not a general Jewish teaching. This is a Chabad teaching. It is from the Tanya, their book, not ours, not anyone else’s.

How can a soul be better than any other soul? Reform Jews, I would say most Jews believe that at a basic human level, all of us are equal creations of God. We are all children of God, equal in all ways at our essence. The Reform Movement lays our whole interest in tikkun olam on the premise that Jews are called to help alleviate suffering regardless of who suffers because we are all, at our core, equal before God.

But the Tanya teaches that this is not so. Here is the logic. A man goes to his wife with idea of creating a child. He has great concentration in this matter and with one single cell sperm, he creates a child. Note that the Tanya doesn’t mention women or that she needs to contribute her own one single cell but come take the course with me and we’ll have fun discovering such things.

So we have a single cell from the man and from this cell develops an entire child. An entire child from one cell. The Tanya tells us to realize that from that single cell develops the most impressive and important parts of a child, like for example the brain as well as less important, lower level parts like a toenail. We all would agree that surely the brain and the toenail all originate from that single cell but we could not agree that they are all equally important. There is a hierarchy in the value of the cells a child has. Lung, high, appendix, not so much.

And this is why that if there can be different kinds of cells that come from the same origin and if all human beings are creations of the one God, if their souls are imbued within them from this singular God, it is possible that not all souls are equal in value. Some souls are like the brain and some souls are like a toenail. All are from the same source but not all have the same value.

Guess which one the Jewish soul is? If you are offended, don’t blame me. It’s not my teaching, it’s theirs.

The Lubavitchers have a very real and clear sense of God present in their lives right before them. They believe that there is the chance for holiness at every moment, a very real opportunity to create an aura of holiness, to bring a sense of the Divine down to this world and they, with the superior Jewish soul, are perfectly poised to do this. No one else can create that holiness the way a Jew can. This is why they can be so motivated. They have a superior ability to do something amazing. And only they have it. “With great power comes great responsibility,” goes the famous Stan Lee line and they believe it. This is why they go after any Jew they can find because that Jew also has a superior soul even if it is latent, even if it has not yet been inspired to reach its true full potential.

Their approach to non-Jews has softened in recent years. Where once they would ignore non-Jews, today they remind non-Jews of the Noachide laws, the seven rules of basic civility that God wants everyone to follow. And after assuring the non-Jew that he or she has a role in the world as well, an important role, they then turn their attentions back to the Jewish superior soul.

And they are very nice about it. They are friendly and charming and persuasive and warm and filled with yiddishkeit and totally and completely sincere as they help Jews and Jewish families increase Jewish living and increase joy in Jewish celebrations one mitzvah at a time.

And what could be better? After all, shouldn’t we also do that? A Reform synagogue should encourage our people to develop Jewish living, to take on a new mitzvah, little by little. A Reform synagogue should guide Jews and Jewish families to experience the joy and meaning of our heritage. Of course, we do it by welcoming and including non-Jews as members of our community and we presume women will have nothing less than equal status. We look to tradition but embrace Western education. But even with all that, we should consider spiritual growth and ritual growth as something good and positive. The children learn, why not the adults? What if someone in her 50s started saying Kiddush at home every Friday night? What if someone in his 30s decided to stay away from email in order to concentrate on his family all Shabbat long?

That would be good. That would be praiseworthy. It certainly is as much a goal in the Reform Movement as it is in Chabad.

The difference is that we create ways for eternal values to speak to each new generation in concert with modern life. Chabad uses modern technology to keep alive an 18^th century value system. We promote Jewish living through a central location that costs money to run. Chabad is more personal, not focused on their building focusing on free or low cost but somewhere, someone is donating or paying. Maybe a few wealthy donors will keep Chabad free for the rest or maybe donations will be requested in time. And let me digress to say that there is something noble and good with our system of having everyone pitch in. All our members can take pride in knowing their support through time, energy or money is what keeps this community going.

What Chabad does best is get Jews excited about being Jewish. What they don’t do well, in fact, it is not their goal, is to create Jews who live within their system. They don’t expect you to become Orthodox. They just hope you’ll do one more mitzvah.

What we do well is create a system all our Jews and non-Jews can live in but we don’t do a good enough job of getting people excited. We do have a goal of getting Jews and non-Jews excited about modern Jewish life and taking on more of it because, ultimately, it is good for our souls. Our ordinary equal-to-everyone-else’s souls. Building Jewish life in our own lives, in our own homes is good because it makes us better people and enriches our lives and brings a sense of spiritual connection. But we need to do a better job of bringing the excitement and joy. And we need to teach messages better so they’ll stick.

So come study with me this year and get excited. Take that first step of clearing your calendar and committing to some study for your own benefit. We will have a Taste of Judaism class which is three weeks and perfect for intermarried couples or Jews or non-Jews, members or not, who want to learn a little bit more about Judaism and Jewish living. In fact, this class is aimed primarily for non-members so let people know. We will study Tanya, Hasidic mysticism and take away teachings that fill our spirit as well as ideas that just might not work for us. We will have an adult Bar and Bat Mitzvah class this year and of course, come speak to me if you are ready to discuss conversion. Aside from formal classes, you can always call with a question or point to discuss. Just pick up the phone. You can join us for prayer, an hour of thoughtful contemplation. We have every Shabbat morning Torah study that is one part text and one part free wheeling discussion.

We have all these things so that you can get excited, so that your Jewish life is not up on a shelf but a vibrant part of your day. You don’t need a superior soul to be motivated. You just need your spirit fed, your soul nourished, your mind challenged and your life vibrant, connected with our people all over the world throughout time. Start with one thing. Try one thing.

And beyond formal study, there are any number of opportunities to gather with your friends and neighbors here at the synagogue as well as off site. I know it can be hard to take advantage of what we have here. People are busy and all that. Jewish study is something that doesn’t naturally register on most people’s calendars but you’ll see. It’s good to gather together. Take the first step and come in.

Rosh Hashanah has come and gone. Yom Kippur is here. I hope you have something new to wear for the season. If not, maybe something before Simchat Torah? I wish you all a meaningful experience while you are here in synagogue and a meaningful Yom Kippur while you are at home as well. Engage the message of the holiday to look into your soul and this year do something new for your soul, just like you should do something new for your body with those new clothes.

Erev Rosh Hashanah Sermon

2010-09-13T11:07:00.003-04:00

Rosh Hashanah 5771

A Mystical Approach to God

Temple Beth Jacob

Rabbi Larry Freedman

Kellee is a friend of mine. That’s not completely true. She’s a Facebook friend. She was in high school with me.

When I first got on Facebook, Kellee friended me in the digital world and I was pretty surprised because I don’t recall us being friends in the analog world. Let’s just say she ran with a sleeker, smoother, less geeky crowd. And I see she lives in Miami now and based on the photos of her at all sorts of swell parties I would say she continues to run with a smoother, sleeker, less geeky crowd, the kind of crowd where everyone dresses like they are 26. But Kellee’s not fooling me. I graduated with her so I know exactly how old she is. 46. And three quarters.

I bring up Kellee because a little bit ago she posted a loaded statement on her profile looking for comments. She wrote this: “Ok...I do NOT do "church" my "god" is the earth, the air, the trees and the spirit of light, goodness and positive energy...I don't need to read a book or go to a building to celebrate all that is true... Just sayin. (Had to get that off my chest.)”

Some of her friends responded shaking their heads with promises that they would pray for her.

Another person offered a secular amen. A few people offered books she might be interested in.

I chimed in too. I chimed in like an elbow patch tweed jacket at a South Beach fashion show. Like Birkenstocks at a Jimmy Choo boutique.

But, she friended me first, right? She was asking for comments. Here’s why I tossed in my two cents: because I hear this sort of thing all the time. I hear it with kids, I hear it with adults. I hear it at camp, I hear it at synagogue. The ideas of God that many people have, that they were taught just leave them cold. I’m guessing Kellee had a little church as a child but as an adult couldn’t buy into it. She just can’t accept whatever it is people try to tell her God is. But, despite this, she has maintained a sense of awe that moves her. She doesn’t care much for God but she has a great sense of wonderment. I suggested as part of my less smooth, more geeky post that she might just be a mystic.

Kellee ignored me. As she always did.

But even though Kellee ignored me again, she would find good company here with many Jews who struggle with God. Lots of Jews struggle with the idea of God and yet, despite not believing in God or being skeptical about God, these Jews come here tonight and fully embrace the themes of the holiday, enjoy reflective moments and leave renewed and refreshed. The idea of deep self reflection and honest self-assessment leads to meaningful moments even if one is skeptical about God.

For others this holiday is very much a day with God. These are Jews with a deep sense of God in their lives. These are Jews who find an immanent God, a being or something, apart from themselves to which they can turn to and pray to and lean on and confess before. The liturgy of Rosh Hashana sings out to them without being metaphor or poetry or anything other than an honest turning over to a higher power. And so they enter and then leave the day feeling grateful that their prayers have been heard, that God cares, that God desires to turn from punishment, that God prefers forgiveness if we just do our part.

And we all come together easily because our way doesn’t require one path. Our sacred stories and teachings and holidays may refer to God, they may presume God’s existence but we do not have a doctrinal requirement to believe in God in order to gain value and benefit.

But is that it? Either skeptics who enjoy the themes or believers who turn themselves personally over to a higher power? What about people like Kellee? She can’t accept God as others are preaching but she still wants something more than poetry. What can we offer people like her?

I actually think she is on to something. She represents a third path, a path that ambles between the classic idea of God as a being distinct from us and the rejection of God entirely. Kellee talks about trees and air and the earth. She suggests wonderment at the world at large and gets a spiritual charge from that, a moment to see amazing things and feel connected. And she doesn’t need some building to teach her that. How could she see the grandeur of a sunset if she’s sitting inside?

So I added my comment suggesting that she is describing a mystical approach, a kabbalistic approach even.

And I would like to share it with you. Now, let me say that going to Hebrew Union College, a seminary firmly rooted in German enlightened rational thinking, mysticism was not offered at school. Mysticism is the stuff of poets and not serious students of theology they would sniff. But outside the seminary, mysticism brings an idea of God many always imagined but couldn’t identify. Mysticism frees agnostic Jews from images of God they can’t stand and envelops Jews who believe earnestly in God. And it may just give atheists a chance to appreciate a sense of God without having to accept supernatural phenomenon.

The idea of taking in the air and stars and all that refers to an idea called panentheism. Not pantheism. Pantheism is the idea that everything is a god and leads to worshipping various natural things. Panentheism is the idea that God is the whole of everything. God is the entirety of the entire universe and so you and I and the wind and sun and mountains and sea, that book, this wall are all part of God. The world, the universe is the manifestation of God. We enter the idea of the nonduality of God meaning that all is within God, everything is an expression of God. We may regard the world as separate from us but this mystical idea says that the world is not separate from us at all. We are part of the world. We are one with the universe.

This can be hard to imagine.

It’s hard to imagine because mortals that we are, we need to characterize, we need to codify. We need to say this is here and that is there. We are organized to distinguish one thing from the next. It’s hard for us to see everything as an entire whole.

Imagine we go to a museum and we see a painting of a landscape. We will notice the field or sky or mountain. Our eye will move about from element to element. That’s pretty normal. This part is here, that part is there.

But sometimes, for a moment, we can grasp the whole canvas, we can see the whole picture as a totality. Our eye stops roving and we see it all and if we are truly lucky, we cease to see anything else but the scene and we lose sight of the walls of the gallery and we are within the scene. At that moment, we have a brief sense of non-duality. The landscape ceases to become oil on canvas; it becomes our world, all that we are. We are in the painting. We are part of the painting as a whole. We are enveloped.

It’s what happens when people have that Grand Canyon moment at the Grand Canyon or a mountain peak or looking out at the ocean; because that is what it takes to shake us out of the usual idea that I am here and that is there. We are, standing at the rim of the Grand Canyon, on top of the mountain, at ocean’s edge, enveloped by the tableau before us, finally achieving that sense of oneness with all that is before us. We realize how small we are and yet at the very same time, how we are part of something so vast. We realize the unity of the whole universe and that is given the name God. God is the totality of everything and we are part of it.

Back in the gallery, the painting is all around us, we are in the painting. But then, we notice we are in the painting, we become aware of feeling enveloped, we recognize the awe and that very awareness thrusts us out of that thinking. We return to the usual boundaries. The gallery walls, the floor underfoot. The painting there and me over here. And the moment is gone. Awareness is gone. But for that moment we have a fleeting moment of being one with the universe and thus one with God. We gain a sense of things as all connected and then, that awareness is gone the moment we recognize we had that sense of things.

A Jewish mystical name that speaks to this vision of God is ein sof. That means, without end. It is the idea of God as no thing. God as no individual thing, no single thing. It removes the idea of any thingness about God at all. It removes any sense of God with boundaries, any sense of God as apart from all that goes on in the universe. The idea of ein sof suggests the idea that the universe -which is without boundaries- is in its totality God. All things are within God. Or to put it another way, God is no one thing but all things. There is no thing other than God.

But like any good mystical idea, it takes some quiet contemplation to imagine the ein sof, the idea of God without boundaries because if we can imagine God ein sof, without boundaries, all that is in the universe, we can also remember that we are part of that universe and thus, part of God.

How are we doing? Confused? Well, this sort of discussion is best suited for small group study, not a sermon. And Torah has fed us a constant stream of episodes of God as a separate being, a separate character in the Torah. We have a repeating cycle of God as watching, speaking, doing and performing supernatural miracles. This is the vision of God that is the essence of most types of Orthodox Judaism and the classic idea given to Jewish school children.

It is also the image that has been spurned by generations and generations of free thinkers or enlightened thinkers or rational thinkers. And it is the vision of God ridiculed by the new atheists. We shouldn’t ridicule of course. Faith is a method to something larger so a classic image of God may work for some but what is most important to know is that it does not have to work for everyone. Judaism has welcomed new ideas of God for a long time. That’s why I don’t worry too much when parents come to me upset that their child doesn’t believe in God. The simple answer to those kids is to ask, what God are you rejecting? The answers often describe some variation of the man with the beard in a chair and a vision of God that is more magician than Creator. They describe to me an idea of God that I couldn’t possibly adhere to. Somewhere, somehow, people are picking up unsatisfactory ideas about God, find them absurd and assuming that’s all there is to it, reject the whole enterprise. Truth be told, the idea of this sermon came from adults, our members, who have no use for the synagogue because they don’t believe in God. I would bet I don’t believe in the thing they are rejecting either. I would also bet that given a chance, many of these adults might enjoy a Jewish approach to awe once we dispense of supernatural miracles.

I have to say that I’ve never rejected God but I’ve never really embraced the classic vision either. I appreciate Maimonides who pretty much says we can’t describe what God is, we can only say what God is not. And for starters, God is not a man with a beard on a throne.

I like Martin Buber whose famous I-Thou approach offers the notion of relating to God in a profound, internally felt manner that can only be experienced. We have a profound moment where we know. Once we begin to describe it, we lose that brief connection.

And I like the mystics who use a little poetry, a little creativity and a willingness to see the whole world as one.

There is more to mysticism and I propose we study it a bit. I’m going to teach two classes this year about mysticism. One will be some introductory reading of some basic mystical ideas. And, since I’m not a mystic myself, we’re going to go on this journey together. But I’ve already read the book so I’ll be your guide. This is the chance for everyone who has rejected God to see alternatives to that idea you rejected. This is a chance for those with faith to explore another way of understanding the unknowable. There’s no goal in the class other than awareness. This approach has made me more comfortable with ideas of God, more certain in my rejection of other ideas of God, happy to have some kind of logic and intellectual thought to the mystery of God. I encourage all of you to come try it out, especially those of you who rejected God a long time ago.

The other class will be on the Tanya. The Tanya is the pre-eminent text, next to Torah, I suppose, for the Lubavitch Chasidim, also known as Chabad. I’ve already started looking at some of it and it is fascinating. The Tanya will be thoughtful and mind bending at times with meditations on the soul and how we can elevate our souls to be the very best we can be. And it will be maddening at times as well.

No prior knowledge is required. We’ll take our time and move at our own steady pace. If you are up for something you may love or hate or love to hate, this will be for you. It will be a chance to study something with little practical application but great personal potential. And what could be more mystical than that? I hope you can see that as enticing.

Kellee, in her effort to cast aside church was actually embracing something larger. She is open to something larger than herself, the first mystical step, and open to the idea that all that is around her is interconnected. She is willing to feel the awe of being at the edge of the Grand Canyon without having to be at the Grand Canyon. And she is willing to feel that awe wherever she is. Kellee lives in Miami so I don’t think she’ll join us but I hope you do, especially you who are here but are uncomfortable at best with all the God language. Those of you who strain to be polite with our addressing an immanent being, those of you who rebel against turning ourselves to a God of emotions should join me for the study. I hope you do. I hope you join to fine tune your anger, open yourselves up to greater awareness and walk away with language to dismiss what you know and maybe embrace something new. Rosh Hashanah is the new year and we’ll begin with some new study.

Tough reading in the Torah and various threats.

2010-07-10T21:20:00.002-04:00

Mattot Masei: The seduction around us

July 9, 2010

Temple Beth Jacob

Newburgh, NY

It is common when wishing to besmirch the good name of a religion that one goes to find the very worst example of some holy writ and use that as proof of the horror of the religion. Tonight, we read what must surely be among the worst examples of Israelite behavior as performed by those of us alive some three thousand years earlier.

The Midianites and Moabites had, a few chapters ago, seduced many of the Israelites into worshipping a foreign God. The nature of this seduction involved very specific sexual acts. It was not uncommon that sexual acts were used in the ancient world as a way to encourage the gods to do something, usually make the fields fertile with rain and such. The idea was that just as men might “fertilize” a woman through congress, so too were we asking God to fertilize the soil. That’s just one idea.

But suffice to say that the ancient world had all sorts of practices in their idol worship that were an anathema to the Israelites and distasteful to us moderns.

Among the Midianites and Moabites there was an incident with Baal Peor, the god of Peor, which involved some very graphic behavior all in the service of idol worship. One of the people involved was Bilaam, the same Bilaam that was famous and praised for his blessing of Israel with the famous mah tovu blessing.

But famous though he is and grateful we are that he blessed Israel, he did it because he could do nothing other than what God told him to do and, it seems, was more than happy to be involved with a rite that included orgiastic behaviors that might lure Israel away from God. As we discussed many times, one of the themes of the Torah is a fight against idol worship. It is the story of a, now large, tribe with a unique message and a completely unique God trying to keep its people focused on that God while living in a sea of temptation. It is a story of a tribe fighting off internal revolts and external temptation and fight they did. The theologically threatening were left behind in Egypt or slayed after the golden calf or, here, slaughtered mercilessly. In an age where we have more tolerance it is hard to understand but to the Israelites then, idol worship meant more than an alternative lifestyle. It meant the end of the Jewish people. Idol worship, seductive idol worship distracted Jews from their mission and at this time Judaism without worship of Adonai meant a short lived experiment.

And that is why Moses instructed his army to go and kill all the men of Midian including Bilaam. They took all the booty and women and children and brought it back to Moses quite pleased but Moses castigated them. Why are these women still alive? The women were part of the seduction. The women were as culpable as the men and so he ordered them executed. Only the girls were spared, those who knew nothing of the seduction.

It’s an awful sequence, a sad moment though a very clear moment. Survival is paramount. Terrible things happen in the world and we can’t be afraid to engage in them if the alternative is demise and destruction.

Of course, this is a sequence in Torah that liberal modern Jews would just assume skip over. We would rather highlight our peace seeking moments in Torah but it’s important that we read this as much as anything else. This is part of our heritage and we can’t pretend it doesn’t exist. In a world where one is the minority trying to do something good, in a world where trying to mind one’s own business doesn’t help to avoid confrontation, there comes a time when force and violence is called upon. I don’t believe and I hope you will not take this story to be an instruction on how to deal with enemies. It is not. We are not Moses, we do not receive Divine mandates such as he received, there are no more Midianites and we aren’t entering the land of Israel and the worship of these idols has vanished so this command is a one-time only thing. But we do receive within this narrative an attitude, an approach. We are peace loving but not pacifists. We seek peace and pursue it but we aren’t going to lie down and die because, of course, we have a valuable reason for being here and we believe we must protect that purpose from threats to its existence.

Today, there are two threats. One is external, one is internal. The external threat is easy to see. While I’m sure that Islam as a whole is as peaceful as Judaism and that any number of Muslims are peaceful good friends of Jews –we have centuries of evidence that this was and is true by the way- I also know that some, many teachers of Islam and many Muslims speak frequently and forcefully of the desire to destroy Israel and by extension Jews. I hear it in their speeches, in their pronouncements in their videos and blogs, in their interviews. One does not need to search far to find unadulterated hate. It is sent directly to us every day over the web. We should seek out those Muslims who wish us well but we ought to be mindful of those who do not and we should be willing to identify them as such. These are not evil people who happen to be Muslim. These are Muslims who insist that Islam is the source of their motivation. They come to us with a religious mandate to eradicate us and we should be willing to label them in the same manner that they label themselves. We do not need to soft pedal what they scream. I remind you that this honesty veers into bigotry when we make assumptions about the nature of all Muslims and that is where we must not go but it is no bigotry to repeat what others claim. If some Muslims say their religion tells them to blow people up, then I will also say that their religion tells them to blow people up.

This external threat usually speaks to our fear of being hurt or killed and that is why it is easy to understand. The other threat is subtler and requires more work to address.

The internal threat we face is a loss of focus, a loss of purpose. The threat is being seduced away from the values we stand for. We believe that our heritage teaches values that are important to us and valuable for the whole world. Our role as Jews is to make ourselves better people and make the world a better place. More than ethnic moments we must celebrate the Judaism that speaks to our whole lives and not just moments here and there. We have to teach and teach again that what we are doing helps a person live a fuller, richer life on every level, ethically and spiritually. Jews don’t know a bigger threat today than us forgetting and simply walking away from who we are. We don’t need the women of Peor; we seduce ourselves right out the door. But amidst our own walking out the door, there are Jews that can be drawn back in, often by Chabad.

We are all worried about Chabad coming here and we should be but we also should take this as an opportunity. Why is Chabad so attractive to some? It is not just the cost because if I’m not interested in Judaism, then free doesn’t matter. Chabad is successful because they bring a message that Jewish living, that Torah helps a person live a fuller, richer life on every level, ethically and spiritually. Reform Judaism created an amazing expression of post war Judaism and we succeeded beyond belief in the new emerging suburbs but then we spent many a decade simply recreating that experience while the people and the culture changed. But the Reform Movement has adapted in and has gotten better at bringing richness to Jews and non-Jews, welcoming all into Jewish life. The threat of Jews walking away has always been there but now with Chabad we are reminded that while some walk away, many Jews will walk towards something. We now have an opportunity, and a need, to look deeply at who we are, what we offer, why we believe we matter and should matter in the lives of Jews and Jewish families in our area. We need to be sure we are giving our people a deep spirituality, unapologetic yiddishkeit, that warm and fuzzy ethnic feel, and a sense of belonging. I guarantee you, go visit and Chabad will make you feel like a million Jewish bucks. They will give you a sense of greatness and pride in belonging to the Jewish people and they will be happy doing it and you will be happy too until you realize that you have no inclination to adopt a Lubavitch lifestyle. I’m not sure what they do with intermarried families but if the mother is Jewish then they will be happy and proud to give the children all the Jewishness they can manage.

But we do that, too. Our tashlich time on the Hudson gets bigger and bigger. Our hike on Rosh Hashana gets more popular. Purim is getting bigger and bigger, Simchat Torah is better attended every year. Our confirmation class has grown. We are revitalizing Beth Jacob as a place where Jews and non-Jews can feel holiness and celebrate sacred moments together. We create moments of yiddishkeit, we celebrate our ethnicity, we teach Torah and we do it in a way more open and more inclusive then they do. Coming next fall, a return to family Shabbat services and we’ll bring back community Shabbat dinner. We can do everything Chabad can do and we have a better chance of making it stick because we speak the language of the people we serve. But we have to be ready to think of ourselves as creative and innovative and most importantly, as reaching out and welcoming. Chabad doesn’t wait around for people to walk in. Chabad will call every Jew they can find to invite them to Simchat Torah and then have a band and whiskey. I love those paper flags that are 70 years old but a staid march around the room isn’t compelling for newcomers or seekers or even many members. The good news is that we are on the right path. The cantor is getting the band together, we have the cool factor of unrolling a whole Torah and there always seems to be some kind of alcohol nearby so we’re good there. Now, will members help me make phone calls to every Jewish family they know?

The threat of Baal Peor called for an ugly response but it was a response to protect the values of Torah and the ethics we live. The threats we face today do not require ugliness. To those who want to kill us, we show strength. To those who want to leave us, we show love and to those who are seeking, we will show meaning. That is our greatest challenge, to promote a message of meaning and value. We have great things here. We have a stronger program than Chabad ever could have. We just have to refine the message and get the word out. That is our response to the seductions that are all around us.

Letter to the Editor

2010-06-17T10:49:00.003-04:00

I wrote a letter to the editor of the Times Herald Record to respond to one by Jim Bridges. As it was too long I sent a a shorter version as well. Unfortunately, it was edited down to the extent that it did not convey what I hoped to say. Here's the original letter.

The events last week off the coast of Gaza have stirred up great passions. Jim Bridges wrote to the Editor to express some of his anguish concluding that he can no longer support Israel. Jim is a friend and colleague but the Bible tells us we are to correct a friend, lest he err (Lev. 19:17) so I must gently offer some corrections. Most of what Jim wrote is simply inaccurate but for the sake of brevity let me address some of his statements and perhaps explain why he and all of us must continue to support Israel.

To begin, Jim states that Israel “is a democracy, but for only some of its citizens.” That is simply an outrageous lie. Israel is a democracy for all of its citizens. One could simply ask the democratically elected Arab members of Israel’s parliament.

He states that the accounts of the passengers do not match that of the Israel Defense Forces. That is certainly true. Israel has released video of the soldiers identifying live fire aimed at them. The flotilla passengers deny that. While the mantra of the flotilla was peaceful resistance, numbers of Arab and Muslim leaders around the world have praised the dead as martyrs and have expressed joy at the outcome of the events at sea. Memri.org is a good translation service to find these things. There are now reports that some 50 of the members of the Mavi Marmara were trained in violent resistance. If the majority of the passengers were intent on peaceful protest, those 50 clearly were not. The whole world has seen video of their preparations and the brutal beating of the soldiers as they boarded.

Jim suggests that the Israeli “government rejects any criticism over what has transpired” and that there is “no inward looking.” Alas, there is no truth there. The news media is in an uproar, the populace is screaming back and forth over the wisdom or foolishness of the operation and immediately following the events, the Prime Minister’s office in Israel issued a statement on the “regrettable incident.”

The lives of the average Palestinian is difficult at best. The Gazans live under tough conditions. That is a reality that is surely unacceptable. Alongside that suffering in Gaza is Hamas, a political leadership dedicated through word and deed to assure the destruction of the State of Israel. Hamas has smuggled in weapons to Gaza and has fired over 8000 rockets and mortars on Israeli civilians. The fact that the naval blockade causes suffering is a terrible consequence of having to prevent the very clear and present danger to Israel that exists every day. In a place filled with complexity, here is one simple question. If someone was trying to kill you, what would do to stop it? If you were the Prime Minister of Israel and had rockets falling on your people, what would you do?

Jim bemoans that he cannot support Israel. But who will he support? Terrorists? Hamas? Iran who is actively backing Hamas and who hopes to create a de facto Iranian port on the Mediterranean? I hope and pray that Israel finds new ways in preventing weapons smuggling that avert the possibility of violence and that those who seek to alleviate the plight of the Palestinians will, having nothing to hide, work hand in hand with Israel to ensure supplies are inspected properly and shipped quickly to the people who need it.

A prayer for complicated times.

2010-06-12T19:39:00.001-04:00

Eloheinu shbashamiyim, Our God in heaven. How’s the view? Do you see us all here down on the planet in all our complexity?

Do you see journalists, speakers, pundits, bloggers, writers, columnists, experts, senior correspondents, talking heads? Do you see them all the time? Bless them with integrity to live up to the highest levels of ethics of their trade and common decency. Help them write their narratives that include understanding of more than who did what. Bless them with the strength to say what is accurate even when it is not what they wish they could say.

Do you see Moslems around the world screaming? Do you see Moslem and Arab leaders praising death, glorifying martyrs, giving jihad just one definition, that to kill the Jews, to destroy Israel? Do you see any other leaders, leaders who have no hate for the Jews, who see a vision of peace with Israel? Any other Islamic scholars who can find a path to peace? They are out there, I know. May you bless those Muslim and Arab leaders with the strength to stand up and defy the strident. May you bless the faithful of Islam who see peace as more important than victory, who see peace AS victory, with all the blessings you can find so that Jew and Muslim can solve this long lasting problem.

Do you see non-Jews and non-Muslims around the world, men and women of good hearts and noble motives? Do you see these people who wish to bring justice to everyone everywhere? Bless them for their good intentions and bless them with discernment; the discernment to understand that justice for all is easy to speak and complicated to achieve. Bless them with discernment to remember, security is for all, too. Bless them with discernment to embrace complication and reject the simplicity of heroes and villains and nothing more. Bless them with discernment to find fault wherever it is.

Do you see Jews who need blessings of strength, the strength to stand tall for our people, the strength to understand the difference between pride and jingoism and the wisdom to embrace one and reject the other? Do you see Jews who fear to embrace pride in our people as they believe that might be akin to racism? Send them, Adonai, strength to understand that love of the people of Israel is good and love of all of God’s Creation is good and one does not exclude the other.

Do you see Jews, solid supporters of Israel who in their love for our people listen not, care not for the opinions of others for the approaches of others? Do you see Jews who refuse to acknowledge the needs of the other? Bless them with compassion for all. Bless them with an understanding that Torah is uninterested in gloating, that we remember our time in suffering, so much of our time in suffering and we do not wish to bring that upon others.

Do you see Israelis who huddle from very real attacks? Send them strength to endure and the strength to stay far from hate though they are the most entitled. And do you see us here, horrified at the events of last week and horrified at the level of hate and antipathy that reigns down upon Israel, upon Jews, upon us? Do you see uneducated, simplified hate spoken by our neighbors, our friends, even our own family members at time? Send us the strength to endure as well, and patience to explain, again, how things are not as simple as others wish to make them.

Do you see the bigots of all stripes? I don’t know what you can bless them with but Lord, help them.

Do you see us down here God from your perch in heaven? Do you see us frustrated, angry, outraged and sad? Do you see us wanting everyone to be happy but frightened that it may only be one or the other? Bless us God with something good. And bless us soon.

Amen.

We made it!

2010-05-17T20:33:00.002-04:00

Thank you to all those who read this blog and shared in the words of our congregants. And thank you so much to all who contributed as we counted down our march towards Sinai and Torah.

Here's one last bit of learning explaining why we'll have flowers for the confirmation class. See more at http://kehillatisrael.net/chagim/shavuot/index.html

At Shavuot it is customary to decorate the synagogue with greenery. Tradition maintains that Mount Sinai, despite being in the wilderness of the Sinai desert, was verdant, which is implied by the verse in Exodus 34:3, “...neither let the flocks nor herds graze.” Then the mountain miraculously flowered and bloomed in honor of the giving of the Law.

An Israeli Song

2010-05-16T20:50:00.002-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 48

Here's a classic Israeli song. For Israelis, Shavuot has special connection to the land. This song is called, Land, my Land.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RN6uVPgsqYU

More with Confirmation

2010-05-15T18:00:00.001-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 46

I hope the kids like the movie I made. Shh... it's a surprise.

Marching towards Confirmation

2010-05-13T22:03:00.002-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 45

The Confirmation class is getting ready to get to Sinai and re-affirm their commitment to Judaism. Here's a preview from Jared Cutler. Disclaimer: this is the product of an exercise I did with the kids. It's a rough draft and should be read as such. Still, in spite of that, Jared captured feelings many in the class express.

Back then (at 13) I was unsure of if I was truly going to stick with Judaism and I was unsure. Now over the years I have come to love being Jewish. It’s very important because now compared to when I was 13. I was much less mature and sort of just did Hebrew school because I had to. Now I do it because I understand Judaism much better and look forward to going to temple and learning something new or to sing a song or to help in the Hebrew school.

I want to confirm the fact that I will be Jewish for the rest of my life. I also want to confirm that I will get my kids Jewish. “No matter what”

I would like to be a Jew for all my life because I like being Jewish. So much, in fact, that I will get confirmed which makes it so I will be Jewish for the rest of my life.

What Torah Means... to Homer Simpson

2010-05-12T22:29:00.002-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 44

As we enter our last days of counting the omer, we keep in mind what it means to leave slavery and turn towards freedom and joy. So today, here's the joy in the form of some silliness. The Homer Omer calendar is a site going on for years now. A pleasant way of counting. D'oh!

http://homer.jvibe.com/Welcome.html

Day 43

2010-05-12T01:11:00.005-04:00

Well, it finally happened. I'm out. I wrangled as many Torah thoughts as I could. But we have 6 days left so if you are following this blog, send in your idea or cajole a friend. But we've had over 700 hits, lots of people thinking about Torah as we march towards Sinai. We are almost there! Here are some photos of us marching not quite in the Sinai but in the Arava. Thanks to Lev, we greeted the sunrise.

What Torah Means... to Kindergarten

2010-05-10T22:25:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 42

The following are the kindergarten class's response to 'What Torah means to me..."

...Doing mitzvot and giving poor people money - Lauren S.

...Giving poor people money who don't have food - Paris L.

...To put tzedukah in your piggybank - Sam R.

...Giving people money to buy their own house - Zachary D.

...The story of the Jewish people - Noah R.

...Blessings - Emily K.

What Torah Means... to Harvey Kallus

2010-05-09T22:40:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 41

In my line of work, I routinely see people behaving poorly towards family and friends. It is easy to be critical of others, but sometimes harder to remember that we are more alike than we care to admit-generally, we all want the same things for ourselves, our families and loved ones.

I look to the Torah as a model of good behavior and kindness in how I (in saner moments) try to interact with others. It is a general guidepost, sometimes far off, sometimes close by, that often keeps me moving in a positive direction.

Day 40

2010-05-08T21:46:00.000-04:00

Well the experiment with people sharing their meaning of Torah is going well. It would go better if I had remembered to send to my home computer the nice words sitting in my work computer. I'll get them out tomorrow. Shavuah Tov everyone. Ten days until Sinai.

Shabbat Shalom

2010-05-07T21:54:00.001-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 39

Shabbat Shalom everyone. More words of Torah tomorrow.

What Torah Means to Confirmation Class

2010-05-06T11:56:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 38

Here is our Confirmation Class talking about Torah.

What Torah Means... to Cantor Anna Zhar

2010-05-04T20:06:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 36

It is hard to describe in words what Torah means to me. In a certain way, Torah is like music. It has tremendous spiritual power that works in a transcendent way. To me it is much more than a life guide, history, code of moral and ethical laws that our very life is derived from. It is even more than story about creation that leads us to Adonai, the only first source of the universe and our own being. It is more than all our lifetime situations and all the basic knowledge of every science which humankind progress achieved so far. The Torah is our Holy text that has many layers to it. To me, the chanting of Torah has always been a crucial way to understand the sacred text and to come a little closer to the transcendent.

It is a way to interpret the ancient text that connects us to Second Temple time through Middle Ages and continues to grow and change by our modern interpretation. In some sections of the Torah, special melodies are used to interpret the text in a unique way. “The song of the Sea” portion has many different traditions of artistry of Cantillation: the tradition that I learned is when a special melody is used for each phrase in the song that has God’s name in it. This melody does not follow the rules of chanting as my path of life changed when I studied this Torah portion which led me to my final decision to become a Cantor. It has been a very long way from Russia via Israel to America. It is hard to fit my life story in a paragraph, however, when I was a mom of two children, had my successful career of choral conductor, my decision of becoming a Cantor was not an easy one. Before I came to HUC to chant my first Torah portion, I had a dream – the sea was splitting, it was a night, and then it was a day when Torah changed my life forever. It all became together – my God, my passion of music, my love for Israel, my Judaism, and my family freedom – suddenly all at once…

What Torah Means... to Sixth Grade

2010-05-03T20:00:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 35

From our sixth grade Religious School

Daniel Zharzhavsky

The Torah means a lot to us. What it means will now be revealed. The Torah is the Jewish way of life for most people. It’s also the record of the Jewish people. It means God left us the Torah so he wouldn’t have to tell everyone in the world about his love.

Justin Cohen

To me Torah means that it’s an honor for it to even get out of the ark. It also means that the Torah is the most holiest detail in the Temple. The last thing is that the holiest of the holiest thing is to even hold the Torah.

Benjamin Nakagawa

Torah is the way of life for many Jews. The Torah is the way of life for me because it teaches how God made the Earth and the things God made each day for 7 days.

What Torah Means... to Seventh Grade

2010-05-02T22:41:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 37

This is Deborah Freedman's Religious School class - Kitah Zayin.

Torah means that everything I learn in religious school isn’t fake and that it actually happened. Danielle C

Torah means to me respecting God. Arianna C

Torah means and represents the people and our people in history who went through whatever they could to be Jewish. It shows our early history and important times where something affected the whole Jewish tradition. Chloe S

Torah is all about being Jewish. It includes everything we learn about. In the Torah everyone learns their religion and how it got its ways and traditions. It says how all the Jews overcame all their challenges. That’s what Torah means to me. Gabriel G

Torah means holiness. David S

Torah to me means my religion, who I am, and what I stand for. Sarah F

To me, Torah represents my heritage, and my faith. It means that all of the stories we’re told are true and that they actually happened. Torah means that being Jewish is both important and special, so I should hold on to it. Leah R

What Torah Means... to Sixth Grade

2010-05-02T19:58:00.001-04:00

Counting Omer Day 34

Here are two students from our 6th grade Religious School.

Steven Dziedzic

To me Torah means religion, heritage and a way of life. Really it’s the only thing connecting all of the Jewish people as a whole because not all Jews celebrate holidays and speak Hebrew.

Michael Levinstein

Torah means that God is there. The Torah gives hope to those in need. It is holy and ancient. If the Torah can last thousands of years, so can the Jewish faith.

God gave us the Torah. By giving us this holy object, He has showed us that He thinks we are special. Without it, we would not know most of our past.

Lag B'omer

2010-05-01T22:54:00.001-04:00

Today is the 33 day of the counting of the omer. In Hebrew, 33 is represented with two letters, the lamed and the gimel. They are pronounced lag. So Lag B'omer is the 33rd (day) of the omer. In Israel there are bonfires all over the place in memory of an ancient rebellion (that didn't really succeed but that's another story) as well as children playing with bows and arrows, the weapon of choice of that rebellion.

There are some religious restrictions. Many Jews treat the first 32 days of the omer as a semi-mourning period so the men don't shave and there are no weddings held. The reasons for this are shrouded in legend and mystery at best so the Reform Movement long ago cast them aside. The semi-mourning period hardly stands up to any scrutiny. Instead, we celebrate Lag B'omer as a festive day remember our march towards Sinai and remembering that even though that rebellion didn't succeed, the Jewish people did, after a long time, come to be free in our own land. And free to have bonfires all over the place.

What Torah Means... to Susan Levy

2010-04-30T21:55:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 32

Torah to me means our history. It encourages us to become committed Jews for its own reward. Torah connects me to a community filled with pride and one filled with a sense of unity. It reminds me of a future filled with wonderful memories of our past and positive outlooks for the days ahead. The study of Torah can bring us riches beyond money…riches borne out of strength and determination, knowing that our Judaism will continue throughout the ages. L’Dor Va’Dor…from generation to the next great generation…our children as guarantors.

What Torah Means... to Ruth Gruenberg

2010-04-29T21:27:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 31

Every Shabbos evening I have heard the weekly Torah portion read at our Temple...for many years, for 59 years exactly - and still I take something new from hearing the words each week. I think of it as a kind of invisible string betweem the Torah and me.

On Kol Nidre, when the Torahs are gently carried among the people, I feel that string drawing me close.

I remember especially when my husband, Noah, and I went to JFK airport to welcome the beloved Holocaust Torah that now stands proudly in our holy Ark. It was such a powerful moment when the string that was tied around that Torah by the hands of martyrs who were lost in the Holocaust was cut by the hands of one who survived the Holocaust. Noah symbolically set this Torah free again, as we are free to follow that invisible string between the Torah and every Jew.

What Torah Means... to Alan Seidman

2010-04-28T22:50:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 30

In very simple terms, the Torah is everything my father ever taught to me:

Honor God

The Golden Rule-Treat others as you wish to be treated;

Leave the world a better place than you found it;

Give to those less fortunate!

Love and honor your family and friends!

Very short and simple, but sums it up in very meaningful thoughts.

what Torah Means... to Paul Pomerantz

2010-04-27T21:35:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 29

I don't know what has preserved our little tribe for all these millennia but I often think about it. We each come to our conclusions based on our own exposure and life experiences. Mine were formed early at a cheder in Canarsie where I was taught by an orthodox young man (although at the time I thought he was old, beard and kippah). He had a certain energy and a way of relating to the to the young street wise Brooklyn youth (all male of course) that now would be called "cool."

He taught us Gemara and made it seem interesting but he also let us flip and trade our "holy" baseball cards before class, even starting late if we were at a crucial point in the negotiations. On occasion he would participate in the card flipping as well. That started me on a path of involvement in my Judaism that then waxed and waned over the ensuing decades (coming of age, rebellion, agnostic) and finally arriving at this place (spiritually). This is a long prologue to answer the query but I think you get my drift. First, I think about the survival of the Jewish people and then I wonder about the purpose, assuming there is meaning. I've come to believe that we do represent something more than just a random collection of genetic material and that while I'm uncertain about the "grand plan" I think there is meaning. As such there is a requirement for some coherence, a blueprint if you will, thus the Torah. Many have already stated the qualities of our Torah as an historical recounting of our peoples beginnings. The ethical and moral underpinnings of a civilized and just society are paramount in its importance. The fact that it is a scroll, labored over and revered as a seminal document but not worshipped -though respected- adds to the wonder. As the scribe was careful to instruct it's not a book. I think the message is that it transcends the physical and serves as a spiritual representation of the Jewish people. The "book" that's not a book contains the code by which we all should live and thus validates the existence of our "little tribe."

What Torah Means... to Rissa Cutler

2010-04-26T19:43:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 28

What does Torah mean to me? Torah is like the thread that holds things together. It holds my family together despite our crazy schedule. Coming to Temple together or sharing a tradition at home helps us stay connected. Torah holds my community together. Through it, we share our lives, offer support to each other and celebrate. Torah holds the worldwide Jewish community together. As a child, I remember one Shabbat visitng a synagogue in Amsterdam with my grandparents. Though I couldn't understand any of the service in Dutch, the Hebrew was all the same and, as a kid, that was very cool! Torah is the thread that holds things together.

2010-04-25T21:49:00.000-04:00

Counting the Omer Day 27

I'm almost out of writers. Almost. Not to put the pressure on but 5 of Stefanie's Religious School students wrote something. Alas, they are at work but you'll see them soon. To everyone else out there, send me something, anything about what Torah means to you.