Category Archives: Jewish Identity

“Blessed is the generation…” The Launch of the American Jewish Peace Archive

21 Monday Dec 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

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It is daunting when I reflect that I have been involved as a Zionist peace activist for 45 years. In that time the Jewish world has changed dramatically. One thing, however, has not changed. Today, like then, there are many thousands of young American Jewish pro-Israel peace activists who are as passionate and engaged in this movement as I was. I see the thousands at J Street Conferences as part of J Street U, and they are not only committed as Jews and ohavei m’dinat Yisrael (lovers of the state of Israel), but intelligent, sophisticated, politically savvy, and driven by the best of liberal Jewish values.

Rachel Sandalow-Ash is one of them. She is the Co-Founder and Director of Open Hillel, a student-led campaign to change Hillel’s policies to better reflect the American Jewish community’s values of pluralism and inclusivity.

She wrote:

“As a young activist, it is so easy for my generation to imagine that we are fighting a battle against elders who have betrayed us. The American Jewish Peace Archive lets us know otherwise by connecting young activists to those who for decades have worked for peace and justice in Israel/Palestine and for open and honest conversations in the United States. It enables us to learn from the experiences of older activists and to build an intergenerational movement that provides for support and mentorship across generations.”

This past year I was interviewed by one of my fellow older peace activists, Aliza Becker, who has founded the American Jewish Peace Archive (AJPA). I first met Aliza when she served on the national staff of J Street. She is now Associate Fellow at the Hannah Arendt Center for Politics and Humanities at Bard College, and she has just launched the AJPA and its new website –  http://ajpeacearchive.org/. The website, she says, “initiates the sharing of stories from a rapidly growing archive of over 100 pioneers for Israeli-Palestinian peace.”

As I scrolled through the photographs of these hundred people in which I am proud to be included, I saw the faces and names of people I have known or heard about for decades.

This website is an important addition to the peace movement because so often young Jews today do not realize how long this struggle for a two-state solution has been going on. They feel very much alone in their struggle and so often find themselves on the defensive from the far right and the far left on college campuses. Now there is an address where they can learn more about what has gone on before them, and gain strength from the example, courage and inspiration in the 50-year story of American Jewish peace activism.

It is written in the Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 25b): “Blessed is the generation in which teachers listen to their students [i.e. the old listen to the young]; and doubly blessed is the generation in which students listen to their teachers [i.e. the young listen to the old].”

I encourage you to take a look at the website – http://ajpeacearchive.org/. – and support its important work.

To Aliza – Yasher kochachech!

Ameinu and ARZA Condemn Im Tirtzu Incitement Video as an Anti-Zionist Threat to Israel’s Democracy

17 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

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As a Member of the Board of the Association of Reform Zionists of America and a Supporter of Ameinu, I am posting this news item and joint statement issued this week by Ameinu and ARZA.

New York, NY; December 16, 2015 — Responding to a video released yesterday from the extremist Israeli movement Im Tirtzu that incites viewers against four Israeli human rights and democracy organizations — declaring them traitors, “foreign plants” of European governments, and supporters of terrorism — Ameinu, the largest grassroots progressive Zionist movement in North America, and ARZA, the Zionist wing of the Reform Movement, the largest Jewish religious stream in North America, today issued the following joint statement:

Im Tirztu cloaks itself in the language of Zionism but takes actions that strike like a knife at the heart of Zionism and its vision of a Jewish and democratic state of Israel. As leading progressive and liberal voices in the Zionist movement and American Jewish community, Ameinu and ARZA unequivocally condemn Im Tirtzu’s incitement against courageous NGOs and their staffs who work tirelessly to protect the rights of all Israelis and promote a peaceful, just and secure Israel.  Im Tirtzu’s actions are a direct threat to Israel and a desecration of the Zionist Dream of Israel’s founders.

We note that in Israel’s Declaration of Independence, the Jewish state was founded to “foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants… be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel… ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex…guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture…”

The NGOs attacked in the Im Tirtzu video — B’Tselem, Breaking the Silence, the Public Committee against Torture in Israel and HaMoked — work to defend these core principles of Israeli democracy.  And in these turbulent and dangerous times, words of incitement from Im Tirtzu and its supporters in the government can have tragic consequences for both the safety of the NGO workers and their supporters in the broader public.  Moreover, this video adds to a growing culture of incitement within Israel and the Palestinian territories — one that is strengthened by divisive and irresponsible statements by government ministers and Members of the Knesset — which has already lead to violence.

Ameinu and ARZA call for a united stand by the Jewish community to reject these false Zionist activists and to see them for what they are: a grave threat to Israel’s future. Im Tirtzu, the racist Lehava movement, the Tag Mechir (Price Tag) vigilantes and other foes of Israeli democracy must be denounced without reservation.   The Jewish community must also act to:

• Ensure that no Jewish communal funds are provided to support violent and racist incitement against Israeli NGOs, Palestinian Citizens of Israel and Palestinians living under occupation;
• Advocate that donations from groups receiving the benefit of tax exemption from the IRS not be permitted to support these dangerous anti-Zionist organizations; and
• Call on the Israeli government to the withdraw the proposed law on the registration of NGOs and other anti-democratic legislation and administrative actions that threaten the Supreme Court, civil liberties and artistic and cultural freedom for all Israeli citizens.

Ameinu and ARZA are committed to working with partners in Israel and North America to defend Israeli democracy and fight to fulfill the Zionist dream of a Jewish and democratic Israel.  Ameinu and ARZA work together in the largest faction in the World Zionist Organization.

The Pro-Zionist Position is To Oppose West Bank Settlements

13 Sunday Dec 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity

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For the past 49 years there has been an Israeli legal and policy distinction between the State of Israel and territory that Israel conquered in the 1967 Six-Day War. The “Green Line” (i.e. the armistice line after fighting ended between the new Jewish state and the combined Arab armies in the 1948 War of Independence) has constituted the unofficial border between Israel and the West Bank.

Since 1967 Israeli democracy governs Israel itself inside the “Green Line.” Israel’s military administration governs the West Bank beyond the “Green Line.”

The only people who do not recognize this distinction in territory are those on the Israeli and American far right who believe that the State of Israel includes all the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, and those on the far left who believe that the state of Israel is illegitimate and should not exist.

Those on the far right have been conducting for many years a secret and not-so-secret campaign to erase the “Green Line” so as to include in Israel all West Bank territory.

These far right groups are operating in a number of ways, most especially in building settlements everywhere in the West Bank, in the large settlement blocks that likely will remain as part of Israel should a two-state end-of-conflict resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be achieved, and also throughout the West Bank.

The young MK Stav Shaffrir of the Zionist Union, in her role as a member of the Knesset Finance Committee, is conducting an investigation and audit of funding by the World Zionist Organization’s Settlement Division which covertly is believed to have passed great sums of money over many years to settlement construction and expansion.

Support of settlements, however, continues in a number of different ways as well. One is through private American Jewish tax exempt contributions totaling $220 million between 2009 and 2013.

An Haaretz investigation has analyzed thousands of documents from tax filings and official papers of dozens of American and Israeli nonprofit organizations and has uncovered at least 50 American organizations involved in raising tax exempt funds for settlements and settlement activities across the Green Line. Some of these funds have provided legal aid to Jews accused or convicted of terrorism. (see http://pulitzercenter.org/reporting/haaretz-investigation-us-donors-gave-settlements-more-220-million-tax-exempt-funds-over)

It is also believed that money sent to Israel proper by American Jewish Federations makes its way across the Green Line to support West Bank settlements. The American pro-Israel lobby J Street’s University division, J Street U, has been investigating what happens to American Federation dollars given to Israel and will be reporting on its findings soon.

Support of settlements is also perpetuated when products that are produced by West Bank settlements are designated as “Made in Israel,” which for purposes of export to the United States is illegal according to American law.

During the Oslo peace negotiations, the US Department of the Treasury issued the following statement that took effect after June 19, 1995: “…for country of origin marking purposes, goods which are produced in the West Bank and Gaza Strip shall be properly marked as ‘West Bank,’ ‘Gaza’, or ‘Gaza Strip’ and shall not contain the words ‘Israel,’ ‘Made in Israel,’ ‘Occupied Territories-Israel’, or words of similar meaning.”

Why is proper labeling of West Bank settlement products so important? Because labeling products from the West Bank territories as “Made in Israel” blurs the distinction between what is Israel and what is not, and gives fodder to BDS forces in its world-wide effort to delegitimize Israel. Contrary to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s charge that the EU vote on labeling in November was anti-Semitic at its core (most EU countries are pro-Israel and have denied the anti-Semitism charge), one can argue that proper labeling is in truth a pro-Zionist position because those who purchase Israeli products can do so with a clear conscience that they are supporting the Israel they love when they buy Israeli made goods and not the military occupation of another people in the West Bank.

Support of settlements is also being pursued by groups such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as it strives to legislate changes in U.S. policy that since 1967 has been opposed to settlements by both Republican and Democratic presidents. Lara Friedman, the director of policy and government relations at Americans for Peace Now (APN), has written that “They [i.e. AIPAC] pass off their efforts as an entirely non-controversial matter of countering boycott-divestment-sanctions (BDS) against Israel in general, [and] countering BDS policies adopted by the EU and some European countries, in particular.” (See details – “The Stealth Campaign in Congress to Support Israeli Settlements” – https://lobelog.com/the-stealth-campaign-in-congress-to-support-israeli-settlements/).

These efforts in support of settlements in time will effectively erase the Green Line and define Israel as including all settlements.

For those who believe that a two-state solution is the only way for Israel to remain both democratic and Jewish, then every effort to legitimate and promote settlement building must be challenged in Israel, in the US Congress, in American Jewish Federations, and in covert Jewish philanthropic support of settlement building.

Stopping the settlement enterprise is, of course, only one of the key challenges in achieving a two-state solution. The greater goal must come with Palestinian recognition of the legitimate rights of the Jewish people to a nation state of its own and Israeli recognition of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to a nation state of its own. There needs to be as well a pledge by the PA to end incitement and terror and a pledge by Israel to end the occupation of the West Bank. Anything that stands in the way of achieving a two-state resolution of this conflict must be challenged at every opportunity.

Flames Kindled – A Poem for the Shabbat in Hanukah

11 Friday Dec 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Divrei Torah, Holidays, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Jewish Identity, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Poetry

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Flames kindled
This Shabbat-Hanukah night

Hanukah wicks flickering
Casting street-light

Shabbat flames dancing
Illuminating soul-sight

Hanukah – God descends
Shabbat – Jews ascend
Claiming every n’shamah
Sparks seeking light

Shabbat-Hanukah flames kindled
Lifting Israel
Burning bright
Glorious night!

Composed by Rabbi John L. Rosove

HANUKAH READINGS, BLESSINGS AND THEMES FOR DISCUSSION AT HOME

06 Sunday Dec 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Holidays, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Social Justice, Uncategorized

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Lining up the Hanukah Candles and Blessings:

On each night we add a candle lining them up on the Hanukiyah (Hanukah Menorah) from right to left. The shamash candle lights the others going from left to right (i.e. the most recent candle is lit first). Sing each night the Hanukah melody using the words of the first two blessings. On the first night only, sing the third blessing:

[1] Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech ha-olam asher kid’shanu b’mitz’votav v’tzi-vanu l’had’lik ner shel Hanukah – Praised are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign Power of the universe, who sanctifies us with mitzvot and commands us to light the Hanukah Menorah.

[2] Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech ha-olam sh’asa nisim l’avo-teinu ba-ya-mim hahem baz’man ha-zeh – Praised are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign Power of the universe, Who made for us miracles at that time during in this season. Amen.

[3] Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, she-he-chi-ya-nu v’k’yi-ma-nu v’hi-gi-a-nu laz’man ha-zeh. Praised are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign Power of the universe, who has given us life, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this holy season.

The following blessings may be read and questions for discussion between parents, grandparents and children as the candles of the Hanukkiah are kindled each night.


FIRST CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF TORAH AND BLESSING

With this candle we reaffirm our people’s commitment to the study of our sacred tradition. May the light of this flame cast its warmth upon us all and inspire us to be grateful for the blessings of life and health.

For discussion – Read together this Yiddish proverb: “If you cannot be grateful for what you have received, then be thankful for what you have been spared!” and ask: [1] Why is it important to be grateful? [2] How does learning Judaism actually change our lives?
SECOND CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF LIBERATION AND HOPE

On behalf of all our people dispersed in the four corners of the world that live in fear and distress we stand this night in solidarity with them. Our Hanukkah flames are theirs and their hopes are ours. We are one people united by tradition, history and faith.

For discussion – Read together this statement from Rabbi Nachman of Bratzlav: “The whole world is a very narrow bridge; the important thing is not to be afraid,” and ask: [1] Why does fear make it harder for us to love other people? [2] In what ways can we show the Jewish people living around the world that they are part of our Jewish family and that we care about them?

THIRD CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF PEACE AND MEMORY

With this candle we pray that a just and lasting peace may be established between Israel and the Palestinians. May the memory of all those Israelis who gave their lives for peace be a blessing for our people and all peoples of the Middle East.

For discussion – Read together this statement by Albert Einstein: “Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding. This may be said of peace between nations, between people, and even peace within oneself.” Then ask: Why is peace so dependent on understanding the “other” person?

FOURTH CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF TOLERANCE

With this light we pray that racism, political enmity, gender bias, religious hatred, intolerance of the “other,” and fundamentalism of all kinds be dispelled, and may we recognize that every human being is created B’tzelem Elohim, in the Divine image.

For discussion – Read together this passage from the Sayings of the Sages (4:1): “Who is wise? The person who learns something from every other person.” Then ask: [1] How is learning from someone else different than learning math, science or history? [2] What does it mean to “know the heart of the stranger” and what can each of us do to get to know people who are not like us and learn from each of them?


FIFTH CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF ECONOMIC JUSTICE

With this light we recommit ourselves to work on behalf of the poor in all our communities and throughout the world. May we be inspired not only to feed the hungry and uplift up the fallen, but to act strategically as advocates to reorder society’s priorities so that all may have the opportunity to support themselves and live lives of dignity.

For discussion – Read this statement by Elie Wiesel: “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the  tormented…There may be times when we ar powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” Then ask: What concrete actions can each of us take as individuals and as a family to help the poor and discriminated against in our community and help those in other countries who are oppressed?

SIXTH CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF CREATION

With this light may we renew our commitment to preserve God’s creation, to support policies that preserve our air, water and natural resources for, recalling the Midrash, if we destroy it there will be no one after us to make it right.

For discussion: Read this passage together from the Midrash collection on the book of Ecclesiastes (Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:28) – “Upon presenting the wonder of creation to Adam, God said: ‘See my works, how fine and excellent they are! Now all that I created, for you I created. Think upon this, and do not corrupt and desolate my world; for if you corrupt it, there is no one to set it right after you.” Then discuss ways in your homes you can help protect the environment.

SEVENTH CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF FAMILY AND COMMUNITY BLESSING

May the light of this flame cast its warmth upon us all and everyone in the public square to be ever grateful for the blessings of family and community.

For discussion: Read together this passage from the Talmud (Taanit 11a) – “When the community is in trouble a person should not say, ‘I will go to my house, eat, drink, and be at peace with myself.’” Then ask, what can each of us do as individuals to help another human being who is in trouble either in our families or in our community?

EIGHTH CANDLE: THE LIGHT OF MEMORY AND WITNESSING

May these lights, kindled all, inspire us to perform deeds of loving-kindness for others, friend and stranger alike.

For discussion: Read together this passage from the Talmud (Succah 49b) – “All who perform acts of charity and justice, it is as if they fill the world with loving-kindness.” Then ask what little acts of kindness can we as individuals do all the time for others?

On Gratitude

25 Wednesday Nov 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Ethics, Health and Well-Being, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Jewish Identity, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Poetry, Quote of the Day, Uncategorized

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Tennessee Williams put it exactly right: “You know we live in light and shadow. That’s what we live in – a world of light and shadow; and it’s confusing.” (Orpheus Descending)

No life is simple, but along comes Thanksgiving and tradition compels us to emphasize gratitude regardless of our circumstances, how we may feel and conditions in the world.

For some, gratitude comes easily. For others gratefulness is challenging. Nurturing gratitude, however, is one of our most effective means to dispel the “shadow” and lift us towards the “light.”

Here are a number of reflections from Jewish tradition and world literature that offer us perspective, insight, wisdom, and hope.

“Hodu l’Adonai ki tov, ki l’olam chasdo – Give thanks to God, for Adonai is good…God’s steadfast love is eternal.” –  Psalm 136 (9th century, B.C.E.)

“When you arise in the morning give thanks for the morning light, for your life and strength. Give thanks for your food and the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies in yourself.” – Native American Prayer, Tecumseh Tribe

“How strange we are in the world, and how presumptuous our doings! Only one response can maintain us: gratefulness for witnessing the wonder, for the gift of our unearned right to serve, to adore, and to fulfill. It is gratefulness which makes the soul great.” – Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972)

“Ingratitude to a human being is ingratitude to God.” – Rabbi Samuel Hanagid (993-1056 CE)

“What have you done for me lately is the ingrate’s question.” – Rabbi Joseph Telushkin

“If you cannot be grateful for what you have received, then be thankful for what you have been spared.” – Yiddish proverb

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” – William Arthur Ward, American scholar, author, pastor and teacher (1921-1997)

“Gratitude, not understanding, is the secret to joy and equanimity.” – Anne Lamott, writer (b. 1954)

“Thank everyone who calls out your faults, your anger, your impatience, your egotism; do this consciously, voluntarily.” – Jean Toomer, poet and novelist (1894-1967)

“We should write an elegy for every day that has slipped through our lives unnoticed and unappreciated. Better still, we should write a song of thanksgiving for all the days that remain.” – Sarah Ban Breathnach, author (b 1948)

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” – Cicero, Roman philosopher (106 BC – 43 BC)

“If the only prayer you say in your life is ‘Thank you,’ that would suffice.” – Meister Eckhart, German theologian, philosopher (1260-1328)

“When I started counting my blessings my whole life turned around.” – Willie Nelson

“The highest tribute to the dead is not grief, but gratitude.” – Thorton Wilder

“I can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks.” – William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

What We Need to Hear from our Political Leaders

22 Sunday Nov 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Jewish-Islamic Relations, Social Justice

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Much has been written about the politics of fear that has overtaken much of the country since the Paris ISIS attacks and specifically about the House of Representatives vote that would require additional stringent checks on 10,000 Syrian refugees who yearn for safe haven in the United States, even though this group of refugees already is the most vetted and reviewed population of migrants to come into the country.

In the last week we have heard rhetoric stoking the fears of many Americans who are worried that terrorists may slip into the country despite the already stringent reviews of asylum seekers. We have heard some of our political leaders play to racist and Islamophobic feelings directed at Syrian refugees specifically, immigrants generally and the Muslim and Arab communities of the United States as a whole (e.g. Jeb Bush said he would only support the entrance of Christian Syrians; Donald Trump said that all American Muslim citizens should be registered; Chris Christie said that if necessary even Syrian toddler orphans should be excluded from the US; Ted Cruz and Ben Carson have also made equally offensive statements).

In a House vote of 289-137, a new bill drawn hastily after the ISIS Paris attacks will require new FBI background checks and individual sign-offs from three high-ranking U.S. officials before any refugee can come to the U.S. from Iraq or Syria, essentially preventing the entrance of any of the remaining 10,000 Syrian refugees that still need to be admitted under the protection of political asylum. Every Republican representative voted in favor as did 47 Democrats. The new House Speaker Paul Ryan, using the language of reason, said this is simply a matter of “common sense” to protect Americans.

To the contrary, the motivations of those who voted for this bill and more than a third of the nation’s Governors who said that they would not admit Syrian Refugees into their states, isn’t about common sense – it’s about fear.

It isn’t the first time that American political leaders have played effectively to the xenophobic darkness in the human psyche. During World War II, President Roosevelt, the man who told America after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor (“We have nothing to fear but fear itself!”) issued Executive Order 9066 that interned 120,000 Japanese Americans, of whom 62% were loyal American citizens, in concentration camps on the West Coast.

Rabbi Fred Guttman of North Carolina, wrote last week on the Reform Judaism website: “What we need from politicians now is not certainty but assurance, not rectitude but sympathetic concern. We need politicians who are willing to say, ‘I understand your fear, but….”  [We need our politicians to explain loudly and clearly that] “the U.S. has an extensive process for vetting refugees who desire to come to the United States.”

Further, we need our political leaders to remind the American people of the terrible cost of human suffering in the five-year Syrian civil war, that four million Syrian refugees have fled to Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, and Europe, that eight million people have been internally displaced, that 200,000 have been killed and countless more injured.

Our political leaders need to remind the American people that we are a nation of immigrants ourselves, that ALL OF US come from someplace else, that so many of us, like the Syrian refugees today, were “the tired and the poor, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” as the Zionist poet Emma Lazarus wrote that grace the Statue of Liberty in the New York harbor.

Our leaders need to say loudly and clearly that it is un-American to reject those legitimately seeking political asylum here.

After the bill came to the floor of Congress, 81 organizations opposed it including the Union for Reform Judaism, the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, the National Council of Jewish Women, J Street, and Ameinu, as did Christian World Relief, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, the National Association of Evangelicals, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, and the Church World Service. The religious community of America, by and large, has affirmed what are supposed to be the higher angels of our spirit as a nation, and those who claim to be religious and have succumbed to xenophobic fears and prejudice, ought to take note.

Among the most challenging of the 613 mitzvot (commandments) in the Hebrew Bible is to “welcome the stranger” with compassion, empathy and human kindness. Thirty-six times does this mitzvah appear in our sacred scripture, according to the rabbis, signifying how difficult it is for us to be able to regard the “other” as like us, created b’tzelem Elohim – in the Divine image.

All three of the great monotheistic faiths demand that we do so, but sadly, too many of our political leaders are failing not only their own religious principles, but our American principles as well.

In this spirit, if you agree with me, I urge you to write or call your Congressional Representative and Senators and either thank them for voting against this bill, or tell them how disappointed you are that they supported it.

Teshuvah – An Ultimate Spiritual Reality at the Core of Jewish Faith

09 Wednesday Sep 2015

Posted by in Ethics, Health and Well-Being, Holidays, Jewish Identity, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

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The midrashic tradition teaches that teshuvah (i.e. repentance, turning, returning) is an ultimate spiritual reality at the core of Jewish faith, and was one of the ten phenomena that God created before the creation of humankind thus giving us the capacity to extricate ourselves from the chain of cause and effect.

Teshuvah is a central theme of the High Holiday season – return or turning to one’s core spiritual essence, to family and dear ones with whom we have become alienated, to friends and community, to Torah, the Jewish people, and God.

The following are selections from classic Jewish texts and from some of our people’s most inspired and profound thinkers (ancient and modern) on the meaning, nature and impact of teshuvah on the individual, community, world, and God.

Teshuvah is a manifestation of the divine in each human being…Teshuvah means “turning about,” “turning to,” “response” – return to God, to Judaism, return to community, return to family, return to “self”…Teshuvah reaches beyond personal configurations – it is possible for someone to return who “was never there” – with no memories of a Jewish way of life…Judaism isn’t personal but a historical heritage…Teshuvah is a return to one’s own paradigm, to the prototype of the Jewish person…The act of teshuvah is a severance of the chain of cause and effect in which one wrong follows inevitably upon another…The thrust of teshuvah is to break through the ordinary limits of the self…The significance of the past can only be changed at a higher level of teshuvah – called Tikun – tikun hanefesh – tikun olam…The highest level of teshuvah is reached when the change and correction penetrate the very essence of the sins once committed and create the condition in which a person’s transgressions become his/her merits. – Gleaned from “Repentance” by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, 20th-21st century, Israel

For transgressions committed between an individual and the Omnipresent, the day of Atonement atones.  For transgressions between one individual and another, the Day of Atonement atones only if the one will regain the goodwill of his fellow. – Mishnah, Yoma 8:9, 2nd century CE, Palestine

Even if one only injured the other in words [and not in deed], he must pacify him and approach him until he forgives him. If his fellow does not wish to forgive him, the other person brings a line of three of his friends who [in turn] approach the offended person and request from him [that he grant forgiveness]. If he is not accepting fo them, he brings a second [cadre of friends] and then a third.  If he still does not wish [to grant forgiveness], one leaves him and goes his own way, and the person who would not forgive is himself the sinner. –  Maimonides, Mishnah Torah, Laws of Repentance, 2:9-10, 11th century CE, Spain and Egypt

The primary role of penitence, which at once sheds light on the darkened zone, is for the person to return to himself, to the root of his soul. Then he will at once return to God, to the Soul of all souls…. It is only through the great truth of returning to oneself that the person and the people, the world and all the words, the whole of existence, will return to their Creator, to be illumined by the light of life. – Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, early 20th century, Palestine)

Humility is the root and beginning of repentance. – Bachya ibn Pakuda, 11th century, Spain

Know that you must judge everyone with an eye to their merits.  Even regarding those who are completely wicked, one must search and find some small way in which they are not wicked and with respect to this bit of goodness, judge them with an eye to their merits. In this way, one truly elevates their merit and thereby encourages them to do teshuvah. – Rabbi Nachman of Bratzlav, Likutei Moharan 282, 18th century, Ukraine

Rabbi Abbahu said, “In the place where penitents stand, even the wholly righteous cannot stand.” – Talmud Bavli, Berachot 34b, 3rd century, Palestine

L’shanah tovah u-m’tukah

A Good and sweet New Year!

Terezin – a poem by Hanus Hachenburg z’l

15 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by in Holidays, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Poetry, Stories

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Tonight and tomorrow is Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Memorial Day.

This past October, I was with a group from my synagogue that visited Terezin. We were led by a survivor of Terezin, Auschwitz and a death march back to Terezin, Pavel Stansky – now 93 years old. Pavel was a teacher then, and devoted his time with the children to try and bring them some happiness in those dark days, weeks and months.

A total of 15,000 children under the age of 15 passed through Terezin. Of these, about 100 came back.

This poem was written in 1943 by Hanus Hachenburg, z’l.

“That bit of filth in dirty walls,
And all around barbed wire,
And 30,000 souls who sleep
Who once will wake
And once will see
Their own blood spilled.

I was once a little child,
Three years ago.
That child who longed for other worlds.
But now I am no more a child
For I have learned to hate.
I am a grown-up person now,
I have known fear.

Bloody words and a dead day then,
That’s something different than bogie men!

But anyway, I still believe I only sleep today,
That I’ll wake up, a child again, and start to laugh and play.
I’ll go back to childhood sweet like a briar rose,
Like a bell which wakes us from a dream,
Like a mother with an ailing child
Loves him with woman’s love.
How tragic, then, is youth which lives
With enemies, with gallows ropes,
How tragic, then, for children on your lap
To say: this for the good, that for the bad.

Somewhere, far away out there, childhood sweetly sleeps,
Along that path among the trees,
There o’er that house
Which was once my pride and joy.
There my mother gave me birth into this world
So I could weep . . .

In the flame of candles by my bed, I sleep
And once perhaps I’ll understand
That I was such a little thing,
As little as this song.

These 30,000 souls who sleep
Among the trees will wake,
Open an eye
And because they see
A lot

They’ll fall asleep again. . .”

Notes: This poem is preserved in a typewritten copy. In the right corner, “IX. 1944” is written in and on the right side, the following is written in pencil: “Written by children from the ages of 10 to 16, living in homes L 318 and L 4176.” The poem is unsigned, but the author was identified by O. Klein, a former teacher at Terezin, as Hanus Hachenberg. He was born in Prague on July 12, 1929, and deported to Terezin on October 24, 1942. He died on December 18, 1943 at the age of 14 in Oswiecim (i.e. Auschwitz). The copy is likely from a later date.

The above notes and the poem are taken from “I never saw another butterfly… Children’s Drawings and Poems from Terezin Concentration Camp 1942-1944.” McGraw-Hill. New York. Printed in Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). 1971. Pages 22-23 and 78.

Pesach is Coming – Time to Ask Ourselves the Big Questions

31 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Ethics, Health and Well-Being, Holidays, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity

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To be curious is the first quality of the wise. Wise people know that they do not know and are open to learn something from everyone.

The Passover Seder will soon be upon us, and there is much about the Seder that is mysterious. Nothing is as it seems. Everything stands for something else. Deeper truths are there for the seeker. Everything in the Seder evokes questions.

I have compiled a list of questions that might be sent in advance to your Seder participants or asked around the table during the Seder itself. You may have questions of your own that you would wish to add.

Afikoman – Breaking the Matzah

Questions: What part of us is broken? What work do we need to do to effect tikun hanefesh – i.e. restoration of our lives? What t’shuvah – i.e. return, realignment of our lives, re-establishment of important relationships – do we need to perform to bring about inner wholeness and reconciliation with others? What is broken in the world – i.e. what remains unfair, unjust, unresolved, in need of our loving care and attention – and what am I/are we going to do about it?

Mah Nishtanah – How is this night different from all other nights?

Questions: How am I different this year from previous years? What has changed in my life this year for better and/or for worse? What ‘silver lining’ can I find even in my disappointments, frustrations, loss, illness, pain, and suffering? What conditions in our communities, nation and world have worsened since last we sat down for the Pesach meal?

Ha-Chacham – The Wise Child

Questions: Who inspired you this past year to learn? Who has been your greatest teacher and why? What are the lessons you have gleaned from others that have affected you most in the year gone by?

Ha-Rasha – The Evil Child

Questions: Since Judaism teaches that the first step leading to evil is taken when we separate ourselves from the Jewish community and refuse to participate in acts that help to redeem the world, have we individually stepped away from activism? Have we become overcome by cynicism and despair? Do we believe that people and society succumb inevitably to the worst qualities in the human condition, or do we retain hope that there can be a more just and compassionate world? Are we optimistic or pessimistic? Do we believe that people and society can change for the better? Are we doing something to further good works, or have we turned away into ourselves alone and given up?

Cheirut – Thoughts of Freedom

Questions: If fear is an impediment to freedom, what frightens me? What frightens the people I love? What frightens the Jewish people? Are our fears justified, or are they remnants of experiences in our individual and/or people’s past? Do they still apply? Are we tied to the horrors of our individual and communal traumas, or have we broken free from them? What are legitimate fears and how must we confront them?

Tzafun – The Hidden Matzah

Questions: What have we kept hidden in our lives from others? Are our deepest secrets left well-enough alone, or should we share them with the people closest to us? To what degree are we willing to be vulnerable? Have we discovered the hidden presence of God? Have we allowed ourselves to be surprised and open to wonder and awe? If so, how have we changed as a result?

Sh’fach et chamat’cha – Pouring Out Our Wrath

Questions: Is there a place for hatred, anger and resentment in our Seder this year? How have these negative emotions affected our relationships to each other, to the Jewish community, the Jewish people, the Palestinians, the State of Israel, to any “other”? Have we become our own worst enemy because we harbor hatred, anger and resentment? Do the Seder themes and symbolism address our deeply seated anger, hatred and resentment?

Ba-shanah Ha-ba-ah Bi-y’ru-shalayim – Next Year in Jerusalem

Questions: What are your hopes and dreams for yourself, our community, country, the Jewish people, the State of Israel, and the world? What are you prepared to do in the next year to make real your hopes and dreams? Have you visited Israel and when do you plan to visit again? Despite disagreements with the policies of the government of Israel, if you have them, how can you demonstrate love for the state and Jewish people in spite of legitimate criticisms you may have?

Rabbi Eric Yoffie, past president of the Union for Reform Judaism, and now a writer, lecturer and teacher, has written an important piece in Haaretz called “Three points to make when fighting over Israel at the Passover Seder – It will be impossible to bridge the gaps between the leftists and rightists, because both will be correct. So, I offer three things worth noting.”

See Haaretz at http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.649565?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter —

or go directly to his blog at https://ericyoffie.com/passover-seder/

Note: Rabbi Yoffie is always worth reading, especially in these times, as he presents a wise, moral, balanced, and pragmatic voice of contemporary Judaism.