Category Archives: Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

My High Holiday Sermons – 5772

16 Sunday Oct 2011

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Ethics, Holidays, Israel/Zionism, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

≈ Leave a comment

The three sermons I delivered during the High Holidays this year can be accessed by clicking to your right on Temple Israel of Hollywood or going directly to the sermons by clicking http://www.tioh.org/about-us/clergy/aboutus-clergy-clergystudy. If you go through the Temple Israel website, you will see the link to the holiday sermons alongside my colleagues’ and my photos on the Temple’s home page. My three sermons are:

Thirty-two Pathways in the Heart – Kol Nidre 2011 (I consider 32 life-lessons I have learned in my nearly 62 years. These are means I have found to a healthier, wiser and more sacred way of living.)

Beyond Crisis: The Case for Aspirational Zionism – Rosh Hashanah Shacharit 2011 – (I make the case that Israel and the Jewish people need to expand our crisis-mode way of thinking and responding to legitimate and real threats as the only means of assuring Israel’s and the Jewish people’s survival. I embrace what Dr. Tal Becker has characterized as “Aspirational Zionism.” Aspirational Zionism emphasizes Jewish values and Jewish heritage as co-equal with concerns about Israeli and Jewish security, specifically focusing on the prophetic and rabbinic values of tzedek chevrati – social justice).

Doing a Congregational Cheshbon Hanefesh – Erev Rosh Hashanah 2011 (I ask fundamental questions about both the nature of our synagogue community at Temple Israel of Hollywood and about us individually as Jews in this 2nd decade of the 21st century: Who are we as a liberal Jewish community? What is necessary for our synagogue community to be ‘visionary’ as opposed to ‘functional’? And what might we as individual Jews do to enhance our Jewish literacy and our spiritual/religious lives?)

I welcome your comments to any of the ideas I present in these sermons, whether you agree with me or not.

Moadim l’simcha!

 

 

 

Z’man Simchateinu – The Messianic Thrust of Sukkot

14 Friday Oct 2011

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

≈ 1 Comment

The Kotzker rebbe was asked once if he had the power to revive the dead. He answered: “Reviving the dead isn’t the problem; reviving the living is far more difficult.”

On Sukkot we are told to build temporary dwellings in which to reside for 7 days to remind us of life’s frailty and our dependence on God for physical and spiritual sustenance. As we build these flimsy dwellings, the festival reminds us of our duty to take action, rebuild our lives and not default to passivity nor fail to work to heal a shattered world. In this sense Sukkot is a messianic holiday, and the four species of plants in the lulav-etrog bundle present a messianic ideal.

The tradition of the Lulav and Etrog is based on a verse from Leviticus (23:40); “On the first day you shall take the product of Hadar trees (the etrog), branches of palm trees (lulav), boughs of leafy trees (myrtle – hadas), and the willows of the brook (aravah) and you shall rejoice before Adonai your God seven days.”

The Midrash (Vayikra Rabba 30:12-13) to Leviticus compares each plant to a different kind of Jew:

“THE FRUIT OF THE HADAR TREE symbolizes Israel; just as the etrog has taste as well as fragrance, so Israel have among them those with learning and good deeds. BRANCHES OF PALM TREES, too applies to Israel; as the palm-tree (lulav) has taste [i.e. the dates of the palm] but no fragrance, so Israel has among them such as possess learning but not good deeds. AND BOUGHS OF THICK TREES I likewise apply to Israel; just as the myrtle (hadas) has fragrance but no taste, so Israel have among them such as possess good deeds but not learning. AND WILLOWS OF THE BROOK also applies to Israel; just as the willow (aravah) has no taste and no fragrance, so Israel have among them people who possess neither learning nor good deeds. What then does the Holy One, blessed be God, do to them? … says God, let them all be tied together in one band … If you have done so [says God], then at that instant I am exalted…”

The Jewish messianic ideal requires that the Jewish community as a whole be united. The four species bundled together symbolize a unity not yet achieved, but inclusive of every kind of Jew, regardless of knowledge, ethical and ritual behavior.

The four species represent Jews from the most learned and diligent in the performance of the mitzvot to the most unlettered and negligent. The lesson of the lulav and etrog lies in the fact that as long as all four are part of the whole, even Jews with little knowledge of Judaism and little observance of the mitzvot, have a role to play in our community. When we exclude anyone from the fabric of Jewish society, we are essentially incomplete. The message is clear. We need everyone, and though we are so often at odds with each other, Sukkot reminds us that enmity and alienation from one another cannot be allowed to stand.

At the same time, Rabbi Yitzhak Arama (15th century Spain) teaches that Sukkot is far more than a holyday only for Jews. It is also universal in scope and vision embracing all of humankind. When we look at the “four species,” he taught, we are reminded of the four types of existence in the universe:

[1] The etrog is held apart from the other three and is not bound up with it. We hold it in the left hand opposite the heart. The etrog represents the highest form of existence, that which is perfect in all its aspects – namely, God;

[2] The lulav/palm branch represents purely spiritual creatures, the angels (mal’a-chim), and is the most honored of the remaining three species of plants and the tallest;

[3] The hadas/myrtle represents the stars and planets, luminary bodies of an enduring nature;

[4] The aravah/willow represents the world of humankind replete with all our inadequacies and imperfections.

The prophet Zechariah, which is read on the first day of Sukkot, tells of the nations coming to Jerusalem to celebrate Sukkot, for it is more universally messianic than any other holiday in the Jewish calendar year uniting the Jewish people, humankind, nature, the heavenly bodies, the angels, and God.

We call this festival of Sukkot – Z’man Sim’cha-tei-nu – the Season of our Joy – and when considering the universal and messianic nature of the chag is it any wonder why? This kind of joy is our response to the vision of a perfected world in the image of the dominion of God.

May that vision be our hope and our blessing. Chag Sukkot Sameach!

 

 

A Simple Thought in this New Year

10 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by in Holidays, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Quote of the Day

≈ 1 Comment

We have just come through the most intense and introspective 10 days of the Jewish calendar year. For us rabbis, cantors and synagogue staff, we are bone weary. Nevertheless, in these initial days following Yom Kippur and before Sukkot commences I feel not only renewal but simple gratitude for the blessings of my life, my wife Barbara, my sons Daniel and David, my dearest friends and colleagues, our community, and the tradition, faith and people of Israel.

Here is a thought from outside Jewish tradition, yet reflective of who we are as a people.

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

L’shanah tovah u-m’tukah and beginning on Wednesday evening, chag Sukkot sameach!

An ultimate spiritual reality at the core of Jewish faith

05 Wednesday Oct 2011

Posted by in Divrei Torah, Holidays, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Quote of the Day

≈ Leave a comment

The midrashic tradition teaches that t’shuvah (i.e. repentance, turning, returning) is an ultimate spiritual reality at the core of Jewish faith, and was one of the 10 phenomena that God created before the creation of humankind thus giving us the capacity to extricate ourselves from the chain of cause and effect.

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  t’shuvah on the individual, community, world, and God.

1. “T’shuvah is a manifestation of the divine in each human being…T’shuvah means “turning about,” “turning to,” “response” – return to God, to Judaism, return to community, return to family, return to “self”…T’shuvah 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…T’shuvah is a return to one’s own paradigm, to the prototype of the Jewish person…The act of t’shuvah is a severance of the chain of cause and effect in which one wrong follows inevitably upon another…The thrust of t’shuvah is to break through the ordinary limits of the self…The significance of the past can only be changed at a higher level of t’shuvah – called Tikun – tikun hanefesh – tikun olam…The highest level of t’shuvah 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)

2. “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)

3. “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 of 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)

4. “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)

5. “Humility is the root and beginning of repentance.” (Bachya ibn Pakuda, 11th century, Spain)

6. “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)

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

G’mar chatimah tovah u-l’shanah tovah u-m’tukah!

Yom Kippur – Attracts Jews like no other Holyday

04 Tuesday Oct 2011

Posted by in Holidays, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

≈ Leave a comment

Yom Kippur is like no other holyday in Judaism as it puts us directly in touch with the sacred; Kol Nidre evening is like no other night in Judaism as it draws in our people from every quarter; and the Kol Nidre melody is like none other in Jewish worship as it opens the broken heart to the deepest of spiritual mysteries.

It is told of Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk that he once attended a wedding where he heard a young man playing a violin. He called to the violinist and asked him to play Kol Nidre. Hearing its somber moving tones, the Kotzker Rebbe said: “It is possible to be moved to do t’shuvah (repentance) even by hearing Kol Nidre played on the violin!”

Why is Yom Kippur so powerful? What is it about Kol Nidre night that attracts so many Jews?

There are many reasons; the darkened, full and quiet Sanctuary, the spectacle of an empty Ark upon entering, the wearing of white by hundreds of worshippers, the stately and silent procession of the sifrei Torah with only the ringing of the silver bells punctuating the quiet, the glorious and awe-inspiring music, the powerful liturgical message calling upon us to make amends, the expectation that we will drop our pretensions, acknowledge our failings and frailties, and commit to live on a higher moral and spiritual plane, and our return to community, the Jewish people, Torah, and God.

Rabbi Eddie Feinstein offers a powerful insight to who we are and what this day is really all about in his interpretation of a passage that we read immediately before the Kol Nidre is chanted: ….anu matirin l’hitpalel im ha-avaryanim (“We are permitted to pray with sinners”). He suggests that ha-avaryanim (“sinners”) can also refer to “Iberians.”

Iberians were Jews who lived in Spain and Portugal from Roman times until their expulsion in 1492. When they fled into Europe, Ashkenazi Jews (those from Germany and the surrounding lands) could not tell one Iberian Jew from another. Consequently, they suspected that all of them were conversos (i.e. secret Jews who were forced to convert to Catholicism though in their hearts they remained Jews). Rabbi Feinstein suspects that in order to include the Iberians in the community the rabbis wrote this prayer intending it to mean, “We are permitted to pray with ha-avaryanim – these Iberians.”

What is the lesson? He says: “We are all Iberians. We are all hiding something. We all have secrets. We have all failed at something, betrayed some idea. We have all found ourselves far from where we planned to be in life. We all have shame. We all have movements when life drives us off our map. We arrive at Kol Nidre seeking a second chance, a second chance to come home, to join the community, to seek God’s forgiveness and a new beginning.” (All These Vows: Kol Nidre, edited by Rabbi Larry Hoffman, Jewish Lights publ., p. 146-148)

When we enter the synagogue as one disparate people on Friday evening, each of us has, in effect, come home!

G’mar chatimah tovah!

The Torah is Political – Rabbis can be too

02 Sunday Oct 2011

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Divrei Torah, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

≈ 4 Comments

Every year before the High Holidays the issue of politics, rabbis and the pulpit are raised in the Jewish and general media. Should they or shouldn’t they speak on contemporary issues such as Israel, health care, economic justice, the poor, minorities, civil rights, war and peace, etc. that have political dimensions to them? Should they speak only about purely “spiritual” and personal matters? What, if any, limitations should rabbis impose on themselves?

This past month the following pieces appeared in the Jewish and general media:

  1. “The Torah is Political – Rabbis Can Be Too.” by Rabbi Jill Jacobs, Executive Director of Rabbis for Human Rights, North America, The Huffington Post, September 26, 2011 – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rabbi-jill-jacobs/rabbis-and-political-sermons_b_980423.html
  2. “When Rabbis Politicize the High Holidays,” op-ed by Dennis Prager, LA Jewish Journal, September 14, 2011 http://www.jewishjournal.com/opinion/article/when_rabbis_politicize_the_high_holy_days_20110914/
  3. “Blank Slate Rabbis” – “Letters to the Editor,” LA Jewish Journal, by Rabbi Ken Chasen, Leo Baeck Temple, LA, in response to Dennis Prager’s op-ed piece http://www.jewishjournal.com/articles/item/letters_to_the_editor_high_holy_days_un-vote_palestine_20110921/

Before I offer a few operating principles that have guided me, it is important to define what we mean by “politics.” Here is a good operative definition from Wikipedia:

“Politics (from Greek πολιτικός, “of, for, or relating to citizens”), is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs. It also refers to behavior within civil governments. … It consists of “social relations involving authority or power” and refers to the regulation of public affairs within a political unit, and to the methods and tactics used to formulate and apply policy.”

Should rabbis be “political?” We should and have every right in the sense of the meaning above. There are limitations, however. What we say must be said on the basis of Jewish religious, ethical and moral principles that promote common decency, equality, justice, and human freedom, and based on both the values of B’tzelem Elohim (that every human being is created in the Divine image and is therefore infinitely worthy and valuable) and Ohavei Am Yisrael (that we share a “love for the people of Israel”).

Every rabbi should understand when speaking that we Jews hold multiple visions and positions on the myriad issues that face our community and society. Rav Shmuel (3rd century C.E. Babylonia) said Eilu v’eilu divrei Elohim chayim (“This and that are the words of the living God”). In other words, there are many legitimate and authentic religious and moral perspectives that must be respected.

In the realm of partisan politics, the American Jewish community has no unanimous political point of view, though since WWII between 60% and 90% of the American Jewish community has supported moderate and liberal policies and candidates for political office locally, at the state and national levels. We are a politically liberal community, and there are also conservatives among us.

The Reform movement (represented by the Religious Action Center in Washington, D.C., the social justice arm of the Union for Reform Judaism) has consistently taken moral, ethical and religious positions on public policy issues that come before our government and in our society as a whole. These positions are always based on our movement’s understanding of the Jewish mandate L’taken ha-olam b’malchut Shaddai (“To restore the world in the image of the dominion of God,” which means for us to adhere to standards of justice, compassion and peace – i.e. Tikun olam).

This being said, my view on the role of the Rabbi on the bimah aligns closely with Rabbis Jill Jacobs and Ken Chasen (above). I take issue with Dennis Prager’s position for the same reasons that my friend, Rabbi Chasen, did in his Letter to the Editor.

In addition to what my colleagues wrote, there are a few operating principles that guide me when I speak or write:

  1. I do not publicly endorse candidates for political office;
  2. When I offer divrei Torah and sermons, I do so always from the perspective of what I believe are the Jewish moral, ethical and religious principles involved. At times those sermons are, indeed, “political,” but they are not, in my view, “partisan;”
  3. I do not claim to have the final word on any matter that I address. I respect opposing views and believe that the synagogue should be a place where honest and respectful debate occurs. I have therefore invited people to speak in our congregation with whom I do not agree;
  4. I speak for myself alone and say so when I take positions in the media.

Plato warned that passivity and withdrawal from the political realm carry terrible risks: “The penalty that good [people] pay for not being interested in politics is to be governed by [people] worse than themselves.”

G’mar chatimah tovah.

Reflections during these 10 Days of Repentance

02 Sunday Oct 2011

Posted by in Holidays, Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

≈ Leave a comment

No matter how much we fear it, try to escape it or ignore it, death comes to everyone. Death is a fundamental theme during these 10 Days of Repentance as we confront ultimate reality and truth. It is a mistake, however, to think in morbid terms. Rather, we Jews are called upon to think positively and to live our lives moving forward on the one hand, but with the consciousness of living backwards on the other all the while being aware that life is short, time should not be wasted, and that now is our moment to take responsibility for ourselves, acknowledge frailty, make amends, and commit ourselves to change our behavior and way of being in the world. In doing all this (i.e. t’shuvah – repentance) we realize that wealth, fame and even wisdom and virtue provide no sanctuary for any of us.

Somewhere I read the following:

“It won’t matter in the end what we owned or what we were owed. At the end our grudges, resentments, frustrations, and jealousies will disappear. So too will our hopes, ambitions, plans, and to-do lists expire. The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away. It won’t matter from where we came, or on what side of the tracks we lived. It won’t matter whether we were beautiful, brilliant, or talented. What will matter isn’t the number of our days, but how we numbered our days.”

The ethicist Michael Josephson said it this way:

“What will matter is not what we bought but what we built; not what we got but what we gave; not our success but our significance; and not what we learned but what we taught.

What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage, and sacrifice that enriched, empowered, or encouraged others to emulate our example.

What will matter is not our competence but our character; not how many people we knew but how many will feel a lasting loss when we’re gone.

What will matter are not our memories but the memories that live in those who loved us;

And what will matter is how long we’ll be remembered, by whom and for what.

Living a life that matters doesn’t happen by accident. It’s not a matter of circumstance — but of choice.”

The Un’taneh Tokef (the signature prayer of Rosh Hashanah) reminds us that we are here for a short span of years, and what is important is not how much time we have but what we do with our time and whether we make a difference that really counts.

When we enter the synagogue on Kol Nidre and stare into an Ark empty of its sifrei Torah and then say throughout the day confession upon confession ending with Shma at Neilah, we are reminded that our task is to wipe the slate clean, reinvent ourselves and restore ourselves to Torah, God, community, and the people we love.

Chazak v’eimatz – be strong and of good courage. Gmar chatimah tovah u-l’shanah tovah u-m’tukah!

‘The falling is for the sake of the rising.’ Rabbi Nachum of Tchernobil

28 Wednesday Sep 2011

Posted by in Inuyim - Prayer reflections and ruminations, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Quote of the Day

≈ Leave a comment

Several disciples of Rabbi Nachum of Tchernobil came to him and wept and complained that they had fallen prey to darkness and depression and could not lift up their heads either in the teachings or in prayer. The zaddik saw the state of their hearts and that they sincerely yearned for the nearness of the living God. He said to them: “My dear sons, do not be distressed at this seeming death which has come upon you. For everything that is in the world, is also in the human being. And just as on Rosh Hashanah life ceases on all the stars and they sink into a deep sleep, in which they are strengthened, and from which they awake with a new power of shining, so those people who truly desire to come close to God, must pass through the state of cessation of spiritual life, and ‘the falling is for the sake of the rising.’ As it is written that the Eternal God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept and from his sleep he arose, a whole man.'”

Tales of the Hasidim, compiled by Martin Buber – p. 173, Schocken edition

L’shanah tovah u-m’tukah – a good and sweet New Year to you, to those you love, and for the people of Israel.

What should we think or do about Mel Gibson?

25 Sunday Sep 2011

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life

≈ 1 Comment

When news hit several weeks ago that Mel Gibson is working on a new movie project about the Maccabees, I thought “O boy – here we go again!”

Given Mel’s penchant for bloody and gory stories, the Jewish civil war that raged 2175 years ago in the Judean hills between the extreme Hellenized Jews and the traditional Jewish priestly class (i.e. the Hasmoneans) seems a natural for him. A film-maker of Gibson’s abilities and notoriety will probably net him and everyone associated with the film a fortune, not that he needs the money!

Already, Jews are worrying. Given Gibson’s offensive track record concerning Jews (e.g. the anti-Semitic “Passion of the Christ”, his drunken anti-Semitic rant on the PCH and his father’s anti-Vatican II and philo-Nazi sentiments), we have come out of the woodwork to comment – me included.

What can we expect in Gibson’s treatment of our uniquely Jewish story of Judah Maccabee and the Maccabean Wars? Will he distort the history beyond recognition? Will he cast the story in a self-serving way that characterizes Jews, ancient and modern, using negative stereotypes? We can’t know at this point as no one has seen a script, and we can only hope for the best.

A more immediate question: Is Mel Gibson an anti-Semite? His history suggests that he is, but I’m not so sure. Though it’s usually true that if a creature looks like a duck, walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it’s a duck, I have questions about what Gibson really believes and feels about Judaism and the Jewish people based on what people who know him say about him.

My friend, Alan Nierob, is one of Gibson’s chief public defenders. Alan is Gibson’s long-time publicist and so, understandably, it is his job to manage Gibson’s image, but Alan also considers Gibson a friend and has told me for years that Gibson is not an anti-Semite. Alan is a child of Holocaust survivors, and I would think that if he believed Gibson were anti-Semitic, he would fire him just as Ari Emanuel did immediately after Gibson’s long-time agent died this past year.

I am also cautious to characterize Gibson as an anti-Semite because Rabbi Irwin Kula, President of Clal, The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership based in New York, is consulting with Gibson about the Maccabee movie. I can’t imagine that Rabbi Kula would do so if he thought Gibson were an anti-Semite.

This past week The LA Jewish Journal featured a substantial four-column expose, “Could Gibson Be Good for the Maccabees?” (written by Danielle Berrin) on Gibson and the run-up to this movie. It is an excellent piece that addresses all the relevant issues, interviews Gibson’s friends and foes as well as a number of Jewish leaders. It is worth reading (see below).

In the meantime, though Gibson has not asked the Jewish community for forgiveness for his past misdeeds and insensitivity to our tradition and people (note: without a sincere request for s’lichah – forgiveness, we are under no obligation to forgive), we need to remember that forgiveness is more about us than about the person who hurt us. To continue to nurture the wounds inflicted upon us long ago gives ultimate victory to the perpetrator. On that basis alone, it is best that we (regardless of what the other says or does) move on, live our lives forward, not bother ourselves overly much with who Gibson is or isn’t, and wait to see what comes of his project.

L’shanah tovah u-m’tukah!

http://www.jewishjournal.com/hollywoodjew/item/could_gibson_be_good_for_the_maccabees_20110921/

Forgiveness – S’lichot is This Saturday Night

23 Friday Sep 2011

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Holidays, Musings about God/Faith/Religious life, Quote of the Day

≈ Leave a comment

A better description of forgiveness follows that I have not seen anywhere else. I am grateful to my friend, Rabbi Sharon Brous, for passing it along to me.

As we formally begin the High Holiday season this Motzei Shabbat (Saturday night) with the service of S’lichot (meaning – “forgiveness”), Jonathan Sacks offers us a way to think and be as we enter this season.

For those of you in Los Angeles, our synagogue’s “Sl’ichot in White” commences at 9 PM with a pre-service Oneg followed by Havdalah, and offerings of poetry, song, brief divrei Torah, reflections, and a service in which we formally change the regular Torah mantles to the gorgeous and stunning white mantles created for us 20 years ago by artist Laurie Gross for the High Holidays. We will conclude with the blast (t’kiyah g’dolah) of the shofar. My colleagues, Rabbi Michelle Missaghieh, Rabbi Jocee Hudson, Chazzan Danny Maseng, our Executive Director, Bill Shpall, our staff and leadership at TIOH welcome you.

“Forgiveness is more than a technique of conflict resolution. It is a stunningly original strategy. In a world without forgiveness, evil begets evil, harm generates harm, and there is no way short of exhaustion or forgetfulness of breaking the sequence. Forgiveness breaks the chain. It introduces into the logic of interpersonal encounter the unpredictability of grace. It represents a decision not to do what instinct and passion urge us to do. It answers hate with a refusal to hate, animosity with generosity. Few more daring ideas have ever entered the human situation. Forgiveness means that we are not destined endlessly to replay the grievances of yesterday. It is the ability to live with the past without being held captive by the past. It would not be an exaggeration to say that forgiveness is the most compelling testimony to human freedom. It is about the action that is not reaction. It is the refusal to be defined by circumstance. It represents our ability to change course, reframe the narrative of the past and create an unexpected set of possibilities for the future… Indeed there is none so self-righteous as one who carries the burden of self-perceived victimhood. But it is ultimately dehumanizing. More than hate destroys the hated, it destroys the hater.”

-Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Dignity of Difference, pps. 178-9