|
Rabbi's Message
What is our vision for our synagogue?
Synagogues
developed in America as a partial reaction to Jews being excluded from
other cultural clubs and organizations and today, in a country in which
near total acculturation has been achieved, the nature of the synagogue
must be radically re-imagined.
People are no longer going to
show up to synagogue because it is the only game in town. Jews will
enter the synagogue because it offers them something meaningful.
If
the synagogue is not doing this, then it is nothing more than a
glorified museum documenting what was. A synagogue that facilitates
valuable Jewish experiences will necessarily need to offer a variety of
things, and at times, knowing what these things are may be mysterious.
Defining
precisely what animates one's religious life is an arduous process, one
that requires significant commitment. With some confidence I can say
that a synagogue that swallows people up and forces anonymity will be
insufficient for the needs of the contemporary Jew.
Though we
each come searching for something specific and unique, we all need a
synagogue to break our world down into a space that is intimate and
sacred. For some, this is through prayer, for others it is through
study. Some are moved by melodies and music, others through ideas and
culture. Some are searching for opportunities to act in earnest to heal
our broken world; others simply yearn for a space to be known by others.
Helping
Jews find their connection to Judaism and teaching how to nurture it is
the task of the contemporary American synagogue a daunting mission
indeed.
Our synagogue must, first and foremost, reflect the magnificence of Jewish tradition and custom.
In
the year 2009, we are picking up a story that has been told in
exquisite detail, though it is still being written by folks like you
and me. It is the story of our world, our God, our laws, our ideas of
morality, our pain and loss, our paths to meaning, and the
ritualization of memory. The story begins with the Torah which
continues to be unraveled today.
It is written by rabbis and
scholars, novelists and painters, musicians and dramatists, and regular
people just living their lives with their eyes open. In order for us to
impact this story, to have a say in how it is told, we must learn and
internalize its beginning; our narrative begins with our traditions.
My
rabbinic vision is to help people connect to this story in ways that
seem both natural and strange. I want to expose our people to the
fantastic depth of our history bring forward the awareness of our
beautiful texts which can be a paradise for those who are seeking life
long learning and spiritual growth. There are also those challenges to
connect to Judaism in other ways, perhaps through prayer or ritual
observance.
Our synagogue has been and should continue to be a haven for experimentation with Judaism.
Cutting
edge ideas, creativity, love for rituals and new ways to express them,
song, and study are the voices that I want to fill our halls and walls.
We,
at CBA, are blessed by its size and it is important to me that I have
the opportunity to continue to build relationships with congregants and
their families. It is my hope that we will connect to one another in
ways that are meaningful.
A rabbi studies with the kids who
prepare for their b'nei mitzvah, not interview them hoping to dig up
clever facts to present later.
CBA is the perfect size for
congregants and the rabbi to work together to discover a Judaism that
serves us which is not forced and distant.
I look forward to the opportunity to be challenged by you and to facilitate religious growth.
There
is a story that is told about Napoleon, who was walking through the
streets of Paris one Tisha B'Av. As his entourage passed a synagogue he
heard wailing and crying coming from within, he sent an aide to inquire
as to what had happened. The aide returned and told Napoleon that the
Jews were in mourning over the loss of their Temple. Napoleon was
indignant! "Why wasn't I informed? When did this happen? Which Temple?"
The aide responded, "They lost their Temple in Jerusalem on this date 1700 years ago."
Napoleon
stood in silence and then said, "certainly a people which has mourned
the loss of their Temple for so long will survive to see it rebuilt!"
If
we know our history and understand it, then we can put our life in
perspective. We can understand ourselves, our people, our goals, our
values. We will know the direction of our lives, what we want to
accomplish with our lives and what we are willing to bear in order to
fulfill our destiny. Friedrich Nietzsche put it well, "if you have a
'why' to live for, you can bear with any 'how'."
We are now
entering the Three Weeks, the time between the 17th of Tamuz (Thursday,
July 9) and the 9th of Av (starting Wednesday night, July 29). This is
a period when many tragedies happened to the Jewish people. Why do we
mourn the loss of the Temple after so many years? What did and does it
mean to us?
The Temple was a central focal point of the Jewish
people. Three times a year Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot the Jews living
in the Land of Israel came to worship and celebrate at the Temple. It
offered us the ultimate opportunity to come close to the Almighty, to
elevate ourselves spiritually. It represented the purpose of the Jewish
people in the Land of Israel to be a holy people united with the
Almighty in our own land.a Jewish state. That is what we seek to regain
and that is why we mourn and remember the loss of what we once had.
In
Jewish cosmology, the Three Weeks are considered to be such an
inauspicious time period that one was not allowed to get married. From
the 1st of Av (July 22), one is even advised to push off court cases
until after the 10th of Av. Traditional Jews refrain from hair-cutting,
purchasing or wearing new clothing, listening to music and pleasure
trips. It is a time for self-reflection and improvement.
On the 17th of Tammuz, five calamitous events occurred in our history:
1)
Moses broke the first Tablets of the Ten Commandments when he descended
from Mt. Sinai and saw the worshipping of the Golden Calf;
2) The Daily Sacrificial Offerings ceased in the First Temple due to lack of sheep;
3) The walls of Jerusalem were breached during the siege of the Second Temple;
4) Apustumus the Wicked burned a Sefer Torah; and
5) An idol was placed in the Sanctuary of the Second Temple.
The
17th of Tamuz is a fast day. The fast begins approximately an hour
before sunrise and continuing until about an hour after sunset. The
purpose of the fast is to awaken our hearts to repentance through
recalling our ancestors' misdeeds which led to tragedies and our
repetition of those mistakes.
The fasting is a preparation for
repentance to break the body's dominance over a person's spiritual
side. One should engage in self-examination and undertake to correct
the mistakes in our relationship with God, our fellow human and with
ourselves.
Here is an interesting note: Saddam Hussein was a
student of Jewish history. He named the nuclear reactor (from which he
planned to create a bomb to drop on Israel) you guessed it, Tamuz 17!
Shalom,
Rabbi Alan
|
|
Contact Us
|
|
