Rabbi's Message

We are in the midst of what have been called the new High Holy Days of Israel.  This last Tuesday we marked Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, and next Tuesday and Wednesday are Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israel’s Memorial Day and Independence Day.  These days cause us to reflect on two of the most significant events in Jewish history.  During the Holocaust one third of the world’s Jewish population was wiped out and countless others, like my own grandparents, were forced to leave their homes, never to return.  Though the Jewish population has come back and new communities have grown, the sociological, psychological, and theological challenges of the Holocaust are still very much with us.  On Yom HaShoah we pause to remember, honor, and reflect on the Holocaust and its lessons and legacy.  Then, just a week later, we turn our attention to the other most significant event in recent Jewish history.  Just three years after the end of World War II, on May 14, 1948, 75 years ago, the state of Israel came into being.  It is impossible to overstate what an incredible achievement this was.  After 2,000 years of wandering and persecutions, Jews could finally be masters of our own destiny.

As we have seen throughout Israel’s history, and we continue to see today, having our own state comes with its own challenges.  Threats from countries surrounding Israel and terrorists on its borders persist, while also serious debates about Israel’s own character are playing out as I write.  As we have written and spoken about, the actions of Israel’s current government are deeply troubling, and we have added our voices to many of our brothers and sisters in Israel and in the Diaspora calling for Israel to hold by its Jewish and democratic values and to find a compromise.  As contentious as this debate is, we mustn’t lose sight of the fact that we are only able to have this debate because we are in charge of our own destiny.  Because we are living at a moment that our ancestors could only dream of, when they prayed for “next year in Jerusalem.”  As our tradition teaches, there is a heavenly Jerusalem and an earthly Jerusalem.  The heavenly Jerusalem represents what we strive for, and the earthly Jerusalem represents what we have.  

Like with everything in life, we always strive to do better and be better.  But we are also grateful for the blessings in our lives.  This is why I hope that you will join us next weekend to celebrate Israel’s 75th birthday.  We have a variety of events throughout the weekend for everyone in our community to come together to learn, laugh, reflect and celebrate.  You can click here to see information for the whole weekend and to register.  Weekends like this, and really every day at TBS, is how we respond to the new High Holy Days of Israel.  Our growing and thriving community gathers together to learn, to grow and to support and inspire each other.  On Shabbat morning, we will reflect on what these days means for us.  I hope that you can join us in the sanctuary, and for any of the other wonderful opportunities to be together in community.