We have come to banish the darkness! These are the opening lyrics to a classic children's song in Israel. In Israel, "Ba'nu Choshech L'garesh" (the Hebrew title) is a classic Chanukah song as ubiquitous as "I have a little dreidel" in the United States. To match the words, when little kids perform this song throughout Israel, they all hold individual candles or flashlights. The lyrics go: We have come to banish the darkness. In our hands are light and fire. Everyone is a small light. But together, we are tremendously bright. Flee, darkness! Be gone, night! Flee before the Light! The lyrics make sense in December. We have the fewest hours of sunlight during this time of year, but daylight will become longer and longer after Chanukah. Yet, we all pick up on the deeper meaning of the song. The darkness in the song is not just the absence of light; rather, it is the presence of evil in our lives. Chanukah commemorates the Maccabean War to drive the evil Assyrian Greeks from the Land of … [Read more...]
Rockets Into Menorahs, Symbols of Hope
As the sun sets this evening, Jews around the world will light the first candle for Chanukah. I write this note to our Temple Emanu-El community, knowing that these days are brutally hard for us as Jews. Our tradition asks us to place our lit menorahs in the front windows of our homes, as a matter of Jewish identity, faith, and pride. But the Talmud acknowledges that in times when it is dangerous to do so, we are permitted to place our menorahs elsewhere in the house; however, we are still commanded to light them. In the Anderson home, our menorah will be placed in our front window to be seen, but I do understand that each one of you will make the choice that is best for you at this time. The role of the rabbi is to speak the truth, but also to put our situation in the grand landscape of Jewish history. Our faith tradition and our history have taught us we will get through these times of unrest through the strength that we find through one another, as well as the promise of better days … [Read more...]
Today, it is hard to be a Jew
These days continue to be very hard to be a Jew. The war between Israel and Hamas has caused many of our eyes to open up to facts about our American society that are so painful to us because they are hateful. The Israeli captives exchanged for convicted Palestinian terrorists (in a 1:3 ratio) cause us to give profound thanks, while at the same time makes us remember the vast majority of those who are still in Gaza (if they are alive at all). Many of us are politically more engaged now than we have ever been in our lives as we realize that Israel's well-being has now risen to the top of our priority list for any upcoming election. The Jewish future, as the Israelis claim, is in a state of existential crisis. Our college students are on the front line. We obsess with the news headlines and coverage. We actively evaluate each friend and relationship based on whether their actions and words endorse or condemn our right to exist. When times are really tough, our tradition has us look to … [Read more...]
Happy Thanksgiving
Dear Families, Though, as Jews, we are in the habit of expressing our gratitude, now more than ever, we give thanks for the gift of our strong and safe Jewish community. As we pray for the safe release of the hostages, we are reminded that all Jewish people are family, and we must look after one another. Whether single or married, widowed or engaged, empty-nesters or Double-Income-No-Kids, you are part of the Temple Emanu-El family, and we are thankful for you. On Thanksgiving, just as on Shabbat, my family goes around the dinner table to reflect on the past. In this case, all of the family events of the past year since last Thanksgiving. As I am sure it is with all families, we have all shared many joys and oys-moments of exultation and sorrow. As Jews, as a forever hopeful people, I believe it is an ingrained part of our culture to have these complex moments of gratitude. We experience sadness or suffering, yet we also find moments to appreciate the goodness and love around … [Read more...]
The Blessing of Friendship
After the rally on Tuesday, it is as clear as ever that our community is stronger when we come together. Another gathering of 290,000 Jews is not likely to happen anytime soon, but we can find strength even (maybe especially) when we gather in small groups, too. For decades, we've called these small groups a Chavurah. At Temple Emanu-El, that means a group of congregants in the same stage of life who come together for all sorts of occasions-most importantly, to create a place where everyone can feel pride in their Jewish identity. We've learned that we can replicate that warmth, pride, and love of Judaism when other Jewish families and friends are there for us. Now more than ever, we want as many congregants as possible to be in a chavurah, and we have members of our Board of Trustees who are making it happen. If you click HERE, we will get you started with a chavurah right away. In this week's Torah portion, we learn about the blessing that comes when we gather together. We reread … [Read more...]
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