Below is what I wrote for the September bulletin--which you will see in just a few more days! Can't wait? Read on!
As I was talking to some of my rabbi friends lately, I heard emotions from ecstatic to distraught and everything in between. The common theme was stress! How do we prepare for the holiest time of the year? Are we serving our communities well? Are we inspiring people? Are we bringing them closer to Gd, Torah, Israel, mitzvot? Will the words we share bring people to Gd or put them to sleep? Can we help people transform those three days into a year of sanctity?
While for most people, Rosh Hashanah is a time to reflect on the year before, a time to gather together with friends and family, for rabbis, it is a time when we see many new faces (and less-new faces that we are supposed to remember). It is our time to inspire, to balance joy, humor and holiness. We try to bring a sense of sanctity, of connection, while remembering that not everyone is as familiar with the liturgy as we are.
For many Jews, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, are one of the few times they find themselves in the sanctuary. It can feel a little overwhelming! This year I encourage you to find a friendly face. Introduce yourself to someone new. Introduce yourself to someone you already know. Share a new story, discuss something you discover in our machzor. (But please have most of the discussions outside the sanctuary, as a thousand whispers turns into a loud noise with the amazing acoustics of our holy space.)
The Machzor Lev Shalem, the prayerbook for a complete heart, is an amazing resource. Throughout the prayerbook there are readings, poems, stories, ideas, and notes. As you pray, take a look around it. Do not feel pressure to be on the same page as everyone else. If something moves you, touches your spirit, stay there for a moment. Let it sink in.
For the first time in my rabbinic career, all of my sermons on the holidays have a unifying theme. In different ways and in different topics, I am discussing how we can welcome Gd into our lives. Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk, a great Chasidic rebbe and teacher once asked some of his students, “Where is the dwelling place of Gd?” His students laughed and said “What a thing to ask! Is not the whole earth full of Gd’s glory?!” The Kotzker Rebbe answered his own question “Gd dwells wherever we let Gd in.” My theme this year is the Gdshaped hole. Within each of us is a space for Gd. We can try to fill it with many things and many ideas, but in the end, there is only one “thing” that will fit it--GD! Our tradition offers many access points, many gates (come on Yom Kippur to hear about that!) Over these days, I hope to inspire you to greater connection, connection to each other, to your community, to Torah, to Israel and to Gd.
This is not a solo mission. Your journey to Gd is not one you do alone, join us at CAI to discover the joy and blessing of YOUR Jewish life.
ps Join us for dinner and dancing on Simchat Torah. It is an experience you will not forget! Keep your eyes open for Shabbat dinners in October. Rebecca and I will be hosting the first Shabbat in October at our home for the first 10 people that sign up and we will have a shul-wide dinner later in the month!
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