We need to pause and take a breath.
Let Shabbat give us time to breathe.
There will be time to organize our thoughts, prepare, and respond to the reality of the elections. There is much to do.
But for now, it is Shabbat. Take the time to breathe.
Shabbat Shalom
Our God and God of our ancestors, with hope and humility we approach Election Day, the day on which We the People will choose the individuals who will govern our nation, our states, and our communities.
You have abundantly blessed the United States of America with freedom, security, prosperity, and the right to democratic self-government. You made it possible for the founders of our country to fulfill the command of Your Torah, to “proclaim liberty throughout the land, and unto all the inhabitants thereof.”
Daily we pray to You to restore our leaders as in former times. On this Election Day, help us to remember that in America we are responsible for choosing our own leaders, and that the survival of our democracy, and the well-being of generations of Americans to come, depend upon the care we take in those choices.
Daily we pray to You for knowledge, discernment and wisdom. On this Election Day grant us those blessings in full, so that we may consider our choices with knowledge and vote with discernment and wisdom, with the best interests of our country and our communities in mind.
Daily we pray to You to subdue the arrogant in our time. On Election Day, and every day, help us to subdue the arrogance within ourselves. Open our hearts and minds to consider the opinions of our fellow citizens, as we call upon them to consider ours.
Strengthen our will to fulfill our duties to our country and to one another. To exercise our precious right to vote. And to do all we can to ensure that every legal vote is counted, regardless of the candidate or party for whom it is cast.
May it be Your will that our decisions this Election Day preserve this country as a wellspring of liberty and a beacon of tolerance and democracy for the entire world.
And let us say Amen.
Jews are using the phrase “we are the canary in the coal mine” as a warning that
anti-Semitism signals growing hatred of all groups in our nation. This idea is profoundly flawed, ironically counterproductive, and requires immediate redress.
The phrase is a desperate appeal to others that they must fight anti-Semitism as it inevitably will lead to hatred against them—that tactic won’t work. People will stand against anti-Semitism because it is wrong. And if they can rationalize anti-Semitism, they won’t care about Jews, canaries, or anyone else. Besides, there is another group that already experiences an institutional brand of hatred: black people and others of color.
People of color have been experiencing hatred and systemic racism for as long as any of us have come to these shores. When we think of Jews as the ones on the front line, we negate the experience of the black community. That is egotistical and shameful and ironically belies the idea embodied in the Canary Phrase. We should be aware of this hatred and align with those others who experience it.
I am not a canary, and I am not in a coal mine. Despite the alarming sharp increase in public displays of anti-Semitism, we live well, thoroughly enjoying so many blessings of this place. We have the power and the means to defend ourselves. And we are. Others do not, and we must help them.
Let us stand against hatred in all its forms besides every one of goodwill. We denounce hatred of any group and work together to fight it on the streets, in the courts, and our hearts. So our country may live up to its aspirations.
We are not birds; we are American Jews standing tall for the values we believe in, and together, we will prevail.
Arguably, the greatest group of all time was the Beatles.
John Lennon’s song, Revolution, has become yet again relevant. It’s a strange way to welcome Shabbat, perhaps, but after we’ve listened, let’s start singing songs of peace and work towards achieving that.
Shabbat Shalom
Yes, the presidents of Harvard and MIT should also resign. Because it really does depend on the context.
Free speech is not the unfettered ability to say anything. Free Speech on campus should be balanced against the needs of the students to attend school without threat or harassment. 
Advocating for Genocide is despicable. Although the University is a free marketplace of ideas, calling out for the extermination of Jews on campus is the furthest from a safe and secure space for Jews as there can be. For those presidents unaware of Jewish history, 6 million Jews were slaughtered during the Holocaust. So, Genocide is an exceptionally loaded concept.
The inability to understand the context of this issue and articulate it during an appearance before Congress demonstrates the incompetence of these people to fulfill the role of president at these Universities. If Harvard and MIT are okay with that, that is on them, but they also demonstrate shameful behavior and terrible judgment.
The Mask and Wig Society at Penn offers an understanding of Context in the spirit of Tom Lehrer.
The situation is fluid, and things are different from what we thought. We have come to an inflection point, and what happens next depends entirely on how boldly we are willing to consider acting.
It is relatively easy to kill people but almost impossible to kill an idea. Hamas has shown it knows no limit to the extent it will go to achieve the dual goals of killing Jews and eliminating Israel.
Israel thought it could manage the situation, lulling Hamas through what are essentially bribes and occasionally “mowing the lawn,” that obscene notion that periodically Israel engages in a military action to repress the militants. This is similar to blowing on the boiling pot of pasta to keep it from boiling over.
The pot boiled over, and the ensuing pogrom was devastating.
Furthermore, Hamas retains substantial control. The delay in releasing hostages on Day 2 of the truce showed their continued capacity to manage the situation psychologically. Equally distressing was the celebration in the West Bank because the jubilant welcome home to the released prisoners was met with Hamas flags instead of only Palestinian flags. A weak Palestinian Authority is losing control, and Hamas is ascendant.
And an uncontrolled group of Jewish right-wing extremists is engaging in violence against Palestinians that could only be understood as ethnic cleansing of the territory.
The situation is dire and requires bold action.
Strangely, a scene from The Godfather movie keeps running in my mind. As Don Corleone grieves his murdered son, he looks up and, from the depth of his pain, declares the killing has to stop. Peace is required even though vengeance courses through the blood. For us, this is that moment.
The killing must stop. Recognition by each side is required, and we must forge a way forward. Is Israel able to do this, and if so, who is courageous enough to make that declaration and commitment?
We’ve learned that ignoring the other side and building walls is not a solution. Walls cannot be high enough or thick enough to provide security. We also cannot do it alone.
Many are vested in maintaining the status quo of hostility, hatred, and turmoil. But others have a clear interest in seeing peace in the region. These nations need to join in the effort to work with Palestinians and Israelis to build trust and an infrastructure of hope. Together, we can realize a vision of dignity and security for both people who claim a right to the region. And those who envision a future for their children to live in a world without violence must be convinced we are all committed to their future. Building trust out of the rubble of destruction and pain that now exists will take time. But now is the time to start.
The killing must end, and now is the time to start on a path forward.
Profoundly important words capture what so many of us felt on our recent trip to Israel.
Thank you, rabbi, for sharing this complexity with such clarity.
Love (with)… all your perfect imperfections
John Legend’s beautiful song All of me, inspired by his love for his wife, Chrissy, moved and inspired many of us with the romance. But what happens when reality falls so far short of the romantic vision, pushing the boundaries of acceptable, even tolerable? Unfortunately, divorce is often the result.
I am struggling with my relationship with Israel. The aspirations of our ancient homeland land and our history drew me to the miracle that was and, in many ways, continues to be this place. But the state is pressing on issues such as racism, tolerance for pluralism, and checks and balances in government. I was suckled in a mythic Israel but have learned to ween myself, given the practicalities of a nation-state that cannot live solely by the hopes and dreams of the Jewish people. However, as Ben Gurion understood, to be a nation like other nations. It was a pragmatic understanding of survival in the harsh real world. Today, the ideals of a homeland that is both Jewish and a democracy are threatened by raw political power and expediency.
We had come to accept Jewish and Democracy in tension. But, for the first time, we face the existential crisis of threatening both. The fractious rough and tumble nature of Israeli politics and the need to form a governing coalition in Knesset has brought us to a new place.
Over time, we developed complacency in our attitudes. Israel, as a Jewish Democratic state, was always considered a given. Laws and policies often were merely annoyances and opportunities for workarounds. “Religious” marriage meant a weekend in Cyprus. The orthodox church that has become the Kotel was not an issue for the secular. Israelis have enjoyed unprecedented prosperity and unrivaled military strength, making this a safe and secure place for most. Palestinian rights, west bank settlements, and civil rights were not on the radar screen of most and were relegated to the margins.
Then came Bibi 3.0. The assault on cherished rights, once considered unassailable, has awoken many from slumber. The protests in the streets by hundreds of thousands are sending a strong message that this is unacceptable. “Guns and butter” at any cost are not enough. The extensive unbridled settlement program is intolerable, and the Israeli terrorist response to terrorism is rightly called a pogrom. To use a familiar Jewish word, it is a Shanda.
I struggle to love the country as I continue to love the land that held a people charged to be a light unto the nations. This is my heritage. Last week during my trip to Israel with the CCAR, I was proud to be at two demonstrations in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. I was deeply moved to see the sea of Israeli flags and patriotism on display. However, I was disgusted and deeply aggrieved to be spat on when attempting to bring our Torah for Rosh Chodesh and assaulted by yeshiva bochers as trying to stop my expression of Judaism in the Kotel space.
I cannot turn my back on this precocious and precarious experiment. But I am distraught. I support those who do the work, including the Israeli Religious Action Center and the brave Women of the Wall. I also proudly support NGOs who envision a place where people can live in a shared society, including the Yad b’Yad schools and the New Israel Fund, on whose regional board I serve. I am actively considering dual citizenship, not to lessen my devotion to the United States, but to achieve a voice in shaping the destiny of Israel as only a voting citizen can do. I urge everyone to evaluate where they stand and what they want to do at this critical juncture.
No one can sit on the sidelines any longer.
