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Rosh Hashanah Morning 5769/2008
A Day of Observance Not Celebration
Rosh Hashanah Morning Sermon – 2008 – 5759
Leshanah Tovah. A good and sweet New Year to all!
I love being a Rabbi, I love being a part of the Jewish people and I love being your rabbi! I wondered what it would be like if I tried to explain to the congregation what I love about being Jewish. Very quickly, I realized that the list would be too long for one sermon. Today I want to share with you four things that I think are interconnected which make me love Judaism and make me proud to be a Jew.
One of the important aspects of all Jewish tradition is observance. We are a people that have been given the Torah for the purpose of becoming observers of God’s presence in the world.
How do we see God’s presence in the world?
Well, there are many ways that I see it. I see it in the twinkle in the eyes of young children as we light Shabbat candles together. I see it in the loving embrace that new parents have for their babies. I see the presence of God as parents bring their children to become a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. I see it with parents as they stand on the side of the chuppah watching their children getting married. I see it in hospital rooms and in the loving eyes of widows and widowers, sons and daughters as they bury their loved ones.
It is easy to see the presence of God in nature. This past summer, I saw the presence of God as my family and I were sitting around a camp fire in the Rocky Mountains. The bible tells us to see the presence of God in rainbows.
But more than this, I see the presence of God in the good works that so many do. I saw it this past year in the works of heroic people in New Orleans, who were trying to do something to rebuild the city. I see it in the Social Justice activities that our congregation does, the Run for Shelter, an event which raised more than $10,000 to help eliminate homelessness in Greensboro. I see it in our community’s Mitzvah Day which last year brought together over 600 participants more than half of which were from Temple Emanuel. I see it in the Chesed Committee bringing food to people in need or the way in which our Chevra Kaddisha prepares our dead for burial. I see it in the work of the volunteers who work in our Mitzvah garden which donates food to Urban Ministry as well as our Yom Kippur food drive.
The Presence of God is to be seen if we will take the time to become observers. We are in such a hurry. A recent study by the California department of transportation showed that most people who speed on the highway save approximately three minutes per hour. Three minutes per hour! And for this they endanger the lives not only of themselves, but also the rest of us! Psychologists and physicians tell us that the primary cause of stress and hypertension is being in a hurry or feeling that we are late!
Our haste is the major reason why it is not easy to observe the Presence of God and to be grateful. We are not talking about them, but about you and me, for we are the ones guilty of not being good observers. Yes, we are in a hurry. We are driving down the road of life too fast in order to save three minutes!
Judaism urges us to get off of the treadmill of our lives especially on Shabbat. One day a week we are to appreciate God’s presence in the world which is reflected in the many blessings that we have.
At our home on Shabbat, we do things that families who observe Shabbat do. We light the candles, thanking God for the beauty of creation and our freedom. We say a Kiddush over the wine wherein we thank God for the abundance that we have. Finally, we say a blessing over the challah, when we thank God for the sustenance that we receive on a daily basis.
It is at this time that we have a special family tradition. Usually as we are eating the soup, we go around the table and ask every person to say at least one thing that they are grateful for that occurred in their life during the past week. This is our way to add an exceptional ritual to our Shabbat.
So here is a suggestion to all of you. Try this new tradition! It may seem awkward at first and if your kids are still home, they may kvetch and complain, but do not be deterred! After a few times of doing this, your family will find its collective voice and will possess a beautiful new tradition!
Consider this! Shabbat has many celebratory aspects, but in Jewish tradition while we celebrate festivals, we observe Shabbat and the High Holy Days! There are days when we do our best to slow down and observe the presence of God and the world. Especially during the days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, when we are to undertake the most difficult observation of all and that is an observation of ourselves. During the next ten days, which in Hebrew are called the Yamin Noraim, the Days of Awe, we are to ask the most difficult questions that can be asked about our lives. Where have we been? Where are we going? What have we done? What can we do better?
Rabbi Joseph Teluskin expressed this very well in his recent book entitled, You Shall be Holy. Teluskin writes that at this time of year, “Think of some improper behavior in which you were currently engaged. If nothing comes to mind, reflect on whether you sometimes,
A – Hurt others, including family members, by saying unkind and unfair things, particularly when you are angry,
B – Mistreat people who work for or with you perhaps by blaming them for something that was not their fault, criticizing them in a tactless, hurtful manner or by rarely expressing courtesy and gratitude,
C – Reflect on whether you sometimes mislead or cheat others in financial matters
D – Flaunt your accomplishments in a way that make others feel insecure and inferior and,
E – Humiliate others (an especially grievance offense done in the presence of other people).
Once we ask ourselves these questions, we should try to repent by asking those who we have hurt for forgiveness and by trying to make amends.
In addition, I also think that an overlooked part of this time of the year is Judaism’s insistence that through teshuvah, repentance, we can achieve forgiveness for the sins we have done. The bible tells us, reads “For there is no man who does not sin.” (I Kings 8:46) However, the Prophet Ezekiel gives a totally different view. Ezekiel writes (33:11), “As I live—declares the Lord God—it is not My desire that the wicked shall die, but that the wicked turn from his [evil] ways and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways, that you may not die, O House of Israel!.... The wickedness of the wicked shall not cause him to stumble when he turns back from his wickedness.”
Notice that Ezekiel uses the word “turns.” This, my friends, is what this season is all about.
We are to turn around from the ways of wickedness and to return to the holy self that God meant for us to be. We begin observing who we are by asking the difficult questions, but then we know that if we make the effort to turn our lives around through this process of observation and examination, we can do it! There is nothing that will stop us from truly becoming the people that God means us to be.
This is the real power of this season. This is the season wherein we are supposed to have great resolve. It is the season in which we are to have great hope. There are too many negative forces that tell us that we cannot do it. There are too many excuses for not being the type of Jews and human beings that we really and truly ought to be.
We have experienced during the past week, many negative things which are not necessarily of our own doing. Of course, I am speaking of the financial crisis which has consumed the headlines in recent days.
However what I have been thinking of lately is what could be the response of the Temple Emanuel community if we go into a significant recession. And I say this with a Has ve Halilah, a God forbid a thousand million trillion times!
First let me tell you a funny story. A professor once had to give an exam and there was a proctor who was proctoring the exam. The proctor told the class that they had exactly two hours to finish the examination and that no paper would be accepted after that time. In other words, after two hours, anyone who had not handed in his paper would automatically fail both the exam and the course.
The students took the test. They all handed the exam in within the two hours with the exception of one student. This student took ten more minutes to take the exam. At the end of the exam, he walks up to the proctor who is sitting there with the rest of the papers and he says
“Here is my paper.
The proctor responds, “I told you. If you hand it in late, you fail the exam!”
The student looks at the proctor and says, “Do you know who I am?”
The proctor looks at him and says, “No! I do not know who you are and I do not care who you are. All I know is that you were late in turning in the exam.”
The student looks at the proctor and says, “Do you know my name?”
The proctor answers, “No. I do not know your name nor do I care to know your name!”
The student responds, “Good!” Whereupon he takes his paper and sticks it into the middle of the pile of the other students' papers.
A silly story and certainly not the most ethical. But within this context, it does point out something that is a central value in Judaism.
Judaism is based upon the idea of community. We need ten people for prayer. One of my hopes for this year is that each of you will participate more in Shabbat services. I say this because I enjoy seeing each and every one of you. Moreover, it is the way to be part of a community. I know that at the end of the week each of you is tired and have many pulls on your time. Sometimes, you might say to yourself, “I think I’ll go to services tonight,” but in the end, you feel tired and don’t come. However, there is a loss to both you and the community. People come to Temple for many reasons. They may enjoy the music and find the prayers to be meaningful. But equally important is that our services offer an opportunity to connect to one another with consistency. We are living in very uncertain times. Temple Emanuel needs to be a place of warmth and caring where we can check in with each other to see how we are doing.
The rabbis recognized that there are times in which we will be angry with our community, but they tell us that above all, “Al tifrosh min hatzibbur! Do not separate yourself or your family for that matter from the community.”
They taught this because the story of Jewish history has been one of deriving strength through our connection to community. Yes, there might be safety in numbers, but more than that, in Judaism, there is compassion, caring, meaning and learning in community.
The community of the Mir Yeshiva fled Poland to Vilna ahead of the Nazis and many of that community eventually ended up in Shanghai. Together, they survived as a community.
Community, or what our founders called in reference to the founding of this congregation, “Kehillah Kedosha Adat Yisrael, A holy Community among the people of Israel” – such a community provides support for its members during tough times.
So again God forbid that we should experience s a difficult recession, what should the response of our Temple Emanuel community be?
Here are some ideas that have been going through my head since last week.
First, Temple Emanuel should be a place of safety and support during difficult times. We need to remind our members, especially those who might find themselves out of a job, that they are cherished in this community. We need to listen to them and to do anything we can to help them and their family. If possible, we need to remind them that they have gotten though such difficult times in the past and that we are here to help them through these times in the present and future.
Second, we need to encourage them to become more active within the congregation. Such activity may indeed be a significant way not only of networking, but of keeping a positive attitude and avoiding depression. Prayer and reading Psalms should be taken seriously and stories from Jewish history of times when adversity was followed by triumph might be very useful.
Third, in the event of a significant recession, we should establish a special committee of successful people who could appeal to the community for possible job openings, help prepare resumes, coach the unemployed in interview skills and advise them of possible employment opportunities.
What I am speaking of here is what I would call “inreach.” This type of inreach will be critical in helping our members see Temple Emanuel as something more than a place for life cycle events. Such inreach to our members in need could help people realize that Temple Emanuel is indeed a caring congregation. Such inreach could help us indeed become more of what the founders envisioned, a “Kehillah Kedosha Adat Yisrael, A holy Community among the people of Israel.”
In such a situation, those of us who are retired may have special skills and knowledge that could be very helpful. Those with greater means will be called upon to do more to keep our community, not only afloat, but caring and compassionate.
Together over the years, we have seen Temple Emanuel develop into a wonderful congregation and community. We have two wonderful facilities. Our staff is terrific and stable. As we approach an uncertain financial situation, we need to do all in our power to maintain that which we have built with such effort and of which we are so very proud, because Temple Emanuel is not merely an institution, it is and it strives to be a safe caring and compassionate community.
So these are some of the reasons why I love being Jewish.
First, I love being a people who observe God in ourselves and the natural world around us.
Second, I love Shabbat. I love being a part of a heritage that says take time to observe God’s presence especially on the seventh day of the week.
Third, I love the idea that at this time of the year, I am to use these
powers of observation in order to undertake a critical self evaluation and turn my life around.
Finally, I love being part of this community, a community that cares for its members. I love being a part of Temple Emanuel and the greater Jewish community. I am honored to serve as your senior rabbi.
And these are only four of the many reasons why I love being Jewish and find Judaism so meaningful, such a blueprint for leading a life of contentment and purpose.
And so let us pause for a moment of prayer.
Almighty God, the Creator of all of us and the Source of all of our blessings, help us to observe Your Presence in our world. Enable us to observe our own faults and to correct them by turning to you and returning to the purity of our own God given souls. Fill us O God with the hope that today and tomorrow can be the first days in our becoming more dedicated to Torah, more attached to and active in this holy community, more compassionate in our lives and more dedicated to bring more of your Presence to our world. Bless our Temple Emanuel community, the Jewish people, Israel and the United States of America.
May this year be one of healing for our world and may it be a year of heath, prosperity, education, good leadership and peace.
Amen
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