The
stakes are high.
Let’s
be honest. For most of the people who attend High Holidays services this is the
only time they will be in shul the whole year. It might be the only
sermon they will hear.
It
is our chance to inspire and uplift them. It is our chance to encourage
them to deepen their connection to Judaism and the Jewish people. It is
our chance to convey something we discovered and that motivated us to want to
become rabbis: that Judaism is intellectually challenging and
stimulating; that being a part of the Jewish people offers meaning and
fulfillment; that it is a calling that is the path to working to create a just
world. It is our chance to make them want to deepen their commitment and
to explore this magnificent and beautiful tradition.
So
please, dear colleagues, I urge you, be positive. Be positive about what
it means to be Jewish. Be positive about what it means to be a part of
the Jewish people. Be positive about your fellow Jews. Be positive
about Israel. Motivate your congregants. Challenge them.
Speak about what matters to you from your understanding of Jewish
sources. Urge people to act out of Jewish conviction. Make
them feel good about being Jewish.
The
first question people will ask each other when they get together for family
meals will be, is, “when did you get out”, as in how long were your
services. The second question might be, “how long was the rabbi’s
sermon?” But then once the time-keeping questions are out of the way, the
question that will most likely become the focus of the conversation is what did
the rabbi speak about? Some will agree and some will disagree with what
the rabbi had to say. Some will be upset by the choice of the topic the
rabbi addressed. Some will say the subject matter was
inappropriate. Some will complain the sermon was too long, while others
will retell the jokes the rabbi told.
Something
truly unique is taking place in these encounters. I know of no other
people who will debate and discuss so intensely, and take such a strong
interest in the subject matter a preacher has presented.
As
you are composing your messages, ask yourself if this will cause people to have
a greater connection to Judaism and the Jewish people, or might it cause
greater distance and alienation? Will it contribute to a desire to deepen
one’s connection, or might it cause people to question why they would want to
identify with the Jewish venture?
We
should be especially cognizant of this when we speak about Israel. Rabbis can
denigrate and criticize the policies of the government of Israel, or they can
help provide context to its struggles. We can go beyond the critical
articles in the media and inform people how Israel addresses the very real and
serious challenges it faces. We need to think about the impact our
messages have on those who come infrequently at best to a Jewish place of
worship.
A
number of years ago when members of my congregation accompanying me on a trip
to Israel heard a vitriolic sermon harshly condemning Israel for its treatment
of non-Orthodox Jews, they asked me why we would bother travel to Israel if
things were so terrible. The question I urge my colleagues to consider
when composing their High Holiday sermons is how to express our concerns in a
way which engenders greater connection, attachment and the desire for more
connection not to disconnect.
This
is our moment.
What
will we do and how we will use this opportunity to reach so many?
Hopefully we will embrace it as a chance to inspire and to encourage Jews to
seek a connection to their heritage, to the eternal messages of Judaism, as
well as to God, the Jewish people, and the national aspirations of the Jewish
people.
Rabbi Stuart G.Weinblatt
President, JFNA Rabbinic Cabinet
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