From Rabbi Debra Kassoff
January 24, 2008
As I write this, a deep winter freeze grips our community, and my mind wanders to warmer times and places. Though spring seems a world away right now, the Jewish calendar reminds us that in a place not far from our hearts, in the land of Israel, sap is rising, the earliest flowers are blooming, and the earth is preparing itself for a new season of rebirth. Tu Bishevat is past, and Purim and Pesach will be here before we know it.
The every-day miracle of the changing seasons seems all the more amazing when I reflect that this will be the 60th springtime since Israel’s independence as a modern Jewish state. Talking recently with a congregant around my age about the approaching anniversary, we marveled at how clearly we could remember celebrating Israel’s 30th anniversary when we were children in religious school. I am certain that many of you have similarly strong associations with other milestones in Israel’s growth as a nation, all the more so those who recall the day of its birth. It’s amazing how quickly time passes, and amazing, too, how young Israel is, still—a nation younger than a single human lifespan!
At Temple Emanu-El, we are participating in the year-long celebration of this historic moment in a number of ways. Our family education programs for K through five are dedicated to learning about the land of Israel, past and present. This month third grade families will be gathering on February 10th for a morning of Israeli music, food, facts, and fun with a giant map of Israel.
Along with the rest of the Jewish North Shore, we are participating in the ongoing Israel@60 celebration, which includes a monthly film series, Maccabi Games, and a huge Yom Ha’Atzma’ut (Israeli Independence Day) Party on Sunday, May 4th beginning at 2pm. I hope you’ll put the May 4th event on your calendar, and go to http://www.jewishnorthshore.org/ for a link to more information about Israel@60. If you’re interested in becoming more involved, contact me or Nanette Fridman, the Israel@60 committee chair, at northshoreisrael@yahoo.com.
After my January column about the Hebrew language, I heard from a Temple family that is planning a trip to Israel later in 2008 and wants to learn some conversational Hebrew before they go. What better way to connect with Israel (in addition to traveling there) than by learning its language? If you are interested in seeing a conversational Hebrew class offered at Temple Emanu-El in the coming months, please be in touch.
Want to travel to Israel yourself? Stay tuned—a Temple Emanu-El family trip to Israel is in the works for late 2008, and in the meantime a free 10 day URJ Birthright trip for 18 to 26-year-olds is taking applications for spring and summer 2008. Visit www.rjbirthright.org for more information!
Finally, consider an opportunity to become an advocate for Israeli-Palestinian peace: Temple Emanu-El members Jennifer Honig & Chris Muntiu invite members of the North Shore Jewish Community to a Sunday afternoon gathering to learn about the peace advocacy group Brit Tzedek v’Shalom: the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace.* Jennifer and Chris will host the meeting in their Swampscott home on February 10, 2008 from 3 to 5 p.m. Sweets and conversation provided! For more information or to RSVP, please call Jennifer or Chris at home at (781) 593-7140. You can read more about Brit Tzedek at http://www.btvshalom.org/.
With so many opportunities to reflect on and celebrate our people’s connection to Israel—the place, the people, its history, its beauty, and its power to inspire spiritual and political passion, it will be spring before you know it. I hope you will all find an opportunity to join in the learning and the fun.
*The mission of Brit Tzedek is to educate and mobilize American Jews in support of a negotiated two-state resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In four years, Brit Tzedek has grown to more than 34,000 supporters in over 30 chapters, with offices in Chicago, New York and Washington, DC.
And it’s Good for Our Kids Too…
January 24, 2008
Every two years, at the Biennial gathering of Reform Jewish leaders – men and women, children and adults, clergy, Temple staff and laity alike – the President of the URJ delivers a Shabbat morning sermon during which he outlines areas of particular concern, and specific initiatives upon which to focus during the years ahead. Last month, URJ President, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, continued this tradition, and among other concerns (specifically, healthcare reform and Jewish/Muslim dialogue), called upon our movement to make special efforts to reclaim and intensify the observance of Shabbat in our homes and in our lives. His appeal could hardly be called controversial, for as the central feature of Jewish, religious observance, the perpetuation of Shabbat over the millennia may be the single-most significant factor in the survival of Judaism and the Jewish people.
“Reform Jews are considering Shabbat because they need Shabbat,” Yoffie said. “In our 24/7 culture, the boundary between work time and leisure time has been swept away, and the results are devastating. Do we really want to live in a world where we make love in half the time and cook every meal in the microwave?” “When work expands to fill all our evenings and weekends, everything suffers, including our health,” he said. “For our stressed-out, sleep-deprived families, the Torah’s mandate to rest looks relevant and sensible.” “We are asked to put aside those Blackberries and stop gathering information, just as the ancient Israelites stopped gathering wood. We are asked to stop running around long enough to see what God is doing.”
As it turns out, not long before Yoffie’s exhortation, social scientists publicly began calling for the return of regular family meals, such as Sabbath-observant Jewish families enjoy every Friday evening, as one of the most effective strategies for raising healthy children. According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, children who come from homes having regular family dinners are 32% less likely never to smoke cigarettes, 45% likelier never to abuse alcohol, and have a 50% less risk of substance abuse. A recent study from the University of Michigan has demonstrated that having regular meals with their families was a more powerful predictor of success and happiness than time spent in school, studying, church or synagogue, playing sports or arts activities!
Now of course, these benefits are not limited to Jewish families, nor would they disappear if family dinners are held on Wednesdays, Thursdays, or Sundays. But as Jews, we have the perfect model, which also happens to be our most important holiday and observance – Shabbat. In addition, regular Shabbat dinners teach our children the value of commitment, and demonstrate that as parents, that we are serious about our spiritual values.
Shabbat also teaches the importance of rituals, for no matter how lovely a Sunday evening meal might be, the inclusion of lighting the candles, making Kiddush over the wine, breaking the challah, blessing the children, and even singing Shabbat songs, provide a spiritual framework that elevates the practice beyond weekday fare.
I would add that part of what makes the Shabbat dinner unique is the manner in which it comes as the highlight for the entire week. We anticipate the meal throughout the week (and usually have to plan in advance in order to get everyone and everything in place), and then we “dress up” the meal with our nicer settings, cloths, and flowers. The pace of our lives having slowed, the Sabbath meal allows time for conversation, for catching up with one another, and for turning off the noise and distractions. (Maybe that’s why God invented TiVO…)
A century ago, the Jewish essayist, Achad Ha-am, famously perceived “More than the Jews have preserved the Sabbath, has the Sabbath preserved the Jews.” Turns out it’s good for our kids, too. [For more information on Rabbi Yoffie’s Shabbat initiative and related materials for home and synagogue, take a look at http://urj.org/shabbat/]
