November 26, 2024 | 26 Cheshvan 5785

Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 28



Shacharit, 8:30am

Mincha/Maariv, 4:10pm

Kislev 5785/December 2024

Before the end of this month, we will be celebrating Chanukah; and while worldwide attention focuses on the eight nights of candle lighting, the essence of Chanukah is what preceded the miracle of the one flask of pure olive oil. Chanukah celebrates the victory of a war that pit traditional Jewish values against Hellenism and the enticements of assimilation. It was a war waged to preserve the authenticity of Jewish traditions. It has been framed as a war in defense of religious freedom; yet maintaining that freedom was as much about what followed the battles as it was about the military strategies that led to success. Religious freedom is not specifically about the privilege of personal choices, it should be about the responsibility of informed choices. Religious freedom is akin to national patriotism; it is virtuous to be supportive of one's country, it is a higher level of patriotism to be engaged in the continued vibrancy of one's country, and the higher the level the more engagement is necessary. 

Let us reflect on the past fourteen months of war along Israel's most vulnerable borders. Overwhelmingly, Jews across the globe are supporters of Israel and many congregations, like ours, have incorporated support of Israel into daily worship. The more palpable patriotism, though, is lived in the lives of the citizens whose immediate sons and daughters are on the front lines of battle, Israelis who are ready on a moment's notice to stop what they are doing to spend hours in bomb shelters and safe rooms, and the thousands of Israelis living in the diaspora that have returned home. Among the many lessons taught by this time of war is that there are levels of patriotism and true success requires multi-dimensional commitments.

An unforeseen and unanticipated by-product of this war has been the unleashing of anti-Semitism in this country as well as in many western democracies around the world. Hamas attacked last October 7, and global anti-Semitism rode the coattails of the attack. As a result, diaspora Jewry now needs to reinvest in its own identity. We can no longer coast on the lyrics that America is 'the land of the free.' For our children and grandchildren to feel proudly Jewish and to be actively Jewish anywhere and everywhere in the diaspora, we today need to rededicate ourselves to the strengthening of Jewish pride. Elliot Abrams, an author as well as a former US diplomat, recently published a book If You Will It: Rebuilding Jewish Peoplehood for the 21st Century. In an op-ed that appeared a few weeks ago (See WSJ, October 25, 2024), he suggested three initiatives in Judaism's battle for Jewish identity, prosperity and perpetuity.

The first is 'better Jewish education'. This includes day schools, Hebrew Schools and synagogue youth engagement. Mediocre can no longer be acceptable. The 'best available' is not always good enough. Maintaining a constant level of the 'best possible' versions of education is not easy, but the future demands nothing less. The second is an expansion of Jewish summer camping, giving our children two to eight weeks of living in a fully Jewish environment. Living in a 'Jewish majority' environment, even if just for some of the summer, can be a morally and spiritually strengthening experience. Abrams' third imperative is spending more time in Israel. Birthright, gap year programs, family trips and college semesters on Israeli campuses provide opportunities for diaspora Jews to mingle and socialize with their Israeli brothers and sisters. Summer experiences like these build the essential bonds that connect diaspora Jews with the Jewish state.

"American Jews and Israel have needed each other more in the past [fourteen months] than they have in decades. The natural forces of assimilation will, however, continue to erode the size and viability of the American Jewish community unless we intentionally cultivate countervailing forces", wrote Abrams. In essence, the battles of the Maccabees are needing to be waged again. We all need to be willing to make Jewish decisions and choices that might take us beyond the boundaries of self-selected Jewish comfort zones. What IDF men and women are doing in Gaza and Lebanon are in defense of the Jewish homeland. What we are being asked to do is in defense of the Jewish soul.