Tag: #community
community
Every1Counts: Day 32
May 1, 2018 16 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS THIRTY-TWO DAYS, WHICH IS FOUR WEEKS AND FOUR DAYS, OF THE OMER
Being Jewish means belonging, family, tradition, zedaka and Tikun Olam.
It manifests itself in a thousand ways, both for the individual and for those around her or him, near and far.
It happens during Hanukkah on a plane, drawing a Menora on a napkin and “lighting” the candles with a checkmark of a pen.
It happens by saying Kadish for 38 family members who perished in the Holocaust.
It happens by building a Torah Ark for the alternative services.
It happens with celebrating holidays with family, writing one’s own Hagaddah.
It happens by caring for and supporting Israel.
It happens by acting like a mensh.
Yishar Koach
Ari Delevie
Every1Counts: Day 31
April 30, 2018 15 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS THIRTY-ONE DAYS, WHICH IS FOUR WEEKS AND THREE DAYS, OF THE OMER
Being Jewish provides me with a framework for making sense of the world and finding purpose. It also means I feel a keen responsibility for tikkun olam, to support Israel’s right to exist, to stand up against Anti-Semitism and to support my Jewish community.
Jane S.
Every1Counts: Day 30
April 29, 2018 14 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS THIRTY DAYS, WHICH IS FOUR WEEKS AND TWO DAYS, OF THE OMER
Joining TBA is just the beginning. TBA is one of the blessings of my adult life.
Women’s Circle, a new venture was just starting and it was a wonderful way to meet so many members. Everyone participated and you were also invited to share ideas and lead the group discussion, (and I did).
[When I was] two years in, [I joined]…the Adult B’nai Mitzvah class. This introduced more intense study of the HolyDays, prayers/prayer book. Becoming an adult Bat Mitzvah was a long time wish and now [it was] a reality. It was an honor to chant Torah and to make new friends. Another great gift was Rabbi Teluskin’s “Guide to Everyday Jewish Living.” An easy read full of Jewish Thoughts and life’s guidelines. I recommend this book often.
Counting the Omer allows us to concentrate on how to live/appreciate our best life, plus Tikkun Olam. Being Jewish and part of the TBA family enhances relationships, worship and prayer, learning, sharing, and it is a wonderful, warm Community. Led by learned, warm clergy, weekly Shabbat services are a joy! AND these are some of my blessings.
Ina BH
Every1Counts: Days 28 and 29 (a double portion because it will soon be Shabbat)
April 27, 2018 12 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS TWENTY-EIGHT DAYS, WHICH IS FOUR WEEKS, OF THE OMER
As my country struggles to preserve its moral center and maintain its democratic values, I am able to find comfort and solace in my Judaism. For me, being a Jew means to not stay silent; to speak out in the face of injustice, bigotry, racism, and misogyny to name a few. Social justice is a core tenet for a Reform Jew. Passover is one of my very favorite holidays in large part because it affords us, as Jews, to reflect on our own journey from slavery to freedom and in so doing we are faced with our own reality of how people in our country and in the world remain “enslaved “ for a multitude of reasons and unjust practices. I honor my Judaism and thereby myself, my family and those who came before me, when we raise our voices for justice and challenge ourselves around our Seder table to reflect on these issues and ask ourselves what are we going to do to make this world a better place?
Liza K.
April 28, 2018 13 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS TWENTY-NINE DAYS, WHICH IS FOUR WEEKS AND ONE DAY, OF THE OMER
*We are posting this response today, so you do not have to use your computer/phone on Shabbat.
In this melting pot of a country people frequently ask, “What are you?” Most people answer that question with, “I’m Irish,” or “I’m Italian” or whatever nation is associated with their ancestry. My answer is always, “I’m Jewish.”
Judaism is an identity, a culture, a heritage and a way of life just as much as being Irish or Italian. The words, “I’m Jewish” communicate a world for people. They paint a picture of my culture, my heritage, my traditions as much just as much as the picture that is painted by being Italian or Irish.
Many people when they communicate the words, “I’m Jewish” don’t associate Judaism with the Jewish homeland of Israel. For me, Israel is there in the foreground, and any conversation about what it means to be Jewish must contain a connection to Israel. I may not possess an Israeli passport, but I am connected to the Jewish homeland, like Ireland or Italy is connected to the ancestors of those lands, no matter where they live or what their passport documents. It is this connection and the need for a country where Jews from all nations can go to be at home and at peace that informs my Jewish identity.
So while I wouldn’t answer the question “What are you?” with, “I’m Israeli,” I do hope for the day when the answer, “I’m Jewish” is associated with a background in Israel just as much as being Italian is associated with a background in Italy.
Erica Newman
Every1Counts: Day 25
April 24, 2018 9 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS TWENTY-FIVE DAYS, WHICH IS THREE WEEKS AND FOUR DAYS, OF THE OMER
I was born Jewish, my parents Orthodox. On most Jewish holidays, I was not allowed to go to school. This made things difficult, and I often resented my parent’s strict rules. To be Jewish is to be different, and if you don’t think you’re different, others will think you are!
After learning about other faiths, I concluded that my Judaism allowed for questioning and change; it allowed direct interaction without an intermediary. I could question, accept, reject and even deny without fear. The sins of other religions were not my sins, a freedom which has allowed Jews to persist in spite of the many attempts to destroy us.
There is comfort when Jews feel responsible for each other. We suffer when our fellow humans suffer, and we work at creating a better world.
Maybe part of being and feeling Jewish is knowing we’re a minority. Most Jews like to pursue knowledge. Meeting challenges becomes part of our being. We’ve hoped and prayed that our successes may change how we are perceived. It hasn’t always worked, but we do continue to strive and survive.
Miriam
Every1Counts: Days 21 and 22 (a double portion because it will soon be Shabbat)
April 20, 2018 5 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS TWENTY-ONE DAYS, WHICH IS THREE WEEKS, OF THE OMER
What does being Jewish mean to me? Particularly in times of great despair when no easy answers to life’s inevitable challenges were to be found…my connection as a Jew to all who came before me helped me find a footing. “Chazak, chazak v’nitchazeik. Be strong, be strong and let us strengthen one another.” Down through the ages these are the words spoken after reading from the Torah.
I grew up in a home where being a Jew was valued; a very great gift.
Learning to read Yiddish while in elementary school and taking Hebrew as a three year regents course at Christopher Columbus High School were not the rule in Jewish Pelham Parkway when I was a youngster.
What was missing?
As a parent—one who wanted to impart not only the universal ethical values common to secular Jews—I came to Temple Beth Abraham to begin to learn from the Tanach, with the hope of giving to my children this gift: the very foundation for a worthwhile life filled with meaning.
Saara Gallin
April 21, 2018 6 Iyar, 5778
TONIGHT IS TWENTY-TWO DAYS, WHICH IS THREE WEEKS AND ONE DAY, OF THE OMER
*We are posting this response today, so you do not have to use your computer/phone on Shabbat.
