GRATEFULNESS FOR A FATHER-SON RELATIONSHIP

On the second day of Rosh Hashanah, the stirring, frightening and disturbing episode of the Akeda-the Binding of Isaac- was read in the synagogue."Take your son, your favored son, Isaac, whom you love...and offer him as a burnt offering on one of the heights..."(Genesis 22:2.)It becomes quickly evident that this command is not meant to be carried out but serves as an almost inconceivable challenge to Abraham's sense of trust in God.
The text goes on with a poignant description of a father-son relationship."...and the two of them walked off together."
The depth of this kind of relationship assumes the most compelling of dimensions. What emerges in the Torah narrative is a shared commitment between father and son, between parent and child, between the generation of life-givers and the generation of life-receivers, to an ideal or conviction that transcends life itself. It is a most powerful metaphor for cross generational unity and mutuality.
For me, on Rosh Hashanah, I experienced, in not a fearful but a joyful and grateful way ,the walking together with my son, as we shared in the "mitzvah" of bringing the beauty of Rosh Hashanah to patients who were unable to be in synagogue but for whom their sacred space was the hospital. We shared our presence, our greetings, our wishes and prayers for health, and our breaths, as we each took turns in sounding the shofar for this unusual congregation.
My gratefulness was such that these few hours of 'bikur holim,'visiting the sick, was not a sacrifice but a gift to me and I believe to my son, the incredible gift of sharing ourselves together for the sake of others.
I am most thankful for this experience, and its memory nurtures my sense of gratitude beyond the moment of its occurrence.


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GRATEFUL FOR A "NON-RABBINIC" ROSH HASHANAH

For the first time in over 45 years, I will not be officiating at formal synagogue services. I confess that I am overcome by feelings of strangeness and disorientation. I no longer experience the familiar feelings of being frantic before the holiday, wondering if my sermons are adequate, reviewing in my mind all the necessary procedures of a "successful" High Holyday service.Instead, I am relaxed, free to think and meditate on the spiritual significance of the occasion and free to records these words.
My "synagogue" will be a hospital where I expect to conduct a brief, televised service for the Jewish patients and then visit with them.I will then join others as a congregant for the remaining segments of the service.
I am grateful for the opportunity to make use of my skills and knowledge for the benefit of those most frightened and alone on a day which brings so much joy and togetherness to others.
Previous times have separated me from my family-I look forward to being in their loving company participating in the Rosh Hashanah meal with a state of mind that is serene, grateful and especially joyful.
The word "Shanah" suggests change. We are usually reluctant to change, fearing backsliding rather than advancement.Rosh Hashanah summons us to embrace change gratefully and transform each moment of opportunity into gift of blessing for ourselves and for others.
May we all be granted a New Year of gratefulness and goodness, and reap much joy from God's countless gifts.

GRATEFULNESS FOR TESHUVAH-(2)

"...and you take them to heart...and you and your children heed them with all your heart..then the Lord your God will open up your heart..to love the Lord with all your heart ...in order that you may live."(Deuteronomy chpt.30)
The segment that is central to the concept of Teshuva-the capacity to change by turning inward and returning outward to the Source of all things-highlights the heart as the psychological and spiritual locus for this transformation.
The challenge of the High Holydays is not only to remember with the mind but to redeem with the heart.
During this period of Teshuva Jewish tradition intentionally deprives us of external ritual and directs us to focus our entire festival experience to the intangibles of the heart and soul.The only external object of Jewish celebration is the Shofar, the ram's horn, whose sounds likewise have been d esigned to awaken inward thoughts and feelings of renewed awareness and commitment.The Shofar is a prayer without words whose sounds of brokenness, wailing and eventual hope arouse the heart, the innermost spaces of our identity and meaning as children of one Divine source.
For teshuvah to unfold, our hearts must open to the blessings and gifts of life.We taste the sweetness of all things through our senses and mind; in the final analysis however, our most passionate prayer is for God to "open our hearts...so that we may live."The heart is the home of our lives.May we be blessed with a new year of life that is linked to open- heartedness that brings joy and peace.

GRATEFULNESS FOR "TESHUVAH"

This is a hectic time in Jewish households and synagogues.The pace of preparations-buying seats for services, writing sermons and reviewing prayers, deciding on menus and meal arrangements for family and friends is frantic, and beneath it all, we struggle to deal with the anxiety of a year drawing to a close and the uncertainty of a New Year about to begin.
For many this is not much to be grateful for. But beyond the temporal and material concerns of the day, we have been given a spiritual gift of renewed possibilities for change and improvement. For the gift of teshuva I am most grateful.I cannot think of a more spiritually rewarding capacity.It represents the very lifeline of Judaism and human experience. It asserts that we are not victims of fate but self-determining beings of dignity and worth.
Teshuvah translates literally as "turning" or "returning." In the opinion of some the required turning of the High Holydays is a behavioral one. We make a resolution to change our behavior and proceed to do it when the New Year begins. Easier said than done!
Teshuvah challenges me to turn inward and make a subtle yet significant turning of my perspective on life. Each Rosh Hashanah offers me a dramatic moment during which to focus on the spiritual capacity to approach life, others and God with a response of gratefulness in feeling and in deed. As we cultivate this attitude in on-going mindful meditation, prayer and thought, we discover our souls turning toward the awareness that all of life is a gift.This gradual process of teshuvah continues year long, hopefully enriching our minds and hearts with the happiness that comes with gratefulness.
I wish you all a New Year of renewed gratefulness and joy.

GRATEFULNESS-THE FOUNDATION OF TORAH

People often ask: Why do you devote so much spiritual energy to gratefulness? After all, there are many other spiritual ideas and practices that are of equal importance!
A partial answer can be found in the Torah reading of this past Shabbat-Parashat Ki Tavo. A major section of the reading is quite depressing and demoralizing. It graphically outlines the curses, the punishments, the catastrophic suffering that will befall those who disobey God’s Torah.
“All these curses shall befall you…because you did not heed the Lord your God and keep the commandments and laws that He enjoined upon you.”(Deut. 28:45)
Here we encounter the curse of behavioral disobedience. Yet, most interestingly and for me a complete revelation, is the verse that follows.
“Because you did not serve the Lord your God in joy and gladness over the abundance of everything.”(V.47)
The Hebrew-“U’vtuv lev”- lit. with goodness or fullness of heart, can be translated as gratefulness. Furthermore, the curse befalls us if we are unable to be grateful not only for specially valuable or precious things, but “me’rov kol”-for the abundance contained in all things, in everything. Another way of interpreting the phrase-“me’rov kol” is by translating the words as “most of everything is good!” Life is far from perfect and no one is spared suffering or hardship. By and large, however, life holds out a gift that warrants gratefulness and generosity. The nature of the world is such that life unfolds with the “greatest good for the greatest number.” Most babies survive birth and are healthy; most people have the bare necessities of life; many are the moments in life when we can rejoice and celebrate. This of course, is not to suggest that there aren’t many who are hungry and impoverished for whom we should invest resources and concern. Injustice abounds; but so much of that is human neglect and greed, not the withholding of nature’s bounty.
The Torah statement is a ringing declaration of a fundamental spiritual truth: At the heart of blessing is the capacity to experience all things gratefully. Conversely, the absence of gratefulness creates a spiritual void that is filled with the perception of being cursed.
Choose life –cultivate gratefulness and be blessed.

GRATEFUL FOR “FIRST FRUITS.”

The Torah insists that first fruits-Bikurim- be brought to the Temple as an expression of gratefulness for blessings of a rich harvest. The act of bringing this gift was accompanied by a ceremony in the sanctuary, which included a declaration of the farmer’s personal link to the history of his people.
Bikurim can suggest not only the first but also the best of what one has.

Several days ago, I, together with almost two hundred people, were witness to a ” first fruits,” a bikurim, ceremony not in a Temple but in a setting of hope and rehabilitation for seniors in Montreal, Canada. The gifts brought before God were the extraordinary lives of ordinary people.
After two and a half challenging years of extraordinary effort, my sister-in –law launched a book containing the “first fruits” of twenty individuals –“senior artists, a sculptor, writers, community leaders, a rabbi, a superior court chief justice, an 85 year old university graduate and the recipient of the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award.”
Sensitive to others as sources of strength and inspiration, especially the elderly, my sister-in-law’s journey to the “first fruits” ceremony began with an idea. Why not record the achievements of ordinary people who do extraordinary things? Why not recognize people’s lives publicly so that they may encourage and inspire others? Why not return the gifts of life to these generous souls and in so doing remind them that their lives truly matter?
With an ingenious title in mind for the book-Honorable Menschen-she sprang into action mobilizing many at the Senior Citizen center to interview, support and fund this project. As editor –in chief, she made wonderful use of her many skills as a writer and as women of genuine sincerity, she gained the participation of many.

The event arrived. Presentations and declarations of connection and affection were made.
Amidst these words and audience applause, the twenty “honorable menschen”-from the age of 65 to 104- sat with eyes radiating the light of inner validation and self-worth. They were given perhaps the most precious gift of all-the awareness that their lives had meaning and purpose, that their struggles and triumphs really mattered. Two of the recipients could not speak; paralyzed, they were confined to a wheel chair. In fact, with all the declarations of praise, pride and honor, we all remained speechless, overwhelmed by the spiritual beauty of the moment.
At the conclusion of these activities, my sister-in –law thanked me for coming to Montreal and sharing in her joy.
Doreen, thank you.

GRATEFUL FOR ADOPTIVE GRANDMOTHERS

Since my retirement, I am now able to read the daily newspaper in a more leisurely and thoughtful way. At times, the reading leads to contemplation. Today, as I scanned the pages of the New York Times, my heart sank. The economy -the failure of major banks and financial institutions -the weather-hurricanes sweeping through Texas and Haiti-a frightening photograph of a crowd of Indonesians being swept away by a stampede which trampled to death twenty one people in the rush to receive a four dollar handout from a wealthy landowner during Ramadan-persistent acts of violence and terror in Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan-left me in a state of despair and powerlessness. What is one person to do in the face of these overwhelming crises? So much injustice, so much suffering and unfairness, so much apparent randomness and chaos!
Then I turned the page and my eye riveted on a photograph of an elderly white woman standing alongside two young Afro-American boys , measuring their height.I plunged into the words of the article and as I read my heart began to emerge from its dark depths and soar into the light of hope and renewed possibility.
One 84 year old grandmother, by adopting youngsters who had no natural families they could depend upon, was able to make an extraordinary difference in these children's lives.I learned that there many programs are in place that fund and foster such engagements of care and love. Imagine, I thought, if the growing millions of senior adults, many of whom have no grandchildren of their own, could adopt the millions of children who need grandparents to love and care for in a way that only grandparents know how. What a different world this would be.
For a few moments,I forgot about Wall Street, and was uplifted by this inspiring, everyday possibility of Main Street America and beyond.
It goes without saying that we should never forget the ills of the world; to do so would be a response either of denial or outright callousness.
But, to be grateful for a genuine and ordinary opportunity to bring light into our individual worlds is to discover a path of inspiration and hope, a way to elevate our souls in spite of the lurking darkness that surrounds us.
I am grateful to this woman for not only bringing strength into young people's lives but also for shedding her radiance of goodness upon so many who have read her story.