I used to lead services with my friend Yoni Stadlin at the Jewish Home and Hospital in Manhattan.  One of the songs he led was called The Giving Song, as it is about the benefits of giving to others. The song goes “Deep inside my heart I got this everlasting light it’s shining like the sun it radiates on everyone.  Cuz the more that I live the more I’ve got to give; it’s the way that I live it’s what I’m living for.”

Songs like Yoni’s emphasize the importance of providing for others and correlate to the emphasis on giving within our tradition.  General practice according to the Bible is “to give what your heart desires,” as we read next week in Parshat Terumah (Exodus 25:1).  There is no limit on what one can give mentioned when talking about providing for the stranger, orphan and widow.  Therefore I find interesting our Maftir for this week, where everyone is commanded to bring the same amount (half a shekel) as an offering to God upon being counted in the census (Exodus 30:12-15).  What is significant about the bringing of the half a shekel is that everyone had to bring exactly that amount: no more and no less.  In a religion that emphasizes giving to such a degree, why set a limit on how much you can give?

In the Book of Exodus, there is a tension between having everyone give the same amount versus give whatever they are able to.  In a few weeks we will see that the Israelites were allowed to give whatever they wanted to construct the Tabernacle.  It turns out that they were so zealous in their gifts that Moses had to tell them to stop.  People came to Moses and exclaimed that “the people are bringing more than is needed for the tasks entailed in the work that God has commanded to be done” (Exodus 36:5).  After this, Moses informed the people “Let no man or woman make further effort toward gifts for the sanctuary!” (Exodus 36:6).

This example of the Israelites giving so much of their resources for a communal structure is astounding.  However, the difficulty with allowing people to give as much as they desire is that people do not always have the means by which to give.  I imagine that some Israelites had taken more gold from Egypt which they could donate to construction of the Tabernacle.  God did not want to embarrass those who had lesser means and thus in this week’s Maftir, God requested that every person give half a shekel-no more and no less.  This had two purposes: it made everyone an equal contributor in the construction of the Tabernacle and reminded everyone that they had an equal stake in the community.  The latter purpose is exuded by the rabbinic principle kol yisrael arevin zeh bazeh, that all of Israel has an equal responsibility in the construction of the Tabernacle.

The idea of communal responsibility is one that is not so easy to fulfill in modern times.  With so many familial needs: grandchildren’s schooling, health care, house mortgage, etc. it becomes difficult to provide for the community as well.  There are people blessed in their resources who make generous donations year after year to communal causes.  If we are not in that situation, however, than how can the notion of the Israelites providing for communal needs transfer into our lives?  I will start out with an extreme example and then touch on one that I believe can work for our larger community.

Occasionally, I get to read examples of great altruism.  One an article from the New York Times, entitled “A Donor Match over Small Talk and Coffee,” talks about a kidney donation that will be made by Starbucks employee Sandie Anderson to Annamarie Ausnes.  In small talk, Anderson discovered that Ausnes was in need of a kidney and she was a perfect match.  On March 11^th 2008, the two women underwent surgery for Ausnes to receive the kidney.  The fact that a Starbucks employee offered to donate a body part to someone she did not know is an amazing act of selfless kindness, demonstrating to us that acts of great altruism exist in our society.  However, while these opportunities are awe-inspiring to hear about, it would not be feasible to do something like this on a regular basis.

A small but far-reaching way that we can work to create a community which emphasizes giving of oneself to others is to be in dialogue with the other members of the community to get to know them personally.  Part of this is learning what makes them unique and part is discovering what their concerns are.  Through a Community Organizing class at JTS, we set up a House Meeting drive brought students from each of the 5 academic schools there in dialogue with members of the faculty and administration regarding common concerns and ways to make the community stronger.  Through the drive, I heard people share similar concerns which they previously believed were theirs alone.  I also discovered that people had the desire to pool their individual resources to help one another.  Through a one hour conversation, we set the ground to create a vibrant community.  This is not the same degree of altruism as Sadie Anderson offering her kidney to Annamarie Ausnes, but it is a way on a larger scale to create a community of responsibility.

One of the great things about being part of the Jericho Jewish Center is that we have feelings of responsibility for one another, as evident by the large turnouts at Shiva Minyanim or by people inquiring about others’ well-being. However, I feel that we can take this further by reflecting on what is the contribution that each of us will give individually to strengthen our synagogue. For some it might be volunteering to serve on a committee or on the board; for others it might entail helping to plan an event and for others it might be giving of financial resources to help our congregation.

In conclusion, we have examined the tension between allowing people to provide whatever they wanted versus the universal requirement of giving half a shekel.  The giving of half a shekel ensured equal responsibility and an equal stake in the community.  It is difficult to create a community of responsibility when we each have so many needs.  At times there might be the opportunity to do an act of extreme altruism, like donating a kidney, but a more regular approach is to meet people you don’t know and get to know them as a full person: what makes them unique, what are some of their greatest ambitions and what they are concerned or afraid about (what keeps them up at night).  This is a difficult task and it is a bit idealistic.  However, by setting up a community where people can relate to one another in a personal and meaningful way, we can fulfill the maxim of kol yisrael arevim zeh bazeh to create a community whose members look out for one another and which lives based on the principle of giving to others.

Interfaith couples are underserved and in some cases even shunned by the community. It is not uncommon for interfaith families to close themselves off to organized Jewish activities. At the same time, the lack of receptiveness of many branches of the Jewish community has left a large number of interfaith couples looking to find some way to belong, on their own terms. There are so many interfaith couples who are not connected to any Jewish organization, at times because of previous bad experiences that have led to feelings of shame and inadequacy. As a Jewish community, we are making a mistake by pushing such couples away. Instead, we need a sensitive approach to outreach that welcomes and nurtures new connections with the Jewish community. We need to show these families that there is a place for them in our community, that our tent doors are wide enough for them to be welcomed and embraced.

How do we do this? My congregation, the Jericho Jewish Center, is creating a networking group for interfaith families. We are also creating individualized learning opportunities to address each couple’s individual needs. Our goals in this regard are to provide opportunities to for interfaith couples to interact with other couples who might be experiencing similar things as well as to create a personalized program of exploration of Judaism for each couple which is non-threatening to the non-Jewish partner. 

If you are part of an interfaith relationship and you feel “out of place” in the Jewish community, you need not any longer. Join us for an introductory meet-and-greet on Sunday March 8^th from 6:00-7:30 pm at City Cellar Wine Bar & Grill (1080 Corporate Dr in Westbury) with other interfaith couples in a welcoming, supportive and non-judgmental group setting. RSVPs are encouraged to 516-938-2540 or at  rabbi@jerichojc.org. Can’t make that Sunday but would like to participate? Please give me a call at the above number. I would be happy to meet with you, hear your story and demonstrate how welcoming our Jewish community truly can be.

On Thursday we had our first Jericho Jewish Center Alumni Event in the city, at Hudson Commons Bar in Hell’s Kitchen. Despite the frigid weather, 12 JJC Alumni came out and had a blast. For some it was a Hebrew School Reunion; for others, an opportunity to meet fellow JJC graduates. The attendees were anywhere from early 20s to mid 50s. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet those who grew up at JJC and learn about their interests.Thanks to Allison Gluck and Dana Arschin for helping me organize. We will have our second JJC Alumni Event after Passover at an outdoor beer garden. Stay tuned for further details.

I was saddened to read in The Jewish Week that FEGS Health and Human Services is closing its offices after accumulating a $20 million deficit. FEGS, an organization that provides social services for hundreds of thousands in New York City and in the greater metropolitan area, does incredible work. It was the first organization I met with upon moving to Jericho, and I quickly learned about Project Replenish, which provides thousands with food collected during the High Holiday season. I also took two groups of Hebrew High Schoolers to stock the FEGS food pantry to provide food for those in need.  Other congregations have cooked food at their facilities and served it to those in need through the auspices of FEGS. FEGS has also helped thousands of New Yorkers find work (through the Connect to Care program) and affordable housing and has programs to help those with disabilities.

Who will pick up these valuable services in FEGS’ absence? What will happen to the needy individuals on the Island who have relied on FEGS’ services in the past? On whom will the Seniors who have received support from FEGS for home care now rely? All these questions (and more) have no answers at this time.

People often greatly care about their origins.  One of the first questions many of us ask a new person we meet is “Where are you from?”  Ellis Island gets hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, testament to people’s interest about their history.  Many families (including mine) have written family trees, some of which go back 500 or 1000 years.  What is it that keeps pulling us towards our personal history, even when life pulls us away from this history?

This week’s Torah portion features the 10 Commandments as well as the delegation of authority through setting up a court system.  This morning, however, I want to talk about the person for whom the portion is named, Jethro (Yitro in Hebrew), who is Moses’ father-in-law.  Jethro faces a tension between the land of his origin and his location at the beginning of this portion.  As we find out in Exodus 2, Jethro is a Midianite priest.  His daughters go to draw water for their flock, shepherds drive them away, and Moses intervenes, watering the flock himself.  As a result, Jethro gives his daughter Tzipporah to Moses as his wife, officially connecting his Midianite/Egyptian family with Moses and the Israelites.  Fast forwarding to this week’s portion, Moses tells Jethro of God saving the Israelites from the Egyptians.  Jethro’s reaction, in 18:9, is the word yihad, a word which appears only 6 times in the Torah, 3 times as a noun and 3 times as a verb.  This word is generally translated as “rejoice.”  However, Rashi brings in a second translation from a Midrash, that Yitro felt stinging sensations (hidudin) as he was saddened by the destruction of Egypt.  Despite having a daughter who married into the Israelite family, Yitro is still tied to his Egyptian origins and cannot rejoice at his brethren’s demise.

The Tur, Rabbi Jacob ben Asher of the 14^th century, has a different reading of that verse.  He reads the word yihad as yahad, unify, stating that Jethro unified his house with the one God and became a Jew.  This is an anachronistic reading, as in biblical times people did not undergo religious conversions-rather they chose to affiliate with an ethnic group.  However, it does connect to a late statement, when Jethro states “blessed is Adonai who saved you from Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh.” It seems that Jethro is in fact rejoicing in the Jewish God-however he also says “who has saved you,” excluding himself from being part of the Israelites.

My question is should we view Jethro as a “converted” Israelite, like the Tur, or as remaining a Midianite?  I believe the answer is the latter, as in Exodus 18:27, after Jethro instructs Moses how to set up judges, Moses sends him back to his land, Midian. Jethro had just proclaimed the glory of the Israelite God, so why would he leave the Israelites?  Even more interesting, in Numbers 10:30, when Moses asks Jethro to stay with the Israelites, and he replies, “I will not go with you, but rather to my land and to my birthplace will I go.”  Moses’ father-in-law once again says he will return to his native land rather than stay with Moses and with his daughter Tziporah. In this case Moses begs him to stay, and while the outcome is ambiguous, it appears to me that Jethro leaves the Israelites. While Jethro has developed a relationship with Moses and the Israelites, he chooses to return to his native Midian rather than continuing on with the Israelites.

          Has anyone here ever struggled over whether to stay in your community or move somewhere new?  What factors did you have to consider?  In the end, which choice did you make?

I see Jethro’s situation as personally speaking to us.  He journeys with the Israelites in both Exodus and Numbers and praises their god.  At the end of the day, however, Jethro decides to return to his homeland.  This teaches me that it is often difficult to leave one’s homeland, and even if he/she physically leaves, there will remain unbreakable ties to the land of one’s formative years.  While Jethro believes in the Israelite God rather than that of the Midianites and his offspring will continue as Israelites, he is still drawn towards his native land.  This story also gives me newfound appreciation for Abraham being able to leave his homeland.

I want to commend everyone here for continuing to strengthen their ties to the Jericho Jewish Center.  Our congregation understands the importance of maintaining a strong Jewish presence in Jericho.  To be able to maintain a congregation for almost 60 years is an incredible feat and is testament to the hard work, dedication and faith of our congregants, as well as following in the footsteps of our ancestors.  Maintaining the rich history of our congregation is special, showing that there is value in continuity. You would not believe how many congregants I have spoken with many who, though they only come on the High Holidays, proudly proclaim “I’ve been a member here for 40 years!”  How fortunate are we to have congregants who play such vital roles in our congregation and who have invested so much in our success.  May today be a day of great celebration for all that we have in our community at the Jericho Jewish Center.

Karina and I were looking to get out after the blizzard yesterday so we went to see The Theory of Everything about Stephen Hawking. I like seeing movies after the Oscar nominations come out, and had already seen Selma and The Imitation Game. I had first learned about Dr. Hawking in Physics class in high school, and found his work fascinating (especially his struggles about whether to acknowledge a creator of the world). The technology that Dr. Hawking used to speak sounded exactly like I had remembered it.

The one thing I will never understand is how Dr. Hawking is so anti-Israel when the technology that enables him to communicate with the world was produced in Israel. I would hope that Dr. Hawking would learn to appreciate Israel’s technological innovations and appreciate that physics and politics are two separate fields.

I remember visiting synagogues in Europe and noticing that after services, the men would take off their kippot. These were religious men who were Sabbath observant, so why would they take off their kippah? Because the value of pikuah nefesh, saving themselves from getting beaten up or tormented, took precedence over wearing a kippah.

I read in yesterday’s Newsday about a “hidden kippah,” made out of real or synthetic hair, that one clips on from the inside. This product was made in Rehovot, Israel and is being marketed in particular to French Jews. I had mixed feelings about reading the article. On the one hand, I appreciate that it helps those who want to wear a kippah yet are afraid to. On the other hand, I felt saddened that people would have to hide their kippot, the symbols of their Jewish identity. I pray for the day when Jews from all over the world will be able to wear the kippah of their choice, whether it is a colorful kippah like mine, a velvet kippah. a white kippah or a different variation. May the day come soon when fellow Jews from all around the world will be able to proudly wear a kippah, rather than hide this integral part of their identity.

In this week’s portion, Moses demonstrates that he is a leader for the entire community. After the plague of locusts, Pharaoh gave in and says “Go and worship your G-d in the desert; who will be the ones to go?” Moses replied, “Our young and our old will go.” This angered Pharaoh who would only allow the men to go. Pharaoh knew that if everyone left they would not return, so he wanted to hold some of the people back. Moses, however, said that either all the Israelites would go or none of them would.

Why did Moses argue for the children to come? The medieval commentator Chizkuni states that “the way of children is to celebrate.” Rabbi Harold Kushner brings two alternative interpretations in The Etz Hayim Humash: that “no celebration is complete without children” and that “a child without parents is an orphan but a nation without children is an orphan people.” The last point is especially poignant, without the children there is no future.

The commentaries are great at emphasizing the children but I believe it is equally important that Moses said the elderly must go as well. Elders bring wisdom to the community through their past lived experiences. They also provide a sense of historical precedent as to why things are as they are. Moses knew that just as the children are necessary so too are the older individuals. As we must look towards the future, so must we also remember the past and what brought us to this present day. Moses felt it was important that everyone be able to leave Egypt, regardless of their age. This has a lot to say for how the Jewish community works: that everyone is a valued member of our community. The way of a successful synagogue is to leave no one behind, showing each person that he or she has a valued, integral place in our community. Let us be like Moses and open doors for everyone to enter into our congregation, whether it be those who are single or married, young families or empty nesters, traditional or secular, inmarried or intermarried. That is how we will perpetuate and give value to our Jewish community.

As I mentioned in November, I will be devoting this sermon to the history of the World Zionist Congress and why I believe it is important to vote in the elections, which began on Tuesday and which continue until April 30. What is the World Zionist Congress? It is a convening body that determines the policies of the World Zionist Organization, which was set up to “build an infrastructure to further the cause of Jewish settlement in Palestine,” and today in Israel. The congress dates back to August 1897, when it was first convened by Theodore Herzl at Basel, Switzerland. It currently meets once every 4 years in Israel.

The World Zionist Congress has undergone a number of changes, signified by Programs. The most recent is the Jerusalem Program of 2004 which states:

The foundations of Zionism are:

• The unity of the Jewish people, its bond to its historic homeland Eretz Yisrael, and the centrality of the State of Israel and Jerusalem, its capital, in the life of the nation;
• Aliyahto Israel from all countries and the effective integration of all immigrants into Israeli Society.
• Strengthening Israel as a Jewish, Zionist and democratic state and shaping it as an exemplary society with a unique moral and spiritual character, marked by mutual respect for the multi-faceted Jewish people, rooted in the vision of the prophets, striving for peace and contributing to the betterment of the world.
• Ensuring the future and the distinctiveness of the Jewish people by furthering Jewish, Hebrew and Zionist education, fostering spiritual and cultural values and teaching Hebrew as the national language;
• Nurturing mutual Jewish responsibility, defending the rights of Jews as individuals and as a nation, representing the national Zionist interests of the Jewish people, and struggling against all manifestations of anti-Semitism;
• Settling the country as an expression of practical Zionism.

One of the conditions for voting in the election is acceptance of the Jerusalem Program.

Why should we care about this? We should care because the World Zionist Congress is one of the main ways we can enhance the presence of the Conservative Movement in Israel. At the Congress there are a total of 500 delegates, and the United States has the second highest number of delegates allotted to it (145). The Congress works like the Knesset in having elections in which one votes for a political party. The Conservative Movement has a party, called Mercaz. In previous years, Mercaz has been the second highest vote-getter after Artza, the Reform Movement’s party. Why does it matter? First and foremost the elections will determine how much money Masorti (Conservative) Judaism will receive in Israel. Currently it receives $2.5 million annually, which are used to support the almost 60 Masorti congregations in Israel as well as in Europe and South America. Secondly, more votes for MERCAZ increases the Jewish Agency’s support of the TALI Schools. Unlike in America, schools are divided between those which are secular and those which are religious. In the past this has meant that a school was either secular or Orthodox, but now there is a third option: TALI schools (Tarbut Lemudi Yisraeli), which offer enhanced Jewish studies within a Conservative Jewish framework. Thirdly, the more votes for MERCAZ means the more delegates, enabling those delegates to form a bloc which can be used to influence policy decisions important to us, such as the recognition of Masorti (Conservative) conversions and marriages in Israel. In addition, it could mean more government-funded positions for Masorti rabbis. Until recently, only Orthodox rabbis were funded by the Israeli government, but now 6 Masorti rabbis are in government-funded positions. This enables Masorti congregations, some of which have not hired rabbis because they cannot fund them, will be able to have a rabbi in their community.

I hope this demonstrates the importance of having as many votes for MERCAZ as possible. In past years only 180,000 Americans have voted in the elections, and there is so much room for improvement. While MERCAZ has been the second highest vote-getter in the past, that is not guaranteed to continue, as there are more and more parties participating in the election, including a Jewish National Fund Party and Shas. While I would not tell anyone how to vote, I will say that if you care about the issues important to Conservative Judaism, whether it be Conservative rabbis’ life-cycle events being recognized, an option for egalitarianism in Israel or an option for a “middle way” between secular and Orthodox education, that you consider voting for MERCAZ.

It costs $10 per adult and $5 per full-time student aged 18-30 to vote in the election, a fee which simply covers the administrative costs of running the election. The voting period is from January 15 to April 30. To vote please go to the World Zionist Organization’s website (wzo.co.il) after Shabbat. I have also e-mailed out the link to the site from MERCAZ. May we work together to support the betterment of Israel. Shabbat Shalom.

ויפן כה וכה וירא כי אין איש……

…Va’yifen koh vachoh vayar ki ein ish…

And when Moses had grown he went out to his fellow Hebrews and saw their suffering, and he saw an Egyptian man severely beat[1] one of his fellow Hebrews.  And Moses turned this way and that way and saw that there was no man, and he killed the Egyptian and he hid him in the sand. (Exodus 2:11-12)

This passage has often bothered Biblical commentators because of the phrase “ein ish”.  What does it mean that there was no one around?  One possibility is that the Egyptian taskmaster was literally beating the Hebrew in an isolated area where no one was around except the two of them and Moses.  An alternative interpretation could be that there were people around but no one was watching the taskmaster oppress the Hebrew, since everyone was so engrossed in his or her own work.  A third possibility, and the one I think is most accurate, is that there were people around who were either watching the beating or hearing the cries of the oppressed but did not react to it.  It was a common experience for a slave to be beaten, so they would not be surprised by it.  While the Hebrew slaves might have wanted to defend their brother, they were numbed to the reality of their day and did not take action against the injustice.  Moses, on the other hand, was seeing the oppressiveness of the Egyptian taskmaster with eyes wide open, coming directly from Pharoah’s palace, and he was enraged.  When he saw that no one was doing anything about it, he took action on his own and slew the Egyptian.

Our rabbis teach a lesson based on a similar passage.  Pirkei Avot, the Ethics of the Fathers, contains the statement במקום שאין אנשים השתדל להיות איש, “In a place where there are no people, strive to be a man.”  If this statement is taken on solely a literal basis, it would not make much sense, as it would imply that one’s responsibility in striving to be a person only occurs in isolated places, where there is no one around.  Instead we must take a more figurative approach: that if there is no one stepping up in the face of injustice, we must put forth effort to be the person who steps forward.  If there are no people acting to make change in our communities, we must be the one who acts and who attempts to inspire others to action.

The story of Moses and the Egyptian and the aphorism in Pirkei Avot exemplify the quotation by Elie Wiesel “the opposite of love is not hate but indifference.”  Moses saw there was no one acting to defend his Hebrew brother and thus he decided to act.  He could have easily stood by and let the Egyptian taskmaster’s cruelty go unchecked, but instead he decided to defend the safety and honor of his brother.

The practical lesson that should be taken from this Torah portion is the importance of acting out against the injustices of our day.  It is sadly ironic that we read this portion immediately following the attack of Hyper Cacher supermarket in Paris, in which 4 hostages were killed and 5 others wounded. Hyper Cacher was in my opinion deliberately attacked on a Friday afternoon, when the crowds would have been the greatest as Jews gathered in preparation for Shabbat. I read an account of a woman who hid in a freezer for hours, waiting for the police to arrive and the attackers to be taken out. Our hearts are with the victims and our prayers with those who are critically wounded. We cannot stand idly by while our brethren are attacked solely because they are Jews. We cannot stand by with the atrocities of ISIS in Iraq and Syria, Boko Haram in Nigeria (who yesterday committed their deadliest attack yet) and Al-Shabab in Somalia. We cannot stand by when any human being is attacked, such as those of the newspaper Charlie Hebdo who were brutally murdered on Wednesday.

What are the ways that we can act against this injustice? Some of us act by giving money to relief organizations, others of us act by writing letters to public officials and others of us act by organizing rallies to inform the community about the grievances in the world and the importance of helping out.  We need to recognize all of these as being effective ways of acting out against injustice and applaud people for their efforts. I am challenging each of us to act by giving extra Tzedakah this month. At the end of the month the Tzedakah money will be sent to the Jewish Agency for Israel, helping French Jews who are striving to make Aliyah at this time.

As we reflect on the suffering in the world, both of our brethren and of those at the newspaper Charlie Hebdo, let us remember the quote לא עליך המלאכה לגמור ולא אתה בן חורין להבטל ממנה; “You are not obligated to complete the work but neither are you free to desist from it.”  May we each do our part in working to overturn the suffering experienced by our brethren throughout the world. Let us each be “men,” like Moses, and stand up in the face of injustice for our people and for all humanity.