Temple Isaiah Member Since: 2011
What Israel Means to Me:
Israel is home; it’s family. It was on my first trip to Israel as a teenager with NFTY that my love for Israel was cemented along with my deep connection to my Judaism. My time in Israel that summer undoubtedly changed my life and I feel that affirmation every time I return to my homeland. It’s the history co-mingling with the present and the future, the smells of the shuk in the air and the colors and sounds that shock you, the quiet in the streets of Jerusalem on Shabbat, the nitty-gritty living out of a long-held dream. I am continually shaped and molded as a Jew through my relationship with Israel as the people, the land, and the state. When Israel weeps, so do I. When she sings out in joy, so do I.
What I Do to Support the Jewish State:
As a rabbi, I intentionally try to encourage and build a love for Israel and her people within our congregation. I stay aware of what is happening on the ground in Israel and share that with those in my life through divrei Torah, classes, conversations, and social media. I advocate for Israel’s right to exist, to be safe and secure just as I yearn for a day when Israel will peaceably share borders with a Palestinian state.
For me, one of the greatest challenges of our time is dealing with the ambivalence and for some, the dissonance felt by many Jews in the diaspora towards Israel. It is some of the most difficult and sacred work that I undertake as a rabbi.
What You Can Do to Support Israel:
Go to Israel! Spend time in our homeland, converse with our Israeli brothers and sisters, immerse yourself not only in our history, but in Israel’s present and future.
Be in conversation about Israel. We must continually educate ourselves so that we can meaningfully engage in dialogue. Come to classes here at the Temple or elsewhere and share that learning in conversations with family and friends.
Israel belongs to the entire Jewish people. It is our heritage, our gift, and our responsibility. We support the Jewish state by internalizing our sacred responsibility to Israel – for from a place of responsibility flows the need to act.