What I Told Teenagers About the Election

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Many of my rabbinic colleagues have eloquently put into words much of what is in my heart. Tonight I addressed a group of teens during Hebrew school, and I offered these additional thoughts.

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Truthfully, this was a difficult morning to wake up to. I started the day with a lot of questions. Is my country safe and secure? Are our savings and investments stable? Will my 3-month-old son be denied health care? Will my daughter still be able to freely belt out the same Hebrew songs many of you learned growing up in this very building?

But amid all these scary feelings that kept piling up, here’s what I realized. I didn’t change. Having a different person in the White House doesn’t make me a different person. I’m always going to fight for what I believe in. I’m always going to teach my children the values that are important to me. You have every right to be disappointed or happy about the outcome of this election. But these feelings will pass, and you will remain. You will fight. You will teach. And you will look past today because you learned these three lessons:

  • First, don’t even for a second think that your voice or your vote doesn’t count. This presidential race was won because enough voters made it clear they wanted change. So we got change. And we’ll find out over the coming weeks and months if it’s change for the better or not. And just because this election is over doesn’t mean you can’t still make your voice heard. You don’t have to be old enough to vote to write a letter to your representative if there’s an issue you care about.
  • Second, pay more attention to what people do than to what they say. Bullies use meaningless words because that’s all they have. It’s a magic trick, and sometimes people are fooled. Don’t be fooled by bullies.
  • Third, v’ahavta l’reyecha kamocha. Love your neighbor as yourself. Your neighbor, no matter the distance between your houses or the “color” of the states in which you live, was created in the image of God. We all have a spark of divine potential. Let’s not diminish it by reducing each other to red or blue, this side or that side.

How will I teach my daughter that she has value and worth? I will love her, and I will teach her to love and respect herself. How will I teach my son that it is unacceptable to degrade others? I will love him, and I will teach him to share that love and to give others, including leaders with differing points of view, the benefit of the doubt.

Regardless of the results of this election, my values and morals have not changed. So how will I move forward? I will simply love harder, speak out louder, and represent myself every step of the way. And you will too.

Noah for President – Parshat Noach 5777

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I’m sure by this point in the election cycle, you’ve heard plenty of people from all political persuasions talking about the dilemma of choosing the “lesser of two evils.” Though the label “evil” might be intended as hyperbole, that doesn’t change the fact that our two major parties nominated candidates who are viewed unfavorably among a significant number of people, even from within their own parties.

Our Torah portion this week is also about a man who, as some scholars suggest, was not necessarily an ideal leader, but was simply the best choice available. This week we read parshat Noach, which tells of the evil impulses running rampant in society, Noah’s building of the ark, a covenant with God through a rainbow, and the building of a tower to approach God. Noah is the man in charge. He receives God’s call to build the ark and the call to put his family and pairs of animals on this vessel. And, when the flood waters have subsided, he is supposed to regenerate the earth and be in covenant with God. One can imagine this to-do list and the weight of responsibility here sitting heavily on Noah’s shoulders.

Even among the great commentators on our Torah text there is debate over who Noah was for his generation, in our story, and in our lives. Noah is referred to as “Ish tzadik b’dorotav,” a righteous person in his generation. The commentators question what exactly that means. Is he righteous compared to others in his generation, thus if he’d been in another time (for example among Abraham or Moshe) he wouldn’t be that great? Or is it suggesting that in spite of his generation he is still a good person? Furthermore, did he do enough to try to save others like Abraham did with S’dom and Gomorrah or like Moshe in response to the golden calf? In both of these cases, our people’s leaders fought to save more people, while Noah doesn’t appear to save anyone but himself and his family.

The question remains is Noah to be lauded for his work or is he simply the best of the worst? While I’m not sure there is ever anything to be gained by making these subjective comparisons, I still wonder what Noah’s place is in our tradition. He is our prime example of at least relative righteousness, standing up when no one else had the courage or conviction to do so. However, he later acts immodestly when he disrobes in front of his sons. He goes to work to save other living beings, but does he go far enough to try to save other humans?

Sometimes the good we are able to do is limited by surrounding factors, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try, and it doesn’t mean we should resort to a “best of the worst” mindset. The lesson of Noah is to be our best possible selves, no matter the circumstances.

Happy Days – Parshat Bereshit 5777

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Is it just me, or do you also hear the Happy Days theme song in your head when we read the story of creation? In both cases, we go through the days of the week and call them “happy” or “good.” In fact, you could substitute the words “it was good” in place of “happy days,” and you’d have a nice little Bereshit theme song:

Sunday, Monday, it was good.

Tuesday, Wednesday, it was good.

Thursday, Friday, it was good.

Saturday, what a day, I think I’ll take a nap.

At the end of each day of creation, God takes a moment to step back and take note of all that has been accomplished in anticipation of the next productive step. It makes me wonder if God would still have had the satisfaction of “good” if there hadn’t been this daily check-in. Perhaps the “good” isn’t a direct response to the creation at all, but actually God taking a moment to simply stop at the end of the day. We focus on Shabbat as God’s rest after creation, but the division between the days seems to indicate there was also a “rest” after each day.

This is the lesson of creation. Setting aside a moment at the end of the day to look at what we have accomplished and what is good – in our professional and personal lives – means that we are actively checking in with ourselves and those around us. Furthermore, setting aside an entire day (and believe me, as someone who “works” on Shabbat, I know how hard this is to do) means having the ability to reconnect with one another and refresh for the next week.

The happiness conveyed in the theme song is a helpful reminder to stop and take these moments of appreciation. Every week when Duncan and I look at our calendars and plan our schedules, it reinforces how frenetic and fast-paced our lives seem to be. In order to get any family time or down time, we have to schedule it in. This section of text in parshat Bereshit details the creation of the world day by day, but also asks us to reflect on our own “happy days.” As we enter another year and another cycle of Torah, let us work to make every day a day that brings happiness, connection, and our own creation.

Parenting by the Parshah – V’zot Habrachah

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Can you believe we’ve reached the end of the Torah already? And the final parshah, V’zot Habracha, which is a helpful reminder to look back on all the blessings of the previous year, is also the perfect transition to my next video series.

Later this year, we’ll begin a new journey together called Birkat Hashanah, in which we’ll be talking about blessings for all seasons and times in our lives. See you soon!

My Rock – Parshat Ha’azinu 5777

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In times of trouble we often hear people talk about their “rock,” that person who stood by them as they weathered the storm that was upon them. It could have been any number of qualities that were helpful in that time of need. Your rock might have been someone who didn’t falter, was always positive, or always open-armed. It could have been someone who could simply listen to you vent about a crazy problem, or someone who was always at the other end of the phone no matter what time of day it was. A “rock” can vary from situation to situation, but ultimately it’s a phrase used to describe someone firm, strong, and solid.

We also refer to God as a rock throughout our liturgy. On Hanukkah we sing “Ma Oz Tzur” (“Rock of Ages”) and daily at the end of the Amidah we share in Yihiyu L’ratzon, “May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable to You, God, my rock and redeemer.”

This week we read parshat Ha’azinu, Moshe’s final poem to the Israelite people. In it, he reminds the people of God’s grace, compassion, and loving leadership, while at the same time criticizing the Israelites for their lack of faith and understanding. In this poem we read, “Remember the days of old, Consider the years of ages past; Ask your father, he will inform you, Your elders, they will tell you.” As Moshe is moving toward his final farewell to the people, he implores them to ask their elders to clarify laws and to share their stories.

Specifically, there is this line: “For their rock is not like our rock, In our enemies’ own estimation.” The God of Israel is unfailingly supportive and reliable, while, according to this verse, the pagan gods are incapable of that type of solid, steadfast strength and dependability. Our God is responsive, caring, creating a world in which the good outweighs the evil. God is our rock.

The point of this sentiment, and in a certain way the entirety of the Torah, is that when all else fails, when there is no one to listen or to hold you up, there is God. When you find yourself struggling to move forward or needing something to hold onto, there is God. As we continue through the final days of this period of heightened joy and introspection, may we give acknowledgement and thanks to all the “rocks” in our lives. We are stronger because of them.