I thought you should see this story

Real progress can't happen with cynicism

http://m.islandpacket.com/island/db_/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=6s9TrKXN&src=cat

Thanksgiving in Mississippi

We went to enjoy Thanksgiving at two homes yesterday in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. How many ways can one prepare pumpkin pie? Stuffing, of course, is the critical element for making or breaking the actual meal itself. I should mention the other essential piece which is whether or not the Turkey is moist. There is nothing worse than a dry Thanksgiving Day Turkey! Yes, food and football are part and parcel of our Thanksgiving Day ritual. We were fortunate to enjoy outstanding cuisine both homes.

At the first home our hosts asked each one of us at the table to offer a thought. One guest said that he was grateful to be with his extended family. Even though he only sees them once or twice a year, it is always a special treat and something he truly values. It did not matter that we did not know the other folks, except for our hosts, all of us resounded with gratitude for being with our respective families.

I am sure we all feel that way too. The truth of the matter is that being away from our family during the course of the year and traveling so many miles is not easy but it is a worthwhile pilgrimage. Our daughter and her boy friend came in from Arizona. I drove almost 600 miles from Hilton Head. Yet, sitting at that table with my family regardless of who was sitting across the table brought home that magical moment of Shalom. Oh how we need that peace and tranquility especially in these unpredictable times. One does not  have to be a rabbi or philosopher to understand and affirm that family is sacred to us all.

It is frustrating that in America families are so spread out. How blessed are the ones who have their extended family members living nearby. But no matter how far apart we are and no matter how much we miss each other these moments like Thanksgiving reinforce the deep love that is there every day as it is on this special holiday.

Thanksgiving is my favorite American holiday because it brings out the best in all Americans and does not get bogged down in religious factionalism. This holiday is religiously neutral. We can all give thanks each in our own way and not make one particular religion the focus. Thanksgiving is about the hope that Americans can learn how to get along with our neighbors. The pilgrims and the Indians began the narrative of a long history of diverse groups struggling to share this blessed land.

The same narrative still exists with the challenges we all face in adapting to a changing religio-ethnic base of newly arrived Americans from all over the world. Maybe if we can learn to eat turkey together we can learn to enjoy each other’s presence and respect the traditions we all come from that make up the beautiful tapestry we call America. That is the promise that our forefathers cherished because they knew back then that it would be the secret of America’s prosperity and longevity.

Happy Thanksgiving

FBI issues hate crimes report: A challenge for the Religious Community to make a difference

According to the FBI, hate crimes went down by 15 over the course of the year 2009. The FBI claims that there were 6,604 criminal acts which had 7,784 “bias motivated offenses.” Almost 20 percent of the crimes were religiously motivated criminal acts. Of the 1303 criminal acts of religious bigotry 931 were anti-Jewish,107 were anti-Islamic, 51 were anti-catholic, 38 were anti-protestant and 10 were anti-Atheistic /Agnostic. Finally in 2008 there were 1608 religiously motivated hate crimes.

What does all this mean? Well, one could say that hate crimes are going down and pray they continue in this pattern. Another aspect is the amount of anti-Semitic attacks which make up the largest category of religious hate crimes. Jews should feel at home in America and breathe easy that we have the most secure way of life that any Jewish community has probably ever experienced in the history of our people. Yet, that stream of anti-Semitism still exists and will always pose a risk factor to our well being. It just comes with the territory and the job.

It is hard to tell whether the numbers will increase regarding anti-Islamic hate crimes. We all know the tension out there in America regarding the Muslim population.  My sense is that the statistics will not change much unless we have a terrorist attack (Please God, no!). 

The Anti-Defamation League came out with a statement welcoming the decrease of hate crimes but also pointed out that 60 cities with populations over 100,000 did not participate in the survey. That is an obvious problem which makes the report appear to be skewed. We need accurate data before we can make pronouncements about the state of hate crimes in America. This fact calls into question the reliability of the FBI’s statistics.

This is the time for religious groups to build bridges with and to each other. When we do so we are protecting our communities from misunderstanding if and when an incident occurs which can trigger other crimes. Community leaders have an obligation to talk to each other even if there are issues which we share opposing opinions. We all live in the same community and should have a vested interest in preserving the peace.

We are a great nation for many reasons. We have the ability to make a difference and show the world how America can deal with its religious diversity in a way that does not tear at the fabric of our society. Sure we have profoundly difficult issues to deal with that relate to race and religion.  But we do have the capacity to transcend divisive issues and work for a better understanding amongst religions.  The volunteer boards of Mosques, churches, synagogues and other religious institutions should encourage their clergy to make those connections and show pride when clergy succeed at fostering a greater understanding between the religions.

I pray that this Thanksgiving we take a moment out to say that we are blessed in so many ways because we live in America. Yes, we are going through a terrible time in our economy. At the same time let us rededicate ourselves to the hope that we shall never cede the moral high ground. Please God, imbue us with the determination to live up to the teachings of our faith and cherish all life and the religions that give us understanding and faith to live our lives to its fullest potential.

The district conference of the Reform Movement in Atlanta

We just finished a brief weekend kallah, the first one in the new district model that resulted from the organizational restructuring of our national movement. Over 150 volunteers, rabbis, cantors and educators attended a busy schedule of activities held at the Marriot near the Atlanta airport.

This kallah (conference) gave evidence of the enthusiasm and the desperate need for community at the local and regional levels if Reform Judaism is going to survive. The enthusiasm was there and we met some of the Union of Reform Judaism’s specialist’s staff in areas such as adult education and early childhood education.  The rabbis and cantors who attended did a fine job inspiring us with our favorite contemporary songs and with exciting teaching sessions.

Rabbi Dan Medvin gave a fine talk about Judaism and Technology helping us to envision how we can enhance so much of our communal worship by employing the latest techniques in computer graphics that will enable us to engage our families in the worship experience and thereby inspire them to take us to the next level of high tech and high touch.

There is no question that the reorganization of the movement has had a disorienting impact upon the movement’s identity and direction.  I should exclude the bedrock of reform’s success story as exceptions such as the camping movement and NFTY (the youth movement) when drawing these conclusions.

The staff is doing its best. They have enthusiasm, knowledge and experience to prove that the movement is going forward. But they can’t do it by themselves. What was missing was a strong representation from the highest ranks of the reform movement. I am referring to the absence of the URJ’s top national leadership  cadre of volunteer and clergy leadership.

District conferences that stretch over a thousand miles across the country face a challenge to connect everyone. I am not yet convinced that the district model is the way to go in fashioning a permanent organizational structure. It is too early to make a final appraisal. A movement like Liberal Judaism needs to grow and renew those time honored bonds that grew out of the previous regional model in order to influence the agenda nationally.

Kudos to the union for putting together this long needed first try at organizing the conference. I think they really need to broaden the participation and do a much better marketing job to recruit people to attend. If the top tier of volunteer and professional leadership hope to inspire giving to the Union ,both in terms of time and financial resources, then maybe they should  think about showing up and demonstrating that they really care about the folks they serve.

The success of this weekend’s retreat proves that they are on the right track even though there is a lot more work to be done. The Union of Reform Judaism needs to promote more face to face contact of people with likeminded interests.  There are social networking strategies that many of us are already employing within our congregations. The more we can meet others from around the district and the nation the greater collaboration and enthusiasm we can build for the future of the URJ. We need to create the spark. This weekend was the beginning. Let’s keep up the momentum.

Learning and sharing together helps the spiritual life of America

Yesterday we received at the temple a group of about 25 people from a local senior independent living facility. They were a conglomeration of Christians: Catholics, Episcopalians, Southern Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians and Lutherans. If I am not mistaken there were a few atheists in the group as well. While sitting in the pews of our sanctuary, I gave them a brief explanation of all the ritual objects including the Eternal Light, The Menorah, the Memorial plaques, and the inscription on our Jerusalem stone bimah (platform). The one ritual object, however, that stood out above all the rest was the Torah. When I opened the ark, I could see the awe in their eyes. They had never seen a Torah up close.

They all arose from the pews and stood around me at the Torah reading table as I undressed the Torah and opened it up. Their eyes widened and the look of amazement reminded me of the same enthusiasm and wonder that our young people show when we read Torah on Shabbat. They asked excellent questions, for example, about the history of Bible translations and requested that I chant Torah which I gladly did for them.

We then walked over near the entrance to the sanctuary where in a carved out alcove in the Jerusalem stone wall there was a Torah encased in Plexiglas. I explained the history of this special Torah coming from Prague, Czechoslovakia. The Nazis accumulated almost 2000 Torahs from communities they ravaged with the intention of establishing a museum after the War to remind the world that they destroyed the Jewish people. After the war those Torahs were then sent to a synagogue in London and sent out on permanent loan to Jewish communities throughout the world. Beth Yam received this Torah in 1984.  The guests stared at it remembering full well the war years. That was a solemn moment in the tour.

Christians want to learn more about Judaism. They see more today than ever before in their history the roots they share with Judaism.  They come with an open mind and a positive and accepting spirit to learning about Judaism’s customs and rituals.

Synagogue need to do more to welcome church groups and other religions into our facilities. And we should not be shy about visiting their institutions as well. America needs to celebrate its religious pluralism and diversity.  It is in the national interest to get beyond the suspicions and fears.  Of course there will always be people in all the faith traditions who avoid interfaith sharing. Sadly too many people see this kind of activity as a waste of time. They do not trust any faith outside their own. But that is not the way we should live in this nation. There is an underlying cynicism in our country which acts like a virus and infects the body politic. We must do what we can to build bridges, create partnerships and foster dialogue even when issues come up where we do disagree.  Only by doing this do we have a chance of turning things around in our country. Of course the economy and jobs are what we are all focused upon these days. We have an opportunity to support each other and change the climate to one of hope and optimism. Is this not what God wants of us? Is this not what we need to do to counter the demographic shift away from religious affiliation that appears to be a growing trend? Is this not the time when all religions in our land  should strive to restore the trust and confidence in many Americans and people around the world who have given up on religion in order to  prove that our faith traditions can make a difference for good in their lives?

In Israel a rabbi, imam and priest pray together for rain.

Who would have ever thought that, according to the report in the Jerusalem Post (November 14, 2010), clergy from Judaism, Islam and Christianity would gather together and in one place at the same time pray together for rain to descend upon the land?

That is exactly what happened. Apparently Israel is experiencing a dry spell. The rainy season normally begins by the middle of October. Rain and water in general is always a valuable resource in the Middle East and plays a critical although oftentimes a behind the scenes role in commerce and the politics of the region.

But this time in what appears to be a mysterious phenomenon that a Rabbi, Imam and Christian Greek Orthodox priest joined together at a spring called Eiyn Heniya in the Valley of the Ghosts that is between Jerusalem and the Bethlehem Hills for a session of prayer to God to send the rain upon the land.

According to the article Orthodox Rabbi Menachem Froman spoke about how both Islam and Judaism have beliefs that God will send rain if the people are good. So this gesture of interreligious unity was a small but important way of appealing to God to cause the rain to replenish the earth. The Rev. Issa Elias Musleh also expressed the sentiment that he was there to beseech God for mercy upon humankind and bring the rains forth.  The Mufti of Bethlehem, Sheikh Abdel Najib, also expressed hopes for peace between the religions and that by praying together reaffirmed Islam’s intention to bring peace to the region and choose peace over war.

In Judaism from the end of the harvest festival of Sukkot until the late spring we pray for rain three times a day. In the prayer we ask God to “meshev ha ruach umorid hagashem –Cause the wind to blow and make the rain descend.” In the Talmud it is written, the day the rain falls is as significant as the day heaven and earth were created.” (Taanit 8b) Rabbinic legislation in times of drought called for a communal fast to appeal to God to bring down the rain. Our ancestors as well as our contemporaries in Israel take the prayers for rain seriously. By the year 2020, population estimates approximate that there will be 8.4 million people living in Israel. The rain is, therefore, even more critical to sustain such a growing population.

But I really want to focus on this small moment of hope that three clergy could agree to meet together in front of the media and suspend the rivalries and antagonisms that afflict this holy and sacred land. The fact that they transcended the bitterness and cynicism and, instead, focused on a common problem shows that beyond the rhetoric we read about in the media that there are forces who are communicating and searching for ways to work together. This is one of those moments that should hold out a little bit of hope for us that peace is within the grasp of the parties in this conflict.

We should watch and learn from their example.  I wish more of our clergy in my community would join together in actions of praying together to demonstrate how religions can cooperate with each other and set an example to their followers for how we here in America can find common ground on issues that impact us all.

Is America a Christian Nation?

Is America a Christian Nation?

We are living in a time when many Americans believe America is a Christian nation and it is incumbent upon Americans to preserve it that way. We will soon start to welcome the winter solstice which means that Christmas is coming. The debates will commence about putting up the crèche or the even the Menorah on public property.

But what is really problematic is the ever-present fear of the diversity of peoples who are not Christian and entering into America. The problem I see is not that America is a fervently religious nation. That is one of the great strengths of our nation.  I come from Maryland which calls itself “The Free State,” because it was the first state to allow Catholics to worship freely. Religious tolerance in Maryland is an indicator that we have a long history of struggle to make America accessible to all religious groups.

The real challenge is whether progressive minded people and charismatic Christians and even Fundamentalists can speak to each other furthering mutual understanding? Sure we are going to disagree on social issues. Yet, is it not incumbent upon us to open up channels of communications? Living in the south as I do and even if Hilton Head is an island of northern culture, I see that there is good will and peaceful relations. The problem I think about is whether there are peaceful relations because there are no relations or dialogue?

I do not believe we should live cautiously or in fear of the Christian world. Wherever we live in America this is the one country where religious pluralism is embedded in the soil of the culture. My biggest fear is that religious groups take down the stones of the wall separating church and state one block at a time.

The fact that the Oklahoma State house enacted an anti Sharia law is an example of how the fear of what people do not even know anything about can create hysteria. If you asked citizens, for example, in Oklahoma to define the word Sharia or give an example of this law could they do so? Probably not.

The old lesson about preaching hatred and intolerance is part and parcel of fostering a culture of ignorance. The less people know about another religion the better the chances are they will hate that religion. This is the reason why people of faith who see the dangers of religious intolerance need to get out in front and why every American should be turning a deaf ear to religious triumphalism no matter where it comes from in the society at large.

America is a nation where the majority of citizens are from one of many branches of Christianity. That does not make America a Christian nation. The Constitution is a Godless constitution even if God may have inspired the founding fathers to create the Constitution. But in this constitution God took a neutral position on the subject of religion. That is the way it should stay.