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The Board of Rabbis of Southern California brings together more than 320 rabbis representing the Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Reform and transdenominational streams of Jewish life. The Board promotes and enriches Jewish learning and living through programming and leadership in the areas of Community Learning, Professional Growth, Interreligious Action, Social Justice, Healing & Spirituality, Media Relations and Israel Advocacy.   A Short History of the Board of Rabbis, founded in 1937. |
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A Rosh Hashanah Message
Finding Our Way Rabbi Mark S. Diamond Executive Vice President Board of Rabbis of Southern California Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles "The Jewish holidays are really early this year." I have heard this phrase often during the past month. My standard reply is, "Labor Day seems really late this year!" Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur do fall early on the Gregorian calendar. The Jewish holidays seem "early" when we celebrate Rosh Hashanah at the beginning of September, Yom Kippur in the middle of the month, and the entire Sukkot holiday before the month is over. On the Jewish calendar these holy days fall precisely in their appointed times -- Rosh Hashanah on the first and second days of the month of Tishrei; Yom Kippur on the tenth of Tishrei, and Sukkot beginning on the fifteenth day of Tishrei. Commenting on this phenomenon, my friend Rabbi Stephen Listfield notes: "Someone remarked to me with much amusement how they grew up with the notion that the High Holidays were either early or late, but never on time. Amusement aside, there is much to be learned from our characteristic way of expressing ourselves vis-à-vis the holidays. For the truth is, the question is not whether the holidays are ready for us; the question is, are we ready for the holidays?" Are we ready for the holidays? We busy ourselves with extensive arrangements for the New Year. They may include finalizing travel plans to spend the holidays with family and friends, securing tickets and reserved seats for synagogue services, planning and preparing festive meals at home. All these -- and much more -- add to the joy and meaning of this unique holiday season. Are we spiritually ready for the holidays? The Days of Awe invite us to focus on our personal and interpersonal well-being as we mark the close of one year and the onset of a new one. How do we heal broken relationships marked by hurt, anger and ill will? Healing begins with the recognition that our words and deeds matter. What we say and do matter to family and friends, employees and employers, teachers and students, neighbors and associates. Rosh Hashanah is a precious opportunity to stand still, look inward and outward, and begin to reorder our lives. Change is not easy. It is difficult for us to change our ways as individuals. It is even more difficult to change our ways as a community. Forming and reforming visions, setting and resetting priorities, allocating and reallocating scarce resources, learning and relearning what it means to have civil discourse -- these are daunting tasks. The process of individual and collective teshuvah ("turning") is complex and challenging, but it is within our reach. We are fortunate to have traditions to guide us on the path of teshuvah. We are blessed with families, friends, and colleagues to support us along the way. We derive strength and comfort in a community of fellow seekers and sojourners. One of my favorite Hasidic tales is attributed to the great master Rabbi Hayim of Zans. He told the following parable: A man had been wandering about in a forest for several days, unable to find the way out. Finally, he saw someone approaching him in the distance. His heart was filled with joy. "Now I shall surely find out which is the right way out of this forest," he thought to himself. When they neared each other, he asked the stranger: "Brother, will you please tell me the way out of the forest? I have been wandering about here for several days and I am unable to find my way out." Said the second man to the first: "Brother, I do not know the way out either, for I too have been wandering about here for many days. But this much I can tell you. Do not go the way I have gone, for I know that it is not the way. Now come, let us search for the way out together." Rabbi Hayim of Zans added: "So it is with us. The one thing that each of us knows is that the way we have been going until now is not the way. Now come, let us look for the way together." This parable captures the essence of teshuvah. As we usher in a New Year, may we join hands, hearts and minds as one community and look for the way together. |
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