Rabbi's Message

Shavuot is considered one of the most joyous days of the Jewish calendar as we celebrate matan Torah, the gift of the Torah.  However, the seven-week period of the Omer, which concludes this Sunday evening with the beginning of Shavuot, is considered a more somber time.  The solemn tone of these days is perhaps connected to the anticipation and trepidation our ancestors felt as they prepared and waited for the revelation at Sinai.  It is also connected to the Omer being a time of loss when we traditionally mourn the passing of Rabbi Akiva’s students. 

Zooming out, how do we find ourselves today?  Is this a period of grief or something else for the Jewish people?  We are certainly living through a challenging time for Israel and for the Jewish people.  Antisemitism is on the rise and Israel faces existential threats of a greater magnitude than we have seen in a very long time.  However, in years to come, when we look back at this time, I hope we will also remember that this was a time of renewed Jewish unity (ahdut).

In the immediate days and months following October 7, 2023, we witnessed a tremendous surge in Jewish communal participation, a swelling of Jewish unity and pride.  Now, more than 600 days since October 7th, the sense of unity feels like it is being tried.  The left and the right are moving farther apart.  In too many segments of the Jewish community, Israel divides rather than connects.  Now is a time when we must double down on Jewish unity.  And there is perhaps no better time than Shavuot, the holiday in which we celebrate receiving the Torah on Mount Sinai.  Our tradition teaches that when Torah was given, all Jews were standing at Sinai. Past, present, and future.  Ahdut.  Everyone together. Revelation was so important that even Jews who did not yet exist were said to have witnessed it directly.  

Shavuot reminds us of the importance of Jewish unity, the blessing of community, and the centrality of Torah in our lives.  That is what makes it a day of joy.  Our joy is heightened as we witness Jewish unity and continuity in action as we celebrate our 10th-grade Confirmation students who will lead the service and be confirmed at our congregational Shavuot service on Monday.  Our joy is heightened as we celebrate our very own, Alicia Rothamel, being ordained as a rabbi.  I hope you will join us this Sunday evening for our Tikkun Leyl Shavuot, as we learn from and honor Rabbi Rothamel. And then join us again on Monday morning as we celebrate our Confirmation students.  Our joy is heightened when we join together as a community centered on Torah and say, 'Am Yisrael Hai!'

Shabbat Shalom and Hag Sameah.