Building a Better World through Hard Work

It was Friday evening, when I gathered together with a group of teenagers from Temple Sinai to reflect upon the end of the week.  And believe me, this wasn’t any week!  As Shabbat began, we concluded a six-day trip to Puerto Rico.  Our teens didn’t sit on the beach all week, no, they helped build a home for a poor family who lived an hour’s drive from San Juan.  That evening our teens reflected upon their work and their many accomplishments.  They couldn’t believe that they actually constructed a floor of a family’s home!  As one teen said: “I could see with my own eyes what I constructed.  This wasn’t one meal for a hungry person or one piece of clothing for someone in need, I helped build a home where a family would live for 25 or 30 years.”

Each year, Temple Sinai travels to a far off location to do Community Service work.  We’ve been down to Memphis to package food at a food pantry and learn about Civil Rights; we’ve traveled to Israel to meet with local leaders and learn about some of the challenges Israelis face.  But, there was something special about our experience in Puerto Rico.  We teach our kids about the importance of Tikkun Olam, of the significance in our Jewish tradition to repair the world.  Yes, there are many ways to repair the world from serving meals, to delivering clothing, to advocacy work, but there is something so significant about using the power of our hands to build and create.  Our teens were awed by the power they possessed to inspire those that surrounded them.

As a rabbi, I want our teens to recognize the many gifts and possessions they possess.  Most of our teens are well off and have everything they need to survive or more importantly thrive.  I want to our teens to recognize these gifts and blessings that are a part of their lives.  But even more so, I want them to comprehend their Jewish commitment and obligation to share these gifts with those around the world who need their help and support.  We use not only our hands, but also our spirit and our hearts to achieve a better world.  We share our money, but also our gifts of a smiling face, a friendly demeanor, and a good ear.  Our teens didn’t just work with their hands, but they also stood side-by-side with local residents to hear their stories and to learn from them.  By building this home together, they also created relationships that spanned several seas and time zones.  

This was just one moment in time, one February break away from home, but I know that Rabbi Michael White, Alison Stamm, and their many parents and teachers hope that our teens will remember that building and creating a better world is our Jewish obligation that lasts an entire lifetime. 

A Place to Call Our Own

It was a sunny, yet cool afternoon as we approached the holiest site in Jewish tradition, myself and 32 teenagers, many there for the first time.  They slowly inched towards the Kotel, the Western Wall, taking in its beauty and stature.  They reached out their hands to lovingly touch its rough stones.  They took words penned at home, filled with their deepest hopes and dreams and stuck these notes deep into the wall’s ancient cracks and crevices.  

Fifteen minutes later, we gathered in a circle just outside the perimeter of the Kotel’s gates.  I turned towards these teens, students from Temple Sinai who had travelled with me across the world, and I asked them:  “What did you feel?”  One of the boys answered right away, “It felt like home!”  I nodded in agreement.   But, a group of girls looked at me horrified!  “What’s the matter” I asked them?! “We couldn’t be ourselves.  We had to cover our shoulders, we had to keep quiet, and we couldn’t stand next to our friends who were boys!”  

At Judaism’s most holy site, some feel at home and at peace, while others feel as if they’ve entered an Ultra-Orthodox Synagogue.  Just like our teens, I sometimes struggle to find solace and comfort in a place that feels far removed from my spiritual and progressive Jewish experience.

That is why the news last week from Israel was so dramatic and revolutionary and uplifting.  The Israeli government vowed to create a new egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall.  This new section allows men to sit next to women, while boys AND girls will be able to become B’nai Mitzvah!

This is a major win for the progressive Jewish community, yet many Reform Jews are upset by this agreement!  Why?  They believe that this compromise allows the Ultra-Orthodox status quo to continue!  In the new Egalitarian prayer space, we can pray however we wish.  But under this compromise, nothing changes in the old sections.  In the women’s section, women will still not be allowed to chant from the Torah, prayer openly in a group, or wear prayer shawls.  Those who are upset with this agreement believe we are giving up our ability to transform the Kotel!  Still others say that Robinson’s Arch where the new prayer space will be located is not the preferable location.  It is to the south of the traditional Western Wall area and removed from the other sections.  Are we selling out?  Should we keep fighting and resist this capitulation?  NO!  This isn’t capitulation, this is progress!

This week’s Torah portion provides us with a great illustration about Holy Space!  Parashat Terumah describes the building of the Tabernacle, the precursor to the Holy Temple!  God tells the people: “Build me a Sanctuary, so that I may dwell amongst them!”  Our portion delves deep into the minutia and describes exactly how each piece of the Tabernacle should be created.  One item that gets a lot of “play time” is the description around the Ark of the Covenant.  This is the place where The Actual and Original 10 commandments were safely held.  Two long poles were to be attached to either side of the Ark.  The Levites would stand beneath these poles and carry the Ark on their shoulder from place to place through the wilderness.  Think Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark!  However, the Torah informs us that the poles should never be removed.  That makes no sense… for years the Ark stayed put in one location, why not remove the poles when they surely got in the way?  When the people were about to travel through the desert, you could easily put the poles back into place and off you’d go.

That would make sense, but that is not what the Torah says!  The rabbis teach us that the poles were required to stay attached in case the people needed to leave quickly.  The Ark was the most precious religious item of their day.  Inside was the Torah, the foundation of our religion.  We needed easy access to move the Torah quickly in case of attack, to set up a new place of worship.

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch teaches that the Torah is not parochial.  We, Jews, do not need to be in a specific place to learn and to study Torah.  The Torah could be found anywhere and the poles remind us that the Torah could easily be moved to any place where we are living or where we are gathered.

What does this have to do with the Kotel?  Well, I will tell you!  The new egalitarian prayer space might not seem everything we dreamed of and it might be 100 feet outside the picture of most postcards of Jerusalem.  But, that 100 feet doesn’t matter!  The poles of the Ark remind us that we define holy space wherever we choose.  If we call this new egalitarian prayer space holy, it will become our Holy and Sacred Place.

These poles were never removed, reminding us that our journey is never complete.  We are constantly traveling from place to place never satisfied and never completely settled.  This new agreement is truly a victory!  We now have a place to call our own, but our journey is far from over.  We will keep our fight alive making sure that all Jews, no matter if they are Reform, or Conservative, or Orthodox, feel at home, and at peace at the Kotel.  We will continue to build a sanctuary where God can dwell amongst ALL OF US.