11.24.16 Enrich, Sustain, Elevate and Enable

SAVE THE DATES (DETAILS COMING SOON):

December 17th - 4:00-6:00pm, "Latkes, Lights and Love" 

A pre Chanukah celebration with All Angles' Church. 

January 26th - Beineinu, Syria Fund and S'Cool invite you to a night of music and culture. 

Raise money to bring music to Syrian Refugees.

•  מוֹדֶה (מוֹדָה) אֲנִי לְפָנֶֽיךָ מֶֽלֶךְ חַי וְקַיָּים. שֶׁהֶֽחֱזַֽרְתָּ בִּי נִשְׁמָתִי בְחֶמְלָה. רַבָּה אֱמֽוּנָתֶֽך
• Modeh(m)/Modah(f) ani lifanecha melech chai v'kayam shehecḥezarta bi nishmahti b'cḥemlah, rabah emunatecha.

• I am thankful/grateful before you, living and eternal King, for You have restored my soul within me with compassion; Your faithfulness [in me and all humanity] is great.

Every morning we have the opportunity/responsibility/privilege (depending on your personal view) to recite this prayer.  It is the first thing some people choose to do -  before brushing their teeth, taking a shower or even saying "good morning".  For me, it is the truest symbol of Thanksgiving.  My soul is the essence of my being.  Without it, I am only skin and bone and brain.  My soul provides life energy to all of me so I can be fully me.

I do not have a practice of reciting this prayer each morning (but maybe I should).  Most of the time, I take my soul for granted (along with the rest of my being).  Most mornings I am running around from the second I wake up.  My mind is racing, my body is rushing and I am in a constant frenzy to get everything done so I can head out for my day.

But, tomorrow (and this weekend) are different.  Thanksgiving is THE TIME when I stop to be mindful of all that I have and all that I am.  It is the moment in the year for acknowledging the bounty in my life - the people and the "things" that enrich, sustain, elevate and enable me to be fully me.  This gratitude (should) in turn compel me to GIVE my self and my soul to others in order to enrich, sustain, elevate and enable others to be fully them.  

How funny, that this practice is embedded in Judaism every single morning.  Not only can I/should I embrace gratitude as a way of starting my day but the end of the prayer is a reminder that God has full faith in me and you and him and her and them.  God, THE ONE who is greater than all humanity combined, has abundant faith in all humanity to use their soul to the fullest potential.  God has faith in all humanity to enrich, sustain, elevate and enable each other to be fully ourselves.

As we move through Thanksgiving and Shabbat, I am going to mark each morning by reciting "Modah Ani".  I invite you to join me.  Let's see if articulating gratitude for God's faith in us can impact how we enage our soul.  Let's see if we are able to bring the prayer to fruition - taking the faith God has in all of humanity and enrich, sustain, elevate and enable each other to be fully ourselves.

I am grateful to be part of this growing community with all of you.  Beinein - Between Us we are creating meaning.

Blessings, friendship and hugs - 

Laurie

11.18.16 Leonard Cohen (May his name be forever a blessing and his words forever a teaching.)

This week we read Parashat Va'yeira, the chilling story of God asking/commanding Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.  We read this on Yom Kippur as well.  "Thank you," Daniel Cammerman for sending me this powerful teaching from Rabbi Jonathan Sacks.  His teaching of "Va'yeira", through the compelling words of Leonard Cohen's, "You Want it Darker", provides meaning, relevance and even hope in a time when many are experiencing deep sadness and despair.  Wherever we stand politically, wherever our views diverge, wherever we experience a disconnect, we must, like Abraham as he made his way to the mountain, ready to sacrifice Isaac, "lift our eyes" towards justice.  Like Abraham, we must be ready to say "Hineinu"(here I am ready act).  It is a time for raising up one another through love and care, kindness and respect. 

It's worth every second of the 10 minute audio.  When you are done, take some time to listen to "You Want it Darker", by Leonard Cohen.  The entire album is tremendous.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1280970831954069&id=173906312660532

As we move into Shabbat, let us be extra mindful of how we lean into love and kindness. Where do we need to push ourselves harder? 

Looking forward to celebrating Shabbat together (details below).

Shabbat shalom u'mevorach,

Laurie

11.11.16 Mirror, mirror

Are you coming on Nov 18th to "Ants In Your Pants" or Shabb at Beineinu on Nov 18th?  All the cook kids are planning to attend.  Don't miss out.  RSVP today.

After you get busy with some words of Torah, get busy with some volunteering.  Nov 20th - make the commitment to deliver meals to seniors.  Meaningful and enjoyable for everyone!  

Details for both below.

This week we read "Lech Lecha" about Avram (he isn't Abraham yet) being tapped by God to "go to the place that I will show you."  If Avram agrees, God will make him a great nation, bless all who bless him and curse all who curse him."  Who could resist?  Not Avram.  He takes his wife Sarai (not Sarah yet), his nephyew Lot, and all of his property, including the "souls he acquired" (that's a nice way of saying servants/slaves) and sets out on his journey.  And it's quite a journey.  Here is some of what happens;
-Afraid for his life, because King takes interest in Sarai, Avram asks her to lie and say she is his sister (twice)
-Avram and Lot split their property and go their separate ways.
-Their maidservant Hagar (lit. "the one who lives" or "the stranger"), gives birth to a son, Ishmael.  Sarai cannot handle this and demands that Avram sends Hagar and the baby away (twice).
-God changes their names to AvraHam and SaraH (the "H" from God's name "Hashem" - lit. means "The Name")reaffirming the covenant. 

It's a really rich portion and I highly recommend reading it all the way through.  
http://www.chabad.org/parshah/torahreading.asp?aid=2474599&jewish=Lech-Lecha-Torah-Reading.htm&p=complete

I want to focus on the name of the porstion, "Lech-Lecha".  God tells Avram to "Lech/go, to the place that I will show you."  That takes care of the "lech" but what about the "lecha"?  This is curious. It means "TO you".  How can Abraham "Go to you."?  What does this mean?

The Torah is the story of God establishing a never ending relationship with humanity.  It's the story of the creation of monotheism.  It's a story of building faith.  It's a lot to take in. God appreciates this and provides a physical location and some really awesome promises in an effort to (possibly) have it all makes more sense.  God doesn't name the place, just says "lech/go to the place that I will show you."  

Perhaps the "you", "lecha" is about going inside - back into the self in order to arrive at a connection with God.  It's about turning inward to see the real self.  Only when we see our truest self can we enage with something  Divine.

The results of the election are a "Lech Lecha" message.  A message for us to turn inward and take a good and honest look at ourselves and our country.  America has said something very powerful and scary with the results of this election.  America, "the land of the free and the home of the brave," is filled with people who do not believe in equality for all.  America, where everyone is guaranteed "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" is acutally filled with people who do not believe that everyone has the right to equal rights.  There is racism, sexism, homophobia, zenophobia, agism, classism and hatred.

This portion challenges us to reflect on the (intentional and unintentional) role we play in contributing to the inequities.  When we can engage our insecurities, fears and discomfort honestly, we can move through them, maybe even past them.  And then, we can do the work necessary to really make the words of our Jewish and Amercia sacred texts a reality.

Mekor Ha'Chayiim, Source of Life, as we move into another Shabbat, another opportunity to step away from our busy lives and into the wide open space of relfection, may we have the courage to face our own "isms".  

In blessing and friendship,
Laurie

11.4.16 VOTE

This week we explore the story of Noah and the famous Ark.  A brief recap;

The Torah tells us.  Noah was a "righteous man in his generation".  He "walked with God".  There was a lot of really bad stuff happening - a lot of EVIL and WICKED behavior.  God just couldn't take it anymore and decided to bring a flood and destroy the whole world (except for Noah and his family and pairs of every animal).

Noah built the Ark according to God's instructions and loaded up his family and all of the animals.  The flood came and it rained (like sheets of paper coming down) for 40 nights and 40 days.  The water retreated and Noah and the animals left the Ark.

In the end, God declares that this is the last time the world will be destroyed (by God). The rainbow becomes the sign of the covenant between God and humanity.

Somtimes, it feels as if we are experiencing a flood in regards to the issues our city, country and world are facing. Poverty, homelessness, violence, poor education, war, global warming, the list seems endless and overwhelming.  Big things are happening and there will continue to be huge consequences and tremendous impact on our city, our country and our world.  

What are we willing to do?  What are we willing to say?  What are we willing to share?  What are we willing to give up?

Can we be like Noah, "righteous in our generation"?  

Can we be like Noah and "walk with God"?

This Tuesday, by voting, we are fulfilling a mitzvah (a responsibility, obligation and privilege).  Voting is one way to voice our ideas and thoughts about how issues should be handled and contribute to determining various outcomes.  

This Tuesday, may we be guided by the morals and ethics of our heart and our tradition.  May we be mindful that we are part of the issues that our city, our country and our world continue to face. We may not be able to solve the problems but we are not permitted to remove ourselves from the process of change.

As we move into Shabbat, may we take some time to honor our freedom and all of our privilege.  May we use this freedom and privilege to help address the challenges ahead.

Shabbat shalom u'mevorach,
Laurie

A Meditation on Voting (from T'ruah)

May it be Your will, at this season of our election, to guide us towards peace. By voting, we commit to being full members of society, to accepting our individual responsibility for the good of the whole. May we place over ourselves officials in all our gates…who will judge the people with righteousness (Deut 16:18), and may we all merit to be counted among those who work faithfully for the public good. Open our eyes to see the image of God in all candidates and elected officials, and may they see the image of God in all citizens of the earth. Grant us the courage to fulfill the mitzvah of loving our neighbors as ourselves, and place in our hearts the wisdom to understand those who do not share our views. As we pray on the High Holidays, “May we become a united society, fulfilling the divine purpose with a whole heart.” And as the Psalmist sang, “May there be shalom within your walls, peace in your strongholds. For the sake of my brothers and sisters and friends, I will speak peace to you.” (Ps. 122:7-8)

יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶיךָ, בָּעֵת הַזֹּאת זְמַן בְּחִירוֹתֵינוּ, שֶׁתָּדְרִיכֵנוּ לְשָׁלוֹם. בְּהַצְבָּעָתֵנוּ, אָנוּ מִתְחַיְּבִים לֶהֱיוֹתֵנוּ בְּנֵי הָאֲגוּדָּה, לְקַבָּלַת עוֹל אַחֲרָיוּתֵנוּ לְטוֹבַת הַצִּיבּוּר. שׁוֹפְטִים וְשׁוֹטְרִים נִתֵן לָנוּ בְּכָל שְׁעָרֵינוּ... וְשָׁפְטוּ אֶת הָעָם מִשְׁפָּט צֵדֶק, וְנִזְכֶּה לְהִמָּנוֹת בְּתוֹךְ "כָּל מֵי שֶׁעוֹסְקִים בְּצָרְכֵי צִיבּוּר בֶּאֱמוּנָה." פְּקַח עֵינֵינוּ לִרְאוֹת כָּל מָעֳמָד וְמָעֳמָד וְכָל שַׂר וְיוֹעֶצֶת כִּי הֵם נִבְרְאוּ בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים, וּפְקַח עֵינֵיהֶם שֶׁיַּרְאוּ שֶׁכָּל יוֹשְׁבַי תֵּבֵל נִבְרְאוּ גַּם הֵם בַּצֶּלֶם. אָמֵץ אֶת לְבָבֵינוּ לִשְׁמוֹר מִצְוַת "וְאָהַבְתָּ לְרֵעֲךָ כָּמוֹךָ", וְתֵן בּלִבֵּינוּ לְהָבִין אֶת אֵלּוּ הַחוֹלְקִים עָלִינוּ. כַּכָּתוּב בִּתְפִילַּת יוֹם הַזִּכָּרוֹן, "וְיַעֲשׂוּ כּוּלָּם אֲגוּדָּה אַחַת לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹנְךָ בְּלֵבָב שָׁלֵם," וְכָּכָּתוב עַל יְדֵי דָּוִד עַבְדְּךָ, "יְהִי שָׁלוֹם בְּחֵילֵךְ, שַׁלְוָה בְּאַרְמְנוֹתָיִךְ. לְמַעַן אַחַי וְרֵעָי אֲדַבְּרָה נָּא שָׁלוֹם בָּךְ."