When we go to Israel...

I just returned from the JEA (Jewish Educators Assembly) annual conference. No, it wasn't in Israel (I wish it had been), it was in Maryland however, the topic of the conference was the study of Israel. How do we address Israel in synagogue education. One thing all educators agree on is the importance of teaching about Israel, a real Israel not a mythic land of milk and honey. And I think we at B'nai Amoona do a good job. Israel is found throughout our educational curriculum. Israel education is in the ECC, Ramot Amoona and our youth groups. B'nai Amoona supports Israel in big and small ways. On February 14th we will be showing our love for Israel through an Israel Shabbat.

I want to share a very simple idea with you. In the future, when you are speaking with your children about Israel, instead of saying “if” we go to Israel, change that to “when” we go to Israel. When could be in two years, ten years or some indeterminate time in the future but it makes the statement that Israel is a place you have already decided is worth visiting. “If” implies: if we get around to it; if it is convenient; if we want to. Whereas “When” states when we can go we will. This allows your children to grow up thinking about when they go to Israel and not wonder if they should go to Israel.

Photo was taken in 2009 when I visited Israel as part of the Leadership Institute for Congregational School Educators. I can't wait to get back there.

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." MLK

Sunday, January 18th will be Pardes’ sixth annual Tikkun Olam day. Throughout Pardes we are engaged in Tikkun Olam (making the work a better place) all year long in a multitude of ways from collecting cans door to door in Kadima, to baking cookies for fireman in the ECC, to Morah Jan’s mitzvah heroes in MKLC. We actively engage in Tikkun Olam all the time, so why do we set aside one day for Tikkun Olam day? Because when we are all come together and each of us share our small act of helping others, of righting wrongs we see in the world, we collectively make a big difference. And we do this on Martin Luther King Jr. weekend purposely to honor his memory, his struggles, and his message.

Dr. Martin Luther King is one of the most quotable figures of the 20th century. When we take the tenth graders to his memorial in Washington DC, I am always awed by the quotes on the memorial, how powerful and poignant they are almost 50 years later. One of his famous lines was, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Our job in the world is to try to repair the injustices we see, L’takin et haolam to repair the world, to make a tikkun, a repair. That is why we have a Tikkun Olam day each year. We hope you will join us; everyone is welcome, on Sunday morning, January 18th as we try to make our small corner of the world better through our actions.