Dear Friends,
Today is obviously Halloween—a pagan holiday that focuses on spirits and superstitions. Halloween has never been a Jewish observance, and it is worth noting that the early Reform rabbis, products of the Enlightenment, wanted nothing to do with spirits and superstition. They were rationalists and sought to build a Judaism grounded in reason and ethics, not myth or magic. To achieve this they worked hard to remove anything that felt non-rational from our canon of tradition.
And yet, for all their efforts, Judaism is filled with superstitions—some charming, some strange, and some deeply revealing about who we were, who we are and what we fear. Tonight at Shabbat services, we will explore a few of them. But before we do, I would like to share one of the most powerful and enduring Jewish superstitions of all: the legend of the Golem.
The story goes that in 16th-century Prague, when Jews lived in fear and had little power to defend themselves, Rabbi Judah Loew created a being out of clay and brought it to life by inscribing the Hebrew word emet—“truth”—upon its forehead. This creature, the Golem, was said to rise up and protect the Jewish community from its enemies. It was strong, tireless, and loyal—a supernatural defender for a powerless people.
(It’s worth noting that the end of the story wasn’t so positive, as the Golem became uncontrollable and had to be returned to dust. The story tells us this was accomplished by removing the aleph at the beginning of the word emet and turning “truth” into met – “death.”)
It’s easy to see why this story endured. At a time when our ancestors had no army and no influence and were surrounded by growing hatred, the Golem represented hope—the dream that something, someone, might rise up to protect them.
But today, our situation is quite different. We have power and influence—of different kinds here in America and in Israel—but power and influence nonetheless. We don’t need to wait for a mystical creature to save us, and we don’t need to rely on legends or even prayer alone. The time for waiting has passed. We have the ability, and therefore the responsibility, to act—to defend, to lead, to build, and to make real in our world the protection our ancestors could only imagine.
In other words: the Golem isn’t coming. We are the Golem now.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Daniel Cohen
Dvar Acher – Another Subject
In recent weeks, a Rabbinic letter regarding the current mayoral race in New York has further divided our community. Rabbis who chose to sign the letter have received scathing letters and emails from those who disagree with its content. Rabbis who chose not to sign the letter have received similarly harsh email and letters as well as assumptions that, by not signing, they do not support the Jewish community or Israel. My colleagues and I have received such letters; our community is sadly not immune to this polarization.
I think this article by my colleague Shira Koch Epstein powerfully captures and addresses the needless division such binary thinking creates.
I invite and encourage you to read it.