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Friends, This past week has been a whirlwind of goodbyes to Rabbi Cohen and Raina, exciting meetings with staff and volunteer leadership as we plan for the year ahead, and of course, the start of the very slow process of moving all of my cherished books and art over to my new office. It is surreal and thrilling to share this Shabbat message with you—my first as TSTI’s Senior Rabbi. Witnessing Rabbi Cohen’s commitment to these weekly emails over so many recent years (and the incredible open rate week after week!) made it clear to me that as I take on my new role, the weekly pre-Shabbat email to our community is something I want to continue. Over the coming weeks, I’ll be experimenting with different formats as I work to find the tone and content that feels right (and they won’t all be this long!). Something new is that Cantor Moses and our clergy interns will also share in writing these emails at times, to ensure that you are able to hear from all of your clergy as we all navigate this new chapter together. As we arrive at America’s semiquincentennial (what a word!) birthday, I find myself thinking about where we stand as a nation at this moment in history. I have always felt grateful to be an American, yet that identity has felt increasingly ill-fitting lately. There is much to be said about the founding ideals of our country 250 years ago—both the lofty and the loathsome—and about what currently feels like a painful retreat from the values that have long made our country great. Some of that I’ll be addressing at services tonight, drawing on what we can learn in this week’s Torah portion, parashat Pinchas, about a man whose religious zeal crosses the line from passion to extremism. I hope you’ll join us at 6pm in the Gellis-Green Chapel—and if not, keep an eye out for the video of my remarks in this Sunday’s TSTI Today email. And yet—as much as there is to lament at this moment in history, I firmly believe that there is so much goodness to be found, all around us. As a means of entering into Shabbat with a sense of hope, I thought I would share a couple of things that have inspired me of late, and are helping me keep a sense of balance when the world seems terribly askew. |
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What is giving you hope right now? Feel free to reply to this email with your own sources of inspiration—I would love to hear from you. With wishes for a peaceful Shabbat – With excitement about all that is ahead for our community – With love from my family to yours – Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Klein |