Ten of us from Temple Beth El journeyed to San Diego to connect with 4775 Reform Jews, to learn from best practices, to be enlightened by great scholars, to be inspired by the latest Jewish music and expressions of Jewish spirituality, and to be guided by the vision presented. Audacious hospitality and broad engagement were two central themes of last week’s Union for Reform Judiasm’s Biennial.
Audacious hospitality. In Rabbi Jacob’s keynote address and vision for our movement, he called for the tents of our congregations to be open, inclusive, and welcoming. Like Abraham and Sarah, we need to run out and greet those are seeking community whether it’s the intermarried, the GLBTQ community, those with disabilities, those who are walking through our doors for the very first time, or those who are not Jewish but spiritual seekers who might find and make their home within our midst and join our people.
Meaningful Engagement. Rabbi Jacobs, through his address, and the entire biennial, through its programming, laid out a vision for broad engagement.
We need to engage our youth. At present, youth engagement is a primary and critical goal of our national movement. At Beth El, we have more than one hundred madrichim (teenage assistants) in our Religious School and more than fifty madrichim in our Bnei Mitzvah program. We need continually invest in our youth with time, talent and resources so that our congregation is an exciting place where our kids love to be.
We need to engage our young adults. In his address, Rabbi Jacobs lifted up the work that Cantor Thomas is leading with The Porch, our Beth El program for your families and young adults. He noted that The Porch is creating “programs in three distinct spheres: events geared toward kids; events geared toward adults; and hybrids with everyone together. Friendships are formed, families and individuals connect, and lives beat to the rhythm of Jewish time. And yes, there is a new doorway in for dozens of future members who are forming bonds that will pay spiritual dividends for all. As the ancient rabbis taught, “What is learned in early childhood is absorbed in the blood.” (Avot de Rabbi Natan 24)”
We need to engage with Israel. Rabbi Jacobs taught that from our very beginning as a people, there has been an interdependence between the Diaspora and Israel. We need to be concerned with Israel’s security, but beyond that, we need to be concerned with peace and with pluralism. Our three Beth El trips to Israel in 2013 speak to our intense commitment. Still, we need to continue to struggle with the identity of our Jewish State and explore how our homeland can be both Jewish and democratic. We need to be unafraid to share our views with those who can create change.
Finally, we need to engage with social justice and we need to use our voice to make a difference. Whether it is in the areas of responding to gun violence, immigration reform, or the environment, our Biennial revealed that our movement is working on dozens of social justice issues and is there to support us on our journey of Tikkun Olam.
Our Reform Movement is moving forward in an exciting direction, and we, at Beth El are moving with it.
To read Rabbi Jacobs’ Biennial Keynote Address go to: http://urj.org/about/union/leadership/rabbijacobs/?syspage=article&item_id=109240
