The strength of community - in halacha

When I was in Los Angeles, back at the great community of Em Habanim congregation, it really dawned on me how important a community is. During those tough days, when I kept making phone calls and visits to donors to no avail, the thing that kept me strong was the community. And then I had an insight. When our great sages originally determined the times of prayer, they set them to be at dawn and dusk. Those two occasions are times of uncertainty, times of shadows and fears. They correspond to times in our lives when we are surrounded by uncertainty and are trepid of being overwhelmed with life. At those times, the sages told us we must cling to a community, a Minyan of our peers, to know that we are not alone in facing our fears. In fact, even when a person prays on their own, they should have in mind a connection to a minyan that takes place at the same time. This is to instill in us the knowledge that even though we may be alone, physically, we are always connected to our community in spirit. (same is true for Shiva, but that's for another post) Although we may have an instinct to become a virtual recluse and run away from everyone when facing challenging times, the wisdom of our fathers tell us we must seek company, supportive company. I see with my students, how unsure they are sometimes about opening up to others. I also see how, if they are able to overcome this initial instinct, the social interaction and bonding does wonders for their self esteem and functional abilities.

Back in Israel

My trip to the states taught me a lot. First, after telling people about our institute so many times, and getting a lot of feed back, I grew even more confident in our way. I saw that the need for a new vision is great, and that the job we do is truly amazing. Second, I saw how much the Jewish people care for each other. I met with dozens of people, who were very encouraging of our job. Even though not all could participate financially in the undertaking, all wanted to encourage us and felt good about the project. Actually, when I came back I told my students we must pray for those Jews in America who work so hard to pay for kosher food and a Jewish education. I told my students we should pray Hashem will give them strength and emunah that things are going to be better. Third, I learned about the strength of community. More on that in the next post.

My Em Habanim family

Yesterday I recieved an e-mail from my good friend Sidney Chriqui of Em Habanim in California.
It gave me another chance to reflect on how many people influenced my life to this point. Sidney, a wise man a few decades my senior, is one of those special people that showed me how it is never too late to make a change and an improvement in your life. I will not share the details now on how he went up to read the Torah a quite a few years after his 13th birthday, but I have to say that it taught me a lesson on how much you can achieve if you set your mind to it, no matter what people may think possible. It is one of the experiences that inspired me to believe in people and pushed me to open this Beit Midrash. Thank you Sidney.