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April 28, 2009
In one of our ancient texts, Pesikta Rabbati, the rabbis share a midrash to help us understand the important relationship between the Jewish people and the Sabbath. The text reads:
When the Sabbath complained, “All the days of the week are paired; I alone am an odd number, without a mate,” the Holy One replied, “The congregation of Israel is your mate.”
Earlier this year, I sat in a room with about 100 leaders of our Jewish community. We were all engaged in round-table discussions about the Jewish community of Middlesex County. In attendance were old-timers, newcomers, longtime leaders, and more recent leaders. Everyone in attendance was both pleased and honored to join in the conversation, share ideas in an open and respectful way, and dream about our future.
Among the many subjects discussed were education for our children, care for the elderly, and venues and programs where Jews meet and greet one another. The discussions were lively and intriguing.
At a certain point in the day, our facilitator asked us to dream about our community and consider this question: “In five years, when someone is asking about this community, what do you want them to say?”
I’ve thought a lot about that question. After all, we are not a brand-new, developing community. Jews have been living in Middlesex County for 150 years; we have many synagogues, day schools, and other Jewish institutions and organizations. The Jews have played and continue to play a significant role in every aspect of life in our county — schools, politics, medicine, business, higher education, cultural life, and so much more.
So what would I want people to say about us?
The answer was immediate and clear: I would like people to say that in Middlesex County Jews celebrate Shabbat.
That’s right: Do Shabbos! Imagine what it would mean if the vast majority of Jews (some 50,000 strong) observed Shabbat!
Celebrating Shabbat is about creating an island in time where parents and children can recognize how precious they are to one another.
Observing Shabbat is about being liberated from the slavery of the clock, the media, the fast pace, and demands on our time.
Practicing Shabbat is engaging in Torah for the sake of a higher calling; it is recognizing the importance of community, singing and reciting the ancient words and melodies that spiritually lift us to a higher place in our existence.
As soon as I mentioned my dream at our meeting, I was questioned: “Does that mean everyone has to be in synagogue? What if you don’t believe? Why do you want to force people to do things?”
While I appreciated the responses, I was also disappointed by them. Observing Shabbat is not about having to be anywhere; doing Shabbat is about choosing to be somewhere, choosing to see the sacred in a world that has become so mundane and terrifying.
Nor am I prescribing any one single form of Shabbat observance. Our community is too diverse and has so much creativity and vitality when it comes to ways of keeping and observing the Sabbath.
My dream is of a county where Jews sit around the Shabbat table, eating and singing but also engaged in discussions about everything that is important to Jews: Israel, children, the economy, caring for the aged, day schools, afternoon schools, the sacred, and so much more.
I dream of a centerfold in each issue of New Jersey Jewish News that carries a banner that reads, “Celebrate Shabbat in Middlesex County!” On the two pages would be listed all the wonderful moments of Shabbat observance taking place in our community — not only the names of synagogues and times for prayer, but all the opportunities for Torah learning, the scholars who will be visiting this Shabbat, and the kinds of Shabbat experiences that are available for our children, for parents, for everyone. And on these pages would be an invitation for anyone who wants or needs a place to join with other Jews for Shabbat dinner, for se’udat shlishit, for Havdala.
If we are serious about strategic planning, let’s plan based on our authenticity as Jews, the people who received the Torah at Sinai and were told to “Keep and observe the Sabbath.” All the rest will come.
If we Jews are serious about our future, let’s begin with Shabbat. All the rest will follow. All the rest really is detail. The great philosopher Ahad Ha’am said it best: “More than Israel has kept the Sabbath, the Sabbath has kept Israel.”
Let’s begin to dream together about that moment when they will say of us, “The Jews of Middlesex County are quite extraordinary. Every Shabbat they gather in synagogues, in homes, in Jewish community centers — large groups, small groups, families, friends — all gather and welcome the Shechina, the Divine Presence, into their midst.
“It is a most unusual community. On Shabbat, no one is alone, no one is abandoned, and everyone is cared for in one way or another. And these Jews of Middlesex County do all of this with a sense of joy and richness of spirit. They love welcoming the Sabbath, they love learning Torah, and they love building a community worthy of the Divine.”
Rabbi Bennett F. Miller serves as senior religious leader of Anshe Emeth Memorial Temple in New Brunswick.
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