Letter from the President

       Recently I heard a radio interview with Edgar Bronfman. You probably heard of Bronfman. He made his money as the CEO of Seagram's, was head of the World Jewish Congress for many years and is a major Jewish philanthropist. Bronfman recently wrote a book, "Hope, Not Fear: A Path to Jewish Renaissance."
       Edgar Bronfman has concluded that what North American Jews need now is hope, not fear. Bronfman urges North American Jewry "to build, not fight. We need to celebrate the joy in Judaism, even as we recognize our responsibility to alleviate suffering and to help heal a broken world..." Bronfman talked about creating a big, open tent so that people can come in to study. (It's nice to note here that Agudas Achim is a member of Big Tent Judaism, a coalition of Jewish organizations who are working to create an inclusive and welcoming Jewish community.)
       I was fascinated by the conversation. I suspect that some of my fascination is because it parallels some of my experiences. I grew up in a Conservative Jewish household without having any excitement about being Jewish. In college and as an adult I was unaffiliated, until Cathie and I married and had our first child. After finding Agudas Achim, I learned (and relearned) many of the wonderful aspects of being Jewish. Today, I'm happy to have helped create a Jewish home for my children and to have given them many opportunities to be proud of their Jewish heritage. Today, my experience of Judaism is excitement, not obligation. I don't feel dragged down by the Jewish religion. Belonging to a Jewish community enriches me and my family.
       One concern in the Jewish community today is interfaith marriages. Bronfman mentioned that almost 50% of Jewish college students today have only one Jewish parent. How important will Judaism be in the lives of those young adults? There are many studies about how interfaith marriages will affect the children. One study found that when there are two Jewish parents, 75% of the children will marry Jews. When there is only one Jewish parent, only 25% will marry Jews and only 13% of the children will identify as Jews. These numbers do not bode well for the future of the Jewish people in North America.
       Bronfman had some concerns about this study, and so do I. The study doesn't identify parents who decide to have a Jewish home and raise their children Jewish. In my opinion, ritual practice at home is a more important factor than the religion of the parents. My experience again affects my opinion here. My eight-year-old son and four-year-old daughter were very Jewish identified before Cathie decided to convert in 2000. Her conversion may have affected our Jewish practice somewhat but it wouldn't have affected our decisions to light candles on Shabbat or send our kids to Jewish camp.
       This is probably the key point that I took from the broadcast. As parents, we need to show our children the joys of being Jewish in our daily lives. These moments can be as simple as having apples and honey on Rosh Hashanah, lighting candles and eating challah on Shabbat, saying a blessing before or after eating meals or kissing the Mezuzah when walking into the house.
       One of our tasks as a community is to help families create a Jewish home. I'm happy to say that many of the activities at Agudas Achim focus on the joys of being Jewish, including Shabbat B'Yachad, Dancing with the Torah on Simchat Torah, our community dinners, Torah study and Shabbat at Home, to name a few. One great example of our commitment to helping to encourage Jewish practice at home is "The Keys to Your Jewish Home." These cards were handed out to members last year and include information on some of our major holidays. The cards on Shabbat include information on candle lighting, Kiddush and grace after meals with the appropriate prayers. There are other cards with information on Sukkot, Chanukah, Purim and Shavuot. If you don't already have a copy of these cards, contact the office to get them. These cards were funded in part by the Legacy Heritage Foundation.
       I would be interested in hearing your thoughts. To learn more about Bronfman's book, go to http://www.hopenotfear.com. You can listen to the broadcast by going to http://www.onpointradio.org/shows/2008/09/hope-not-fear.
       Michael Rudnick

Rachel, Naomi and Ariel were at the first session of CAMP JRF in its new home in the Poconos. Joining them this summer were Arielle Cohen, Sarah O’Connor, Valerie Glassman, Aaron Rudnick, Avi Nerenberg and Ben Heller. Ariel Rosen also attended the second session in August. For more information about CAMP JRF or other Jewish camping opportunities, please speak to the rabbi.

JEWISH POETRY

Judah Halevi
MY HEART IS IN THE EAST

My heart is in the East and I am at the
edge of the West. Then how can I taste
what I eat, how can I enjoy it? How
can I fulfill my vows and pledges'
while Zion is in the domain of Edom,
and I am in the bonds of Arabia? It
would be easy for me to leave behind
all the good things of Spain; it would
be glorious to see the dust of the
ruined Shrine.

Yehuda Amichai
Jewish Travel: Change is God and Death Is His Prophet

Yehuda Halevi wrote, "In the East is my heart, and I dwell at the end
   of the West."
That's Jewish travel, that's the Jewish game of hearts between east
   and west,
between self and heart, to and fro, to without fro, fro without to,
fugitive and vagabond without sin. An endless journey, like the trip
Freud the Jew took, wandering between body and mind, between
mind and mind, only to die between the two.
Oh, what a world this is, where the heart is in one place and the body
in another (almost like a heart torn from a body and transplanted).
I think about people who are named for a place where they have
   never been
and will never be. Or about an artist who draws a man's face
from a photograph because the man is gone. Or about the migration
   of Jews,
who do not follow summer and winter, life and death
as birds do, but instead obey the longings of the heart. That's why
they are so dead, and why they call their God Makom, "Place."
And now that they have returned to their place, the Lord has taken up
wandering to different places, and His name will no longer be Place
but Places, Lord of the Places.
Even the resurrection of the dead is a long journey.
What remains? The suitcases on top of the closet,
that's what remains.