Chaverim y'karim - dear friends,

 

My mind is in so many places following the horrible news of this week of six murdered Israelis who were held hostages and somehow survived the brutalities of October 7th AND eleven months of unimaginable darkness in the hands of the genocidal Islamist Hamas in Gaza.

 

The funeral for Hersh Goldberg-Polin on Monday was among the most brutal and difficult things to watch and yet the words spoken by his family and loved ones were filled with honesty, strength, resilience, and overflowing with love - giving us a reminder that not only are we a strong people but fragile and very vulnerable. And among that we have to nurture hope, which is what keeps us alive and working, fighting, breathing for another day. I encourage you to watch the funeral (link above). I know you won't understand all the Hebrew BUT - the English you certainly will ... and you must hear the words of President Isaac Herzog and Hersh's parents, Jon and Rachel. Herzog starts at 17:45 in Hebrew. Listen for the word 'slicha' as he offers forgiveness for Israel's failure to bring the captives home alive. He will switch to English at 21:55. Jon starts after Herzog. He begins in Hebrew then switches to English. Rachel is entirely in English. Following them you will hear (in Hebrew) Hersh's sisters and then friends from a group of fans for the Jerusalem basketball team, which is a mighty and dedicated crew of fans that Hersh was a part of and that gave tremendous support to the family.

 

Yesterday, I read a quote from an Israeli soldier asking us to remember them - namely, those who fight and have been fighting in Gaza.

 

Consider these words:

 

For those who are quick to say that we failed the hostages: This is a tragedy and there is no doubt in the world about that. However I wish you all took a second to think about the soldiers who for almost a year now have risked their lives, day-in- and day-out to finish this war by destroying Hamas and saving all of the hostages in the process. How desperately we've prayed and physically took bullets and RPGs and sleepless nights to try to get closer to saving them. How 700+ of us have given our lives to be inches closer to saving hostages. We have by no means failed. We are in an IMPOSSIBLY difficult situation but solders are paying with their lives and living with guilt and pain for all their lives and to just brush it off an say that "we have failed' is honestly simply unfair. Please see us. (from @samfried26)

 

There is plenty of anger at Prime Minister Netanyahu and Israelis have taken to the streets in unprecedented (even for Israel) numbers. Rabbi Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi give an important frame to what is happening in Israel this week in their most recent podcast, "Israel at War: The Six Hostages."

 

We have to remember the toll to Israeli society is enormous - and most assuredly to the soldiers and their families, none of whom wanted this war. But they fight because our enemy is interested in the death of Jews and the termination of the State of Israel. And the enemy will eliminate anyone who is supportive or "in the way" of their efforts, which is why Druze, Bedouin, Nepalese, Thai, Russian, French, American, Israeli or foreign nationals have all been murdered and/or held hostage by Hamas.

 

As I heard Rahm Emanuel say recently on a podcast with Dan Senor, "I'm a hawk on security and a dove on peace." I agree with that line entirely. While I am no military strategist and I have no advice on the best ideas to restore quiet to the region let alone return the hostages ... I know that Israel has to have defensible borders with secure citizens and that Palestinians have to find a way to live without teaching and living in ways that seek the end of Israel and rather find a way to promote developing their own life. That was the goal of the 2005 Disengagement from Gaza. When Israel pulled out of Gaza and in 2006 when Hamas was elected by their citizenry, it was for the Palestinians to live into the very intention of self-determination. Sadly, it meant building an infrastructure of terror to destroy Israel.

 

Alas - in this moment, as we enter the month of Elul, it is for us to imagine what could be. We close off this year with a month that demands introspection. The rabbis of old framed the discussion about the destruction of the Second Temple around how we, as Jews, acted in ways that led to the churban (destruction). What did we do wrong? Where did we err? Where was our baseless hatred that caused the Holy Temple to fall? Rome destroyed the Temple of that we are quite clear. The rabbis are not interested in history in that moment. They are interested in the spiritual reality among Jews in that moment - to take a piece of Rabbi Alan Lew's teaching in This is real and you are completely unprepared.

 

Elul demands we frame this moment in looking inwardly and finding our strength to rise in the new year and be reborn because on Rosh HaShanah, we will proclaim - Today the world was born - it is a moment filled with possibility.

 

That is still a month away. Please God, we will stand together to celebrate and to honor that sacred day of assembly. This month preceding though calls us in - to reflect and demand from ourselves and each other: honesty, humility, repentance.

 

Chodesh tov, wishing you a good month,

 

Rabbi Mark Cohn, 4 September 2024

 

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A few books to consider in preparing for the holidays:

 

Bridge to Forgiveness (Karyn Kedar) 

60 Days: A Spiritual Guide to the High Holy Days (Simon Jacobson)

Return: Daily Inspirations for the Days of Awe (Erica Brown)

Book of Mercy (Leonard Cohen) 

Man’s Search for Meaning (Victor Frankl)