A man once approached one of the great Chassidic leaders, who in turn asked him, “For what did you come here?” “To find God.” – replied the man. “Then you have come for nothing. You’re wasting your time.” “God is everywhere!!” – said the leader. “Then, tell me, master, why should I have come?? “To find yourself.” – the leader replied.
How many of us are lost in the journey of life, lost in a cloudy mind, lost in the chaos of the modern world? The coming period calls for careful reflection in all are-as of our lives. As we approach the High Holiday Season and take stock, we should be asking ourselves, who are we, where are we, what are we trying to achieve, and what kind of people do we aspire to be??
Judaism recognizes that prayer is a central, fundamen-tal and transformative ingredient of our Jewish experi-ence. Prayer is one of the pillars upon which the world stands. The hebrew word tefilla meaning prayer, comes from the reflexive “lehitpaleil,” which means to judge or to analyse oneself. Through self-evaluation we engage in a constructive and healthy activity that can re-fashion our lives. Blind obedience is not a virtue within Judaism. Our sense of loyalty to the kingship of God, is achieved when we are able to accept God as our sovereign, judge of our deeds, framer of our laws, author of our liberty, defender of our destiny, and above all object of our worship and our love.
This past year, has been a challenging year for Jewish communities at home and abroad. Murderous attacks on Jewish communities in Europe have left many feel-ing vulnerable and concerned. None of us can change the world overnight, but we can change ourselves, which, in turn, does indeed transform the world we live in. Prayer, (Tefilla) – provides us with the key to unlock-ing that potential.
In the spirit of Tefilla, we are proud to be part of the ongoing initiative launched by the Council of Christian and Jews, as we continue to recite special reflective prayers at our weekly Shabbat services, on behalf of Christians who are being persecuted in the Middle East. When Christians fear for their lives, its time for Jews to show solidarity. We must train our generation to embrace the world of diversity.
I am truly proud and blessed to be part of a wonderful community. I am proud to be part of a team of very dedicated men and woman within our community who faithfully occupy themselves with the wants and the needs of those that they serve within our community.
Part of the essence of gratitude is that it recognizes that we are not the sole authors of what is good in our lives. Thankfulness has an inner connection with humil-ity. It recognizes that what we are, and what we have is due to others.
At this time I wish to express my personal sense of gratitude to all those who have supported me in my ministerial role over the past year. To our President – Marian Prinsley, for the magnificent warm manner in which she leads, and to each and every one of you, who contribute to making our community the special, warm, and friendly place that it is.
Daniel Rosenthal