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Nov
'03 onwards
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From the Desk of
Rabbi Cohon
July 2005
Our fabulous Temple Emanu-El Israel tour is just
completed, and it exceeded all of our very high expectations.
Thirty-three congregants and family members experienced Israel in a way that
was religiously magnificent, spiritually uplifting, intellectually exciting,
and frankly, a whole lot of fun. But for all the high points on the
trip -- and there were many, from Tel Aviv to Tzefat to Jerusalem -- there
was one central aspect of the trip that made it rise to a level of real
holiness.
That was the extraordinary community that developed over
the 12 days or so of touring, prayer, study, hiking, eating, learning,
shopping, playing, and adventuring together. Typically, no matter how
fine a group pf people are involved, traveling and living together while
meeting a demanding schedule leads to some level of conflict or challenge,
especially when there are people from different backgrounds, of widely
diverse ages -- we ranged from 8 to nearly 80 years old -- and with
different interests and preferences.
But our Temple group (I think we actually need a tour
name next time, and t-shirts, like rock tours have; perhaps "Israel
Live in '05"...) manifested throughout the activity filled days and
nights a rare combination of friendship, mutual support, and great
humor. No one was a "problem" traveler; each person was
generous, helpful, and generally good spirited. And everyone gained
immeasurably from sharing in what our tour guide called "a genuine,
organic, Jewish community".
I believe that this remarkable group -- artists,
accountants, builders, potters, physicians, librarians, teachers,
businessmen, retirees, administrators, students, writers, clergy,
psychiatrists, computer professionals, nurses, and so on -- represented a
very real form of community, and a microcosm of what we have created here at
Temple Emanu-El. For what clearly emerged over the course of our time
together -- and if you see a member of the tour over the next few weeks, you
will probably notice a bit of a blissed-out look to them -- was that
together, we became more than the sum of our parts. We were a true kehilah
kedushah, a sacred community. And when we shared openly about our
experiences we became a kind of extended family.
Of course, that's also what Israel becomes when you
immerse yourself fully in the experience. We felt -- I think every one
of us, even those who had never been there before -- that Israel was a
second home, and that the Jews there were, indeed, our family, from our
sister congregation in Hod Hasharon to the relatives, friends, and
acquaintances we met.
In a more immediate way, that sort of extended family,
that kind of sacred community, that we have built here at Temple
Emanu-El. When we allow ourselves to fully participate in services and
classes, when we work on social action projects together, when we volunteer
on committees and for events and visits the sick and comfort the bereaved,
we are in just such a kehilah kedushah.
May it always be so, and may our leadership continue to
value that central aspect of our outstanding congregation.
L'shalom v'rei'ut, in peace and friendship,
Rabbi Samuel M. Cohon
P.S. - I have been asked repeatedly when we will go to
Israel again. If there is sufficient interest, we could go as soon as
a year from now. Email me if you are interested in participating at rabbi@templeemanueltucson.org
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