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Growing our Jewish CommunityOctober 2006From the Desk of Rabbi CohonGod says to Moses, "I have these commandments for you." So Moses says, "How much are they?" And God answers "They're free!" So Moses quickly replies "We'll take Ten!" - Old Jewish Joke of the Week, Too Jewish Radio Show
"These are the things that are beyond measure...welcoming guests" - Mishnah, Gemara, and morning liturgy
We are familiar with the Ten Commandments in the Torah. We are supposed to learn them in Religious School, and can see them depicted in art and architecture in every synagogue in the world. But there are also a series of instructions called the "Rabbinic Ten Commandments" that warrant both attention and observance -- and perhaps are more important than the original Ten themselves.
Eilu devarim she'ein lahem shi'ur the Gemara tells us: these are the things whose virtue we cannot measure, and whose reward, too, is without measure; they are 1) honoring father and mother, 2) doing acts of selfless kindness, 3) going to the house of study morning and evening, 4) welcoming the stranger, 5) visiting the sick, 6) assisting the bride, 7) accompanying the dead, 8) praying honestly and with conviction, 9) making peace between two people, and 10) studying Torah.
Each of these is a great mitzvah, and every one of us can judge her or his moral standing by seeing whether she or he is fulfilling these central commandments. But the eilu devarim is perhaps used as a measure of true community. For each of us may or may not face every one of these mitzvot in any given period in our own lives. But, collectively, through our own Temple Emanu-El, we have the opportunity to perform these mitzvot all the time.
So are we living to this rabbinic standard as a congregation?
In many ways we are. We help in so many life-cycle events, from birth to berit milah to b'nai mitzvah to weddings to funerals and shiva minyans; we visit the sick and shut-ins; we feed the hungry; we make Jewish prayer meaningful and relevant and available in a rich variety of ways and modes; we teach Torah to every age every day; we offer counseling daily to all those in need of comfort, consolation, and guidance.
But perhaps the proudest accomplishment of Temple Emanu-El in recent years has been how warm, welcoming, and inclusive we have become. The community that we have here at Temple should be -- and often is -- a living embodiment of the concept of Hachnasat Orchim, welcoming guests, into our midst. As the season of Sukkot arrives this month, when traditionally we welcome Ushpizin, distinguished guests, to the warmth of our own sukkot, we do well to focus on this central mitzvah.
You see, how we are as Jews is best shown by the way we treat others who are not part of our group already. Studies have told us vividly that the success of the American Jewish community cannot be sustained solely by keeping the people we already have involved. It must be fortified and reinforced by the many Jews, spouses of Jews, and potential Jews we welcome into our congregations.
Here at Temple Emanu-El we have an outstanding, award-winning Outreach Program, which ranges from the spectacularly successful Taste of Judaism series -- over 3000 served to date -- through Taste of Judaism II, Simply Shabbat Outreach Services, the Chalutzim Northwest Outreach Program, our incredibly popular Babies & Bagels events, our Conversion Group, the Too Jewish Radio Show, and our many ways of welcoming guests to our Temple. Many of these programs are coordinated by our marvelous Outreach Coordinator, Mila Anderson, and feature our fine staff.
But, in truth, our success in bringing people to Judaism, and to our community, is primarily the result of the welcoming warmth that you, the members of our congregation, convey to all visitors to Temple Emanu-El. In truth, the more we welcome strangers and visitors into our midst, the stronger and better a congregation we are, and the greater the American Jewish community becomes.
In this 5767 year, at this season of Sukkot, may we all come to welcome many new visitors to our temple -- and to our Jewish community -- with warmth and friendship. And when we do so, we will fulfill our own holiest commandment.
L'Shalom v'rei'ut, in peace and friendship, and chag samei'ach,
Rabbi Samuel M. Cohon
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