Who Am I???

 Dear Friends,


In this week's Torah reading, Moses raises the following question with G-d.   "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"    And God said, "I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you.  (Exodus 3:11)

I think we often suffer from imposter syndrome and wonder whether we are worthy  of being chosen to provide leadership.

As we continue to mark the new year of 2023, I hope that each of us reading this will commit to addressing some cause that is of importance to us.  We are taught in Pirke Avot, the Teachings of Our Sages 2:16:

"He [Rabbi Tarfon] used to say: It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it." (Sefaria translation)

I hope that we all realize that when we pursue something meaningful that the spirit of the Divine may be motivating us to make a difference.  We are not alone in our hopes for a better world and if we each make a commitment to save one life, we can save entire worlds.

If not now, when?


Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Bruce Aft

Comments

  1. Lauryn B.January 17, 2023 at 5:32 PM

    Thank you for your thoughts and leadership. I am in the process of starting to volunteer at HIAS. Contributing to causes is sure needed.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Listening and Love

 Dear Friends,  This past week was a Jewish Holiday called Tu B'Av  Please check out the following link from My Jewish Learning. Tu B'Av, the Jewish Day of Love As I think about the meaning of love, I think about the Shema which reminds us to "LIsten Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord Alone."  We are then asked to love G-d with all our heart, all our soul, and all our might."  (Deuteronomy 6:4-9). One of the ways in which I look at love is described in the prayer "Listen" which is found below which I initially read in the prayerbook, "LIkrat Shabbat" I believe that among the most important aspects of love is the ability to listen.  At one of our children's weddings I read the following lyrics from the song, "I Talk to the Trees." from the broadway musical, "Paint Your Wagon." (please search for this and watch Clint Eastwood sing it:-)) I talk to the trees But they don't listen to me I talk to the stars But they neve
Read more

Prayers for Peace in Israel

 Dear Friends, In the midst of the tragic events  in Israel I wanted to send you something  which Elad, our tour guide  while we will be in Israel sent me. As one who remembers  so many of the conflicts in Israel, the loss of life and the trauma is staggering. May the memories of those who have died not be in vain,may  those who have been kidnapped and are being held hostage be  returned safely, and may Israel know peace  in the days ahead. B'shalom, in peace, Bruce My dear friends, You probably heard the bad news about the war that started today between Gaza and  between Israel. We are in a new situation that last time we experienced was exactly 50 years and one days ago on October 6th 1973 when the Yom Kippur war started, today it's Yom kippur war #2.   My family seems to be safe though my 96 years old grandmother who lives in Ofakim, my home town near the border with Gaza. among other villages and towns it is under attack and hostages are taken. My grandmother Sol has been l
Read more

Tragedies of War

 Dear Friends, As we all struggle with the tragic events in the Middle East, the brutal acts of Hamas including the taking of hostages, and all the subsequent loss of life, I, like all of us, am struggling to find the right words. I taught about the weekly Torah portion this past Shabbat (Sabbath) and we talked about the text that says that Noah was righteous in his generation.  Noah is not viewed as righteous for all time as is Abraham.  Noah is criticized for not arguing with G-d about the destruction of humanity and for not telling people why he was building the ark. This led to a discussion about whether we have ever done enough to claim to be righteous.  One participant in the discussion said he would be happy to list "saving humanity" on his resume whether he was considered righteous for all time or not. I gave the example of our Passover song, "Dayenu" which means "enough."  We say  that G-d does a variety of things for us and if G-d had only done a
Read more