Rabbi's Week in Review Blog

This past week, finding hope amidst despair:

The Bat Mitzvah of Tilly Never, a gathering of the Clinton-Never family and our Kol Ami family this past Shabbat, seeing Tilly speak so beautifully from the Bimah about how we pursue a more just world, gives us hope that our youth understand the need for a more just world, and are willing to do something about it.

While we were celebrating Tilly’s Bat Mitzvah, thousands of Kansas Citians hit the streets to march, and to fight against the injustice, to support each other, and not let fear and despair paralyze us from acting to make a more just country a reality.

On Sunday morning I had the honor at officiating at the Pidyon (a traditional Jewish ceremony in which a first born child is redeemed), and a baby naming for Oren Hersh Sipp.  We affirm our hope in a brighter future with each new child brought into our community.

And, on Sunday afternoon Fay and I hosted a meeting with Lee Gordon-the cofounder of Hand-In-Hand.  Hand-In-Hand, beginning in 1998, has created and supported six schools in Israel with presently over 2,000 students where Israeli Jews and Arabs learn together.  In addition to exposing students to a world where Jews and Arabs (many who are Palestinian, mostly Muslim Arabs and some Christian Arabs) can learn together and form friendships, the program works with parents and the broader community to create meaningful relationships between Jewish and Arab parents, relationships that endure after their kids have completed their educations at these wonderful schools.  This work has never been more necessary than now.