Community Views

Editor's Notebook

Giving A Name
To Our Future

Come On, It's February,
Time To Get Moving

IRA J. WISE SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

PHIL JACOBS EDITOR

My son Ethan was pen to support this goal in par-
I agree with those who inter-
1; just 2 years old on ticular.)
pret the 1990 Jewish Population
New Year's Day. I
I have been doing a lot of trav- Study to mean that we are facing
know this because eling to other Jewish communi- a crisis. However, focusing mere-
everywhere we ties. Many of them face the same ly on survival is not enough. I do
went on our vaca- challenges and problems as we believe that those who set policy
tion Ethan would do in Detroit: lower levels of phil- agree with this, and by and large
inform bus drivers, anthropic giving; less interest in do not have minimalist vision of
restaurant wait- maintaining affiliation; declining where we are going.
staff and hotel membership in a variety of in-
The Japanese language has a
housekeepers that "Today is my stitutions.
character which is used to indi-
birthday! I'm 2!"
Like us, they are very con- cate "crisis." It is a combination
Besides informing the entire cerned about continuity. Like us, of two other characters, one
free world that it was his birth- they are trying many different which means "dangerous" and
day, Ethan kept asking: "What's methods to ensure success. We a second which means "opportu-
your name, lady?"
have many theories to explain nity. ,,
If someone told him, he would why we seem to be in trouble, and
Our people faced a new world
repeat it and, addressing her by even more prescriptions to cure with the emancipation of Euro-
name, ask a battery of questions. what ails us.
pean Jewry in the 18th century.
Naturally, his grandparents
As a rallying cry, "continuity" Different Jews faced it in differ-
and parents thought it was cute. seems to have some effect. As a ent ways — some by clinging ever
That's our job.
statement of purpose, I believe it more closely to tradition, others
One evening during our trip, sells the Jewish people short. To by rejecting it. Some chose to fo-
my wife Audrey and I left him me and Mr. Webster, "continu- cus on one particular aspect of
sleeping in the hotel room
Jewish identity — such as
with his grandparents. En-
study or the creation of a
tering a large hotel lobby to
Jewish homeland. Some
see the artwork, Audrey
chose to assimilate, while
pointed out the large ply-
others have tried to adapt
wood mermaid behind the
tradition to modernity,
front desk. Audrey had
producing a broad spec-
walked there earlier with
trum of results.
Ethan, who pointed to the
This stage in our devel-
mermaid and asked,
opment has been in process
"What's her name, Mom-
for less than three cen-
my?"
turies. A long time for you
"I don't know, Ethan."
or me, but a brief phase in
"Give her a name, Mom-
the life of a people 3800
my."
years old. (Historians date
My son is at a stage in
the time of Abraham and
his life where he needs to
Sarah to be around 1800
know the name of everyone
BCE.)
and everything he sees. He
I believe that we are not,
is in the process of putting
in fact, in trouble. I believe
his universe in order so
that we have and will con-
that he will be able to un-
tinue to have a vibrant Jew-
40-‘44.t
'.
derstand it. My reading of
ish community which is
developmental psychology
growing both in number
tells me that humans go
and in depth of under-
through some form of this
standing and commitment.
ordering process as we
I believe that we are on the
reach each new stage of de-
cusp of a new stage of de-
velopment.
velopment. I'm not sure
The same is true for the
what it is or what it will be
Jewish community.
like. And yes, questions of
"Continuity" is the name
how we will retain commu-
we have given to the latest
dit al
it/
nal identity and prevent the
crisis facing the Jewish peo-
loss of Jews who identify
ple. Like the rest of Jewish
and affiliate with commu-
North America, our com-
nal institutions are vital.
munity has been struggling with ity" implies extending the exis-
We are now in the process of
the problem of ensuring Jewish tence of something into the re-ordering our universe, seek-
continuity into the next genera- future. It does not imply growth ing ways to understand how
tion.
or advancement, but rather the changes around us affect who we
For some, "continuity" has prevention of shrinkage or loss. are and how we function as a
been a buzzword to encourage Not good enough!
community. We are faced with a
people to give money or time in
The rabbis teach that at Sinai, dangerous opportunity, and we
support of various communal the soul of every Jew who will must find ways of effecting a par-
agencies, synagogues or organi- ever live was there to receive the adigm shift — changing our
zations. For others, it is an un- covenant from God. That whole approach — without los-
equivocal call to funnel more covenant did not promise hold- ing our core values as a people.
support into Jewish day schools, ing the line or continuity of the While we might rightly fear the
religious schools, adult education status quo. It was a long-term danger, we must imagine the pos-
and/or informal education. (I hap- planning document that covered sibilities that come with the op-
civil and criminal law, worship, portunity. We cannot settle for
Ira J. Wise is education director
education, defense and the build- continuity as merely the main-
of Temple Emanu-El in Oak
ing of institutions. It was, and is, tenance of the status quo. Our
Park and president of the
a guidebook for thriving, not tradition demands much more
Jewish Educators Council of
merely surviving.
than that.
Metropolitan Detroit.

'

111E111

4

4

❑

My daughters tential to get you out of the
hamster taught rut. It takes guts to sign up for
me a lesson the a volunteer program at the
other night.
school. It's hard to give up
Her name is "Home Improvement" to real-
"Davoche" (He- ly improve your home.
brew for honey)
But don't forget that for the
and she seems hamster, spinning around in
to enjoy rolling that ball is the good life. If you
around the fam- for one moment let yourself
ily room in a plastic ball. She think that the good life is the
has a modicum of freedom in sum total of how many hours
the transparent blue sphere you snooze...you'll lose.
while she bumps into the fur-
Sorry about the cliches. But
niture and the walls. There February is a gateway month.
are times, though, when Dav- It's a time when we should be
oche can't get untracked from thinking of Purim and
rolling from the leg of the Passover as we enter into the
stereo console into the closet light of spring and the
door, back and forth over and warmer months. Soon we'll be
over. It can be hypnotic.
staying up all night to learn
There's a sense of relief during Shavuot. We'll mourn
when she untracks herself on Tisha B'Av. Then once
and heads in another direc- again, we'll be preparing for
tion.
the High Holidays. We'll ask
Doesn't that sound brutal- how did the time fly?
ly familiar? How many of us
Make it fly because you im-
let ourselves get caught up in proved yourself. Make this
a rut where day after day, your six-month warning, and
week after week, month after check to see if what you
month and year after year, planned last autumn has or
we're getting up, going to hasn't happened. If you have
work, coming home, crashing reached goals, great — then
into the sofa only to watch set new ones. If you haven't
others live the lives we only reached them, it's absolutely
wish for on television. We get not too late.
a couple weeks off for vaca-
tion, but other than that we're
in our own plastic ball, fol-
lowing not a very different
track than the hamster.
Some of us are on that
track, because we watched
our parents live that way.
Others are teaching it to our
children. It's important to be
Just get off that sofa. There
strong enough to continue on are plenty of Jewish organi-
a path that's more goal ori- zations that would be far bet-
ented. For example, February, ter off with you having the
the coldest, grayest month of courage to make the phone
the year, is a time when all of call. Yad Ezra, JARC, Feder-
us probably feel like hiber- ation, your synagogue, but
nating to some degree.
also your family members
But this month of minus- need you plenty. They need
wind chills and envious gazes you out of the plastic ball.
to the availability of Aunt
There's a religious rut as
Tillie's Boca Raton condo is well. The prayers, remember
a perfect time for opportuni- the prayers. Take time out to
ty. OK, so it's schmaltzy to understand them, not just
phrase it that way. But read them. And no matter
schmaltz might get you out of what your denomination, find
the plastic ball. Six months a mentor and learn with him
ago we were all gathered to- or with her. It's part of that
gether, first in synagogues, continuum we write about so
then in sukkot, making often. If we don't break out of
promises to God and to our- the plastic ball, we can't won-
selves and to our families der why in later years the kids
about what a better person we decide to "faise" out. No I
were going to be. We were go- didn't spell anything wrong.
ing to lose that weight, eat It's a new cliche I've invented.
better, stop smoking, be bet- Combine the words faith and
ter parents, children, friends, phase, you get "faise."
workers, providers, caregivers
What is this guy, crazy?
and donors. That was a quick
You don't want life to be a
six months, wasn't it?
"ball." Just watch the ham-
Remember what you said ster. You'll see. El
back in September? All of
those promises had the po-

Back
and forth,
over and over.

