Opinion

OTHER VIEWS

Transforming The World

Los Angeles

I

am a news junkie. Starting the day
with a roundup of current events is,
for me, as important as my morning
cup of coffee.
Lately, the jolt I get from scanning head-
lines and tuning into CNN is far stronger
than the shock to my system from a routine
dose of caffeine.
Our domestic economy is in serious jeop-
ardy. The housing market is in sustained
freefall. The global credit crunch is affecting
consumers from California to Cairo. Fuel
prices are at record levels. A worldwide food
shortage has sparked riots and threatened
tens of millions of lives. And these are just
the front-page stories.
These are troubling times, and it doesn't
take much to understand why. The chal-
lenges we face prey on our deepest fears and
anxieties. They attack our sense of security,
leaving us to confront the notion of our own
powerlessness. Glued to cable news, bom-

barded by instantaneous updates
our garden; what to do with the
on the Web, we begin to feel
food we don't eat) creates impact
disconnected as if life is merely a
that is felt in our local communi-
spectator sport and we are in the
ties and around the globe.
stands watching it pass us by.
Seen in this light,Yom
The Jewish High Holidays
Kippur's theme of atonement
directly challenge this idea of
carries with it a message of
passivity. Yom Kippur offers Jews
empowerment: Pledging to do
more than a chance for repen-
better goes hand-in-hand with
H. Eric
tance; it is an opportunity for
committing to make a difference
Schockman
active repentance, for peeling back
in the world.
Special
the front page of our own lives
Achieving social justice
Commentary
and examining what lies inside. It
sounds daunting. There are so
casts us in the starring role of our
many wrongs to right; where do
own future; the Book of Life seals our fate,
we begin? The answer is a strong antidote to
but it is we who choose, through our own
feeling under-equipped and overwhelmed:
deeds, what that fate will be.
Start somewhere. Find an issue that moves
Active repentance means making amends you, and take a first step.
with neighbors, family and friends. It also
Recycle. Write letters to Congress.
means realizing that our spheres of influence Volunteer. As we learn from Pirkei Avot
— the things we can affect with our actions
(Ethics of the Fathers), it is not up to us to
— extend well beyond the people and places complete the task, but neither are we free to
we see every day. Each decision we make
desist from it.
(what coffee to buy; what flowers to plant in
Feeding the hungry is my passion. With 35

million American men, women and children
unsure where — or whether — they will
find their next meal, I feel compelled to focus
my energies on a shameful, and absolutely
avoidable, national crisis.
I know that, day-to-day, the progress I
make will be incremental. But I also know
that real change — in the hunger landscape,
as in my own life — takes hard work, perse-
verance and time.
During the High Holidays, we stand at a
crossroads of personal and communal trans-
formation. Our path is up to us.
This year, as we grapple with conscience
and chart a course for the months ahead, I
encourage us to remember that introspec-
tion alone is only part of the forgiveness
ritual. For it is when thinking becomes doing
that we are renewed in the Book of Life and
that we can begin to redeem the world.

❑

H. Eric Schockman is president of MAZON: A

Jewish response to Hunger in Los Angeles,
www.mazon.org.

Keep Our Shuls Safe, Friendly

New York/JTA

0

pen for us the gates at the time of
their closing"
Worshipers conclude their Yom
Kippur prayers every year with this refrain
— a final supplication to be sealed in the
Book of Life — during the Neilah Shearim
service that closes the holiday.
Neilah Shearim, more commonly known
as Neilah, literally means "locking the gates."
As we pray for the metaphorical heavenly
gates of forgiveness to remain open this Yom
Kippur, how can we ensure that the physical
gates of our Jewish institutions do the same?
Security measures at Jewish institutions,
and for that matter all religious institutions,
are an unfortunate priority these days. On
the High Holidays, we must protect ourselves
with security guards and sometimes even
metal detectors and bag checks, so that we
may devote our time in synagogue to prayer
instead of worry.
In the presence of heightened security at
our religious institutions, it is essential that
our synagogues still feel like warm and wel-
coming houses of worship, not like airports.
We can demonstrate hospitality by view-
ing our security professionals as not only
the safe-keepers of our institutions, but also
as the individuals who create a welcoming

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September 25 . 2008

atmosphere. They are the men and women
that newcomers first encounter when enter-
ing our institutions. Let's remind security
personnel of the importance of a smile and
friendly greeting even while they do the
essential work of protecting our institutions.
If possible, volunteer greeters or staff
members should be stationed at the entrance
with the security professionals. They can
help welcome worshipers and answer any
questions about the synagogue, holidays and
security process. A simple note of apology
posted on the entrance to the building also
helps mitigate any ill feelings that might
emerge from the encounter with security.
Even for those on the inside of the Jewish
community, security is an unwelcome chal-
lenge. On our way to pray in a building that
we may visit regularly with no questioning
at all, suddenly we are given the third degree
on a few days of the year. But we accept the
security because we understand its impor-
tance and already are comfortable within the
walls of our Jewish institutions.
For newcomers at High Holiday services,
particularly the many friends and fam-
ily of diverse religious backgrounds who
may accompany them, the experience of
approaching a Jewish institution may be
intimidating on its own. Add in the metal
detectors, security detail and questioning,

and the experience of entering High Holidays
services becomes a deterrent from engaging
with the Jewish community.
The movement for a "Big Tent Judaism"
now gaining currency among hundreds
of Jewish organizations encourages us to
welcome all newcomers and lower barriers
to participation. While security presence
on the High Holidays is non-negotiable for
most Jewish institutions, there are ways we
can open our gates even with the presence of
security.
Each institution must evaluate with their
security professionals how they can best
welcome worshipers while maintaining their
safety. We encourage Jewish organizations to
meet with their staffs and boards to imple-
ment simple measures to ensure that our
physical gates reflect the metaphorical heav-
enly gates, the very gates that open on Rosh
Hashanah to provide all worshipers with the
opportunity to seek repentance and renewal.
This year, use the High Holidays to reflect
on the physical and perceptual gates that act
as barriers to the Jewish community. For one
institution, the gates may be security; and for
another the gates may be language, literacy
or cost.
This year — and for years to come
— let's take a cue from the High Holidays
liturgy and really open our gates to the many

Kerry M. Olitzky and Edward
M. Feinstein
Special Commentary

newcomers to our Jewish institutions. Let's
not miss this opportunity to demonstrate
to newcomers and those returning to the
Jewish community the Jewish value of
hachnasat orechim, hospitality.
With sensitivity and action, we can work
together to make sure that opening the
gates at the time of their closing does not
only exist as an element of the Yom Kippur
liturgy ❑

Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky is executive director
of the Jewish Outreach Institute, coordinat-

ing partner of the Big Tent Judaism Coalition
(www.BigTentJudaism.org). Rabbi Edward M.

Feinstein is senior rabbi of Valley Beth Shalom
in Encino, Calif.