jews d in the Embracing Our Chutzpah W Rabbi Yoni Dahlen Special to the Jewish News 2018 RABBI IRWIN GRONER LECTURE Rabbi Ed Feinstein will be speaking on “The History of Chutzpah and its Inclination for the Grand Vision of Human Possibility” 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 24, at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield. Admission is free and open to the community. For more information, call (248) 357-5544. 14 May 10 • 2018 “This word we associate with hat’s your story? I’m Yiddish is actually found in the not asking in the Talmud,” he says. “And there it uncouth way, as if has a very different meaning. we ran into one another at an Chutzpah is an irrepressible airport or hotel bar and wanted force, an irrepressible will. The to make small talk. I’m asking most remarkable contribution in the way that goes deeper and of Judaism to human conscience begs for honesty and vulnerabil- is chutzpah: a call to action, a ity, the way that allows for doors belief that what we are doing as to open, the way that makes us Jews matters.” shake off our social and emo- I asked for an example of tional armor and expose the bits and pieces of our lives that make chutzpah in action. “Chutzpah is the us who we are. audacity to look for And so now, with that change, to look for mean- important clarification, ing. At the Passover let me ask again. What’s Seder, the wicked child’s your story? Because question is the question after speaking last week that matters most. What with Rabbi Ed Feinstein, does this mean to you? I Congregation Shaarey want to give an answer. Zedek’s speaker for the Rabbi Ed Feinstein This is more than just tra- upcoming Rabbi Irwin dition, more than antique Groner Memorial Lecture liturgy and ritual. It’s tra- on May 24, I am certain of dition because it has a deep value two things. One, every single one and a deep message. It’s valuable of us has a story. And two, those because it says something and stories are beautiful, are impor- continues to say something that tant and deserve to be told. is vital.” It wasn’t hard to convince me. I press him on this. At a time Feinstein, who is senior rabbi at when non-Orthodox Judaism is Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, going through an existential cri- Calif., is a master teacher and sis of survival and identity, what storyteller. So, it was not at all surprising that within minutes of is the message that is so deep and vital? And are we failing in picking up the phone, my nerves giving that message to those who and embarrassment vanished, need it most? and I was fully present and Feinstein takes a deep breath. I deeply engaged in a conversation can tell already that the question, about true, personal and mean- which he has no doubt been asked ingful Judaism. dozens, if not hundreds, of times, I asked him about the power is one he thinks about often. of chutzpah, a word, accord- “I worry about our response,” ing to Feinstein, that has been erroneously identified as Yiddish he says. “Jewish life today is filled with hopelessness, and I hap- in origin and synonymous pen to think that’s just wrong. At with effrontery or gall. This the heart of the Jewish people is word, the subject of his latest renewal, recreation and empower- book, The Chutzpah Imperative: ment. Empowering Today’s Jews for a “There are things about which Life That Matters, he argues, is, I’m concerned. I worry about in fact, much older and charged how people find meaning in their with a deep and important lives. I worry about this planet, significance that speaks to the this very small planet of ours, essence of Judaism. jn Congregation Shaarey Zedek welcomes Rabbi Ed Feinstein. that after all this time we still haven’t learned how to get along. We haven’t worked past the basic dynamics of Cain and Abel. You have something, and I want it. But the story of Judaism and the story of ourselves is one of hope, of reinvention and creativity. I think the despair is wrong. We are at a time of potential, and I think it’s time we celebrate that.” Our story. It’s my favorite phrase that comes up every so often in our conversation. For some reason, it makes me emo- tional. Maybe it’s the concept of all of us weaving a story together. Or maybe it’s simply the relat- ing of fears and concerns with a rabbi whom I respect so much, the ability to share in something with someone who really hears me. Whatever it is, it’s powerful, and I have to ask him about it. “Why are stories so power- ful?” I ask. “You are known as a great storyteller, and your book, Capturing the Moon, is evidence of your appreciation for stories. What role do they play in Jewish education and in your rabbinate?” He doesn’t have to think. It’s as if I asked him, “Why do we need oxygen?” “We are our stories, Yoni,” he tells me. “Stories are important, and we understand them on a deeper emotional and personal level than, say, a discursive ser- mon. I love telling stories, kids love stories and adults love sto- ries. Narrative reaches a higher level, and the sharing of stories brings us together. “Those stories,” he continues, “are what make me excited about the future, especially about what Judaism looks like and will look like in the 21st century. I’m so interested in the diversity of Jewish identity and Jewish sto- ries. I have in my shul people of color, people of every back- ground, people who aren’t Jewish but love Torah and love studying. The stories work.” I find myself nodding enthusi- astically like a bobble-head doll just given an aggressive flick, not at all bothered by the fact that he can’t see me on the phone agree- ing with him. It’s a beautiful mes- sage, and it’s been a long time since I’ve heard such optimism about Conservative Judaism. I’m reluctant to end our con- versation, but I want to respect his time. After all, he’s busy hoping, dreaming and celebrat- ing the opportunity that we as Jews are being presented at this incredible moment in time. I ask one last question. “What is it you’d like Detroit to take away from your visit?” I ask. “If we can all hold on to one thing, what would it be?” “Hope,” he says. “I want us to be able to answer the wicked child’s question and to do so with hope. We have something to say to the world. We can be worried, we can be concerned, but everywhere we look, there are heroes. Israel, this microcosm of the whole world, shows us that. It’s a coun- try with enormous problems, and yet wherever you go in Israel you meet heroes — selfless, lov- ing, who are trying to create the Jewish state of their dreams. “I am honored to be coming to Detroit, to stand in the pulpit of Rabbi Groner, who was one of the greats, and to help remember him. And I am honored to come to celebrate the hope that our stories create. We are at a great moment in Jewish history where we can think of new and exciting ideas of reinvention and reinter- pretation. What we had before was great, but now, it’s up to us to think of new ways, and we are being invited to do so. I want to celebrate the invitation. I want to celebrate the hopefulness.” • Yoni Dahlen is a rabbi at Congregation Shaarey Zedek.