Jewish Contributions to Humanity
# in a series
The Holiday Of Belonging
M
y rebbe, Rav Ahron
Soloveichik, of blessed
memory, used to call Rosh
Hashanah the holiday of belonging.
It is the holiday when all Jews can
feel they are an important part of a
people chosen by God to carry out
the holy, ethical
and moral mission
of the Torah. So,
we go into Yom
Kippur, with its awe-
some questions of
“who will live, who
will die, who will
prosper, who will
Rabbi Asher
wither,” not just as
Lopatin
vulnerable individu-
als, but as members
of a people that God
has blessed.
The mitzvah of shofar is not to blow
it yourself, but, rather, to hear the sho-
far being blown. Of course, if you are
talented, you can blow the shofar for
your own self. In general, though, the
mitzvah forces us to rely on someone
else to make the many sounds of the
shofar. Even the shofar of Sinai that
the Israelites and God heard so many
thousands of years ago was blown by
someone or something else.
So, let us enter this new year
understanding that we are part of
to pause to recall the positive
changes you’ve made, the lessons
you’ve learned and the ways in
which you’ve grown.
Should it be this difficult to
reflect on our year and how we’ve
changed? After all — how many
High Holiday seasons will we each
get? Like the Psalmist expresses,
“We consumed our years like a
fleeting thought — the days of our
years are 70 and with strength,
80… (Psalms 90:10).”
Reflection, however, requires
us to “inconveniently” pause from
the hustle and bustle of our every-
day lives. It requires significant
effort on our part to consider if
we ought to change. It is much
easier to continue conducting our
lives with our well-established
forward momentum.
We begin to sound the shofar
in the Jewish month of Elul, 30
days before Rosh Hashanah. The
sound of the shofar is distinct
and unmistakable. It is like an
alarm that is at once jarring and
resonant. Maimonides, the 12th-
century sage, put it succinctly
— it is as if the shofar is saying
something greater, and that some-
thing greater, our people, our com-
munity and our city, is there to give us
strength, support and love as we face
the exciting challenges and opportu-
nities of the year ahead.
As my family and I head into this
new year of 5779, we also feel we
are joining a special community, the
Metropolitan Detroit Jewish com-
munity. In fact, since Rosh Hashanah
commemorates the creation of all of
humankind, these holy days remind
our family that we are members not
only of a world-renowned Jewish com-
munity, but also a broader Detroit city
and metropolitan community that is
bursting with potential and demon-
strating that potential more and more
every year.
As our family, and perhaps many
families, enters the new year not total-
ly knowing what to expect, we know
that Rosh Hashanah tells us loud and
clear with the shofar and the awe-
inspiring tunes of the High Holiday
prayers that we are an integral part of
a loving, caring and supportive com-
munity.
L’shanah tovah and shalom al
Yisrael. •
Asher Lopatin is rabbi of Kehillat Etz Chayim
of Detroit.
“stir yourselves from your sleep,
emerge from your slumber and
examine your deeds!”
And now, automation that used
to be relegated to fantasy has
quickly become reality. We can
stay connected more easily thor-
ough social media, vacuum our
houses effortlessly with a robot
vacuum and order groceries (and
nearly anything else) instanta-
neously with the push of a button.
Activities that required more of
our attention now allow us to sit
back and pass even more time
mindlessly.
How will you use your
reclaimed time? Will you mark
the passing days and acknowl-
edge growth and set goals for the
future or will you be just as bewil-
dered next year at this time? After
all, it’s closer than you think. As
you embark through year 5779,
have a safe, enjoyable and reward-
ing journey — and mind the mile
markers along the way. •
Rabbi Azaryah Cohen is head of school
at Frankel Jewish Academy in West
Bloomfield.
Two of the
Stage’s Greats.
Kirk Douglas
Sarah Bernhardt
KIRK DOUGLAS (1916-).
b. Amsterdam, New York.
A golden age legend of the present age.
Born Issur Danielovitch, Kirk Douglas is one of the last living members of
Hollywood’s Golden Age, and has appeared in over 90 films throughout his six-decade
career. Douglas was born to Russian immigrants who spoke Yiddish at home. He was
the only boy among seven children, and the family was poor, which forced Douglas
to work many jobs in his youth. Although Douglas always knew he wanted to be an
actor, his debut didn’t come until he was 30 years old, in the film noir The Strange Love
of Martha Ivers. The next year, Douglas established his “tough guy” image in Stanley
Kramer’s boxing film Champion, which earned him an
Academy Award nomination for best actor. In the ‘50s,
he established himself as one of Hollywood’s top actors,
starring in films like Along the Great Divide, Lonely Are
the Brave, Ace in the Hole and 20,000 Leagues Under
the Sea. In 1953, Douglas’s film The Juggler, became the
first Hollywood feature film to be shot in the modern state
of Israel. And in 1960, Douglas starred in and executive
produced the classic Spartacus, which, in giving full
credit to screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, arguably ended
the Hollywood blacklist. Three years later, Douglas
turned the novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, into
a Broadway play, and later gave the movie rights to his
son, Michael, who turned it into a classic.
SARAH BERNHARDT (1844-1923).
b. Paris, France. d. Paris, France.
The most famous actress.
She was perhaps the first international superstar actress, and referred to as “the most
famous actress the world has ever known.” Quite a legacy given her upbringing in France.
She never knew who her father was, and her mother sent young Sarah to be raised in a
convent. Bernhardt wanted to be a nun, but the Duke of Morny saw acting potential in
her, and got her in to the Paris Conservatoire. She soon joined the Comedie Francaise
theater company, but went unnoticed. At 22, she signed on with the Odeon Theatre,
where she became a star, delivering a commanding performance in Le Passant. With the
start of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, she took a break, converting her theater into a
military hospital. At the war’s end, Bernhardt resumed her acting, and quickly became
a star throughout Europe. In 1880, she took her company around the world, performing
before sold out theaters who wanted to see
her mastery of both drama and tragedy. On
her first tour she performed 157 times in 31
cities. In the beginning of the 20th century,
Bernhardt delved into the new medium of film,
appearing in Le duel d’Hamlet and La Tosca.
She went on to star in eight motion pictures,
but is surely remembered for being one of the
greatest stage actresses of all times.
Original Research by Walter L. Field Sponsored by Irwin S. Field Written by Jared Sichel
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September 6 • 2018
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