Dear Friends,
January is the coldest month of the year if not, thankfully, the snowiest. I look at the month ahead of us and, with that chill in the air, I look forward to warming up the weeks ahead with special projects and gatherings at TBT.
The first activity that I want to highlight is a very easy way for you to do a huge mitzvah. The State of Israel is preparing right now to host the World Zionist Congress, and your vote can make a real impact on shaping the Israel of the future to be pluralistic and egalitarian. Let me explain:
The World Zionist Congress has been meeting ever since Theodore Herzl established it in Basel, Switzerland in 1897. The Congress is comprised of worldwide Jewry and the United States has a large presence. If we can ALL vote for Reform Jewish delegates to be seated at the Congress, it could mean as much as $20 million dollars slated for projects in Israel that benefit a liberal expression of Judaism and allows for the flourishing of Reform Judaism in Israel. We can do this! Please make a commitment to vote – it will be made simple for you to do so by our fearless ARZA-WZC co-chairs, Mara Weissman and Andrea San Marco. They will be putting ballot information in your inboxes when the time comes to be able to vote. Just be on the lookout and promise to make a wonderful difference for Israel.
Other activities I look forward to in January include teaching a Lunch & Learn, this time on Tuesdays from 12:30 PM - 2 PM with a focus on the book of Genesis and how the actual Hebrew words of the text reveal its meaning.
I also want to mention the Gamerman Film Festival which usually warms us up in January but has moved this year to the month of March. Stay tuned.
The month of January coincides this year with the Hebrew month of Tevet. You may recognize in that Hebrew name the word “Tov” which means “good.” The rabbis consider Tevet to be a good month because, since it is so cold, it causes people to want to seek warmth by being close to one another.
By all means, let us warm each other up during this otherwise cold month of January.
L’Shalom,
Rabbi Offner