Author: urjnetworkadmin

There was a time in my career as a rabbi, when I would wonder what I could say following terrible events. I don’t wonder anymore. I have far too many sermons and prayers for vigils full of words that I’ve said.

I don’t wonder how I’ll react or what I’ll do anymore. I’ll speak to community religious leaders. We’ll schedule a vigil and I’ll speak again, because something awful happened… again.

After the mosque attack in New Zealand, I reached out to Muslim friends. I offered condolences and prayers. I could have offered thoughts too, but rather than try to do that, hugs are better. I sent along hugs.

I communicated by text and later by phone with my friends, Imams Spahic and Valjevcic of the Bosnian community, with whom I regularly interact, offering any help that I or we might offer to their communities. A little bit after I spoke with Imam Valjevcic, I received a text from him, “Thank you David. Thank you for being with us in these tough moments.” It’s pretty much how I felt after the Pittsburgh evil.

Being.  I speak about the blessing of presence quite often when I talk about the Priestly Benediction. May God bless you and keep you. I note that “In the Jewish tradition, Blessing is presence.”

“Don’t just stand there–do something!” is how we most often react to challenging situations. Often, there isn’t much we can do. But there is one thing for certain. Dr. David Spiegel, chief of the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University Hospital, reformulated that maxim, “Don’t just do something… STAND THERE!”

Be there. Sometimes that helps more than anything we can DO.

Yesterday, I found myself humming and mouthing the words to Lean on Me:

You just call on me brother, when you need a hand
We all need somebody to lean on
I just might have a problem that you’ll understand
We all need somebody to lean on

Lean on me, when you’re not strong
And I’ll be your friend
I’ll help you carry on
For it won’t be long
‘Til I’m gonna need
Somebody to lean on

I thought about Charlottesville, Sutherland Springs, Pittsburgh, and Christchurch.

“It WON’T be long, ‘till we’re all gonna need somebody to lean on.”

As I said to our Muslim friends at the vigil:

I know what the pain is like, even if I can’t feel it the way you do at times, nor you the way I do at times. It’s a different pain for me than you. It’s a different pain for our community than yours.

But again, it’s the same pain too. It’s the pain of unacceptance. It’s the pain of not feeling loved and welcomed. It’s the pain of peace and well-being shattered. It’s the pain of sacredness defiled. It’s the pain of losses that cannot be measured or even fairly described.

It’s the pain of having fled a place of persecution, finally achieving some sense of security, and having persecution find you again.

We’ve been there too and we’re here for you.

“Just call on me brother.”

Yes, I get that the lingo in 1972, when Bill Withers wrote the song, was particularly about Brothers and Sisters in the African American community. The reason that song came to my mind wasn’t that. It was realizing that, having no siblings of my own, the only people in my life who call me “brother,” beyond the few fraternity brothers who sometimes reach out, are my friends from immigrant communities and the Muslim community in particular.

Sometimes my Sudanese and South Sudanese friends struggle to figure out how to include it, “Brother Rabbi David,” “Rabbi Brother David.” I remember at one Sudanese community event, I was introduced as “Brother Rabbi. Brother David.” One of my South Sudanese friends sometimes puts a pause between Rabbi and Brother. “Brother… Rabbi David.” It’s a term of affection that people in immigrant communities often cannot leave out and go out of their way to include.

You are here. You are with me. You are my brother.

When you walk into a gathering, you are often greeted, “Welcome, Brother. Welcome, Sister.”

The best of us greet everyone with that intent. It tells us, “I want you to feel at home.”

And so, I am told, for I have not seen the video and will not watch it, was similar words said in Christchurch. The first person to interact with the evil doer and the one who was the first person killed, greeted the man, “Hello, Brother.”

Love was met with hate.

We cannot always overcome hate. Sometimes, we never get a chance. But at times like these, we can stand together with our brothers and our sisters and we can lean on each other and we can be.

Don’t just do something, stand there.

We need to lean on each other.

We need to support each other.

It’s time to be present for one another, our brothers and sisters.

Shalom Aleichem. Assalam Aleikum. Peace be upon us all.

Rabbi David Kaufman

As we all know, this past winter was especially harsh and we are still feeling the effects of all the ice and snow that accumulated. Just as you have to pay special attention when driving right now to avoid the many potholes left in the wake of this winter weather, I would ask that you pay special attention when you come to the Temple in the coming months. If you see any damage to our building or property please let Charles Stanton or I know as soon as possible. There is some damage and leaks that we have already found and are working to repair, but it is very possible we have missed something or that some new damage has been caused. Charles and I are very committed to maintaining the Temple and making sure we resolve issues before they become a major problem.

On the topic of repairs to the building I just thought I would let you know that the drinking fountain located on the upper level right next to the kitchen has been repaired. We had a very generous donor come forward to supply the funds we needed to make these repairs and Charles worked very closely with a few plumbers to get everything up and running properly. So I hope you will enjoy a drink the next time you come to the Temple.

Lastly, now that spring has finally arrived that means it’s time to prepare for one of our largest annual events, our community Passover Seder. One thing that I want you all to be aware of is a change to how food will be served at the Passover Seder. Instead of having servers come to your table with food, the main course will be served “Marriot” buffet style. Your table will be dismissed to go through the buffet line, and while you wait for your turn to go through the buffet line a dessert tray will be brought to your table. This change should cut down on the level of congestion that occurs during the diner, and help keep the food you receive warmer and tasting better. If you or someone at your table will need help getting a plate please know that that there will be servers available to help with that. If you have any questions about these changes feel free to contact me.

Again, now that spring is here there is so much for us to look forward to, and I want you to know I look forward to seeing so many of you at our Passover Seder or any of the other great events we have coming up.

Shalom, David Muenchrath

After a very long and harsh winter, it’s time to get outside, prepare for Passover and take advantage of all the wonderful events that Temple has to offer. As I start to wind down my role as President, I can’t help but reminisce on what our Board has accomplished over the past two years.

At the beginning of my term, the Board was very engaged in a variety of strategic planning initiatives that included reducing the number of Board members to a manageable level, revising our mission and vision statements, re-energizing our volunteers and revising our By-Laws to reflect Vision Leaders and Vision Teams. Through the entire process, a sense of accomplishment has been seen on a variety of levels. Vision Leaders empowering themselves to make changes to policies and streamlining processes. Congregants volunteering as Shabbat greeters and other roles.

Together, we shared many wonderful events and programs that Rabbi, our staff, the Board and volunteers have worked hard to orchestrate such as Family Shabbats, Passover Seder, Movie Nights, Habitat for Humanity projects, Chanukah Happenings, High Holidays, Havdalah-Ween, Youth Group outings and Sisterhood events. All the efforts of Rabbi Kaufman and others who tirelessly organize and coordinate the educational programming that challenge us to think openly about a multitude of topics. No matter your age, Temple is a place for us to connect in many ways.

We’ve dedicated two new spaces on the Temple property that we can be very proud of. Located on the northern edge of our property is a memorial to remember the 1985 ISU women’s cross-country team plane that crashed across the street from Temple over 30 years ago. Our most recent dedication took place just a few weeks ago. The new Temple chapel is now officially open and will become a new and exciting addition to the Mannheimer Wing.

Our president-elect of Temple is Bill Grund who is preparing to begin his role as president in June. Bill recently returned from The Scheidt Seminar, a 4-day session open to URJ congregational presidents and presidents-elect. It’s a wonderful opportunity to learn and network with the leadership of the Reform Movement, discuss solutions to everyday congregational problems and improve leadership skills. Bill has been a part of Temple for many years and is well-prepared to take on this important responsibility. I know Bill will do an amazing job in leading us to new heights.

And lastly, I’m very excited to tell you about our next big fundraising event taking place on Saturday, May 18th. In addition to raising money for the Temple General Fund, it’s also a time for us to come together as a congregation and to socialize and have a wonderful time together. The event will take place at Albaugh’s Corporate Headquarters in Ankeny. One of our very own congregants, Stuart Feldstein, who works at Albaugh, graciously donated the space for us to use. One of the fun attractions of the space is a car barn that houses a long list of vintage cars that will be open for you to view. It’s an amazing exhibit you won’t want to miss! There will also be a silent auction featuring a list of items to bid. The event will be catered by Christiani’s, a premier caterer here in Des Moines. For your entertainment, a 4-piece quartet will be playing a variety of music including jazz, classical and current tunes. Toward the end of the evening, we will be unveiling our new Temple logo! I hope you will save the date and look forward to seeing you there! You’ll be receiving an invitation in the mail very soon.

These past two years have been an amazing experience for me as president of Temple. I want to thank each and every one of you who have supported me. A special thank you to Rabbi Kaufman, our wonderful Temple staff; David Muenchrath, Erin Plank, Wendy Beckerman and Charles Stanton, the entire Board, all of our volunteers and vision teams. It’s been a privilege and honor to serve Temple B’nai Jeshurun.

B’Shalom,
Alan Adato