Dear TBZ community:
Our marathon of holidays, over this month of Tishrei, is almost over. Today we celebrate Hoshanah Rabbah. Tonight and tomorrow, we celebrate Sh’mini Azteret and on Sunday we celebrate Simchat Torah. In just one week we begin the month of Cheshvan, also known as Mar-Cheshvan- the bitter month of Cheshvan. Why bitter? Cheshvan stands in contrast with Tishrei. Mar-Cheshvan is the month where “not much is going on.”
Our calendar, and the cycle of our holidays, offers us an incredible gift - the promise and reminder of new beginnings and of the possibility of change. In a way that is the message of the High Holidays - we are given a new chance, an opportunity to start anew. We ask for forgiveness, we grant forgiveness, and we can start a year renewed.
The guiding principle of this holiday season is T'shuvah. T'shuvah is the power and the belief that we can change, that others can change, and that we can change and heal the world around us. T'shuvah is not something we do only during the Tishrei and the High Holidays. It is a constant, a practice for our lives -- a practice of constant recognition that we can turn to a different path.
This Sunday we celebrate Simchat Torah when we conclude the reading of the Torah and we begin all over again. Every year I am struck by this quick, and immediate transition. Instead of waiting a week between when we read V’zot Habracha, the last parsha of the book of Deuteronomy, and Bereishit, the first parsha of the Torah, we read them, one after the other. And the message is so powerful.
We read of the death of Moshe and we anticipate the moment when we are about to cross to the other side, we are on the very doorstep of our desired destiny, and then we are pulled back to Bereishit and the beauty of creation, of being created anew, and the infinite promise of a fresh start.
This is also how we read Torah. The stories are the same and we read them again and again. We meet our stories, their plots and characters, anew. Each time with our own new experiences, new insights, new joys and new griefs. The stories become renewed and they begin all over again.
This Cheshvan, is a different Cheshvan, it is not a month that “not much is going on.” It is, rather, a month where there is an awesome opportunity for new beginnings, for T'shuvah, for a new story to be told for ourselves and our country. We are in desperate need of starting a new story. I could go on and on to list the things that are unsettling and horrifying that have happened just this past week -- from the President undermining the seriousness of the Corona virus and dismissing the two hundred and ten thousand lives lost to the deadly virus, to a governor almost being kidnapped by white supremacist terrorists.
Every week the story we are now reading, and writing, for this country becomes darker and darker. This is why, as we end this holiday season, I am calling for all of us to bring our full attention to Get out The Vote efforts. This year, more than ever, it is not just our civil duty, but it is a mitzvah to vote. Voting and helping others vote so that we preserve democracy is the fulfilment of loving our neighbor. It is the fulfillment of the basic belief that all human beings are created in the image of God and deserve respect. It is the fulfillment that we can live in a world that is built from Hesed, from love and compassion.
What can you do?
1- First of all, have YOUR personal plan to vote, preferably early and in-person. But do what works for you, but make sure you have a plan and VOTE. My plan is to vote early at the Town office of Brookline on Tuesday October 20. (early voting starts October 17 in Brookline, check the hours here). And please spread the word to your friends and family around the country: If it is possible and if they are low-risk, they should vote EARLY IN-PERSON. TBZ member Jed Shugerman explains why this is so important in his blogpost here. Jed’s blog post has these links to see how to vote early in-person, by absentee, or by mail:
In Massachusetts: Early voting will be held October 17-30. Find locations by town here.
2- Our community participated in postcards and letter writings and we are so grateful to the many volunteers who did that. Those campaigns are finishing up and we do not need that anymore, now is the time to join the effort of phone banking and text banking! Studies show that with no in-person campaigning phone calls are the number one method of reaching out to remind and help people vote. So if you can make phone calls please do so. Texting is also great!
TBZ Resistance chairs Julia Freedson and Fran Adams have a lot of suggestions on how to get involved so do not hesitate to contact them.
3- If you can help and get involved in voting protection efforts and protecting the results of the election, please do so.
Here are two non-partisan websites that can be helpful:
Please do not hesitate to contact Fran and Julia, if you have questions or need any help on ways to get involved.
I am ready to start anew and to write a new story.
I am ready also for Cheshvan but I am not ready to call it Mar-Cheshvan, the bitter Cheshvan. This coming month, Cheshvan, or November will define the next four years of this country and will define the soul of America. It is a Mitzvah for us to stand up for justice so, voting, and protecting the vote, is what we must do: #mitzvote! (Check this MitzVote website, a non-partisan Jewish get-out-the-vote campaign that provides students with the education and resources they need to mobilize and vote in the 2020 election) & lets all commit to vote!.
May this Shabbat and Holiday bring blessings to all of you and your loved ones.
May we find strength, courage, and patience, and open our hearts with generosity.
May all those who are ill find healing.
May we have a joyful and restful Shabbat!
