Rabbi Sandra Bellush: ‘May God give us strength to heal our imperfect world’

Courtesy Rabbi Sandra Bellush

As Jews around the world gather on the evening of Sept. 20 to welcome the New Year of 5778, our usual joy and celebration will be diminished by the memory of what took place in August in Charlottesville, Va.

Many of us watched the marching and violence on that Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath) with a sense of disbelief that this was actually taking place in our country in the year 2017. Many responded to the news reports and video images of Nazi flags, armed militias and anti-Semitic chants not just with outrage and shame, but with despair and disbelief. It was heartbreaking to imagine what it was like for Charlottesville’s Jewish worshippers to hear chants of “burn the synagogue” as they offered their Sabbath prayers and then wondered if it was safe to leave the sanctuary.

The United States was founded on the belief that liberty and religious freedom are essential elements of our core values. In August 1790, President George Washington wrote in a letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island:

“All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of one class of people, that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights. For happily the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.”

In the Jewish calendar, Rosh Hashanah is followed by Yom Kippur, a holy day of atonement. For the Jewish people, these days are characterized by prayer, self-assessment and repentance. We reflect on how actions over the past year could have been different if we had been guided by better choices. Remaining silent in light of these recent troubling events is not the choice that resonates with our Jewish values. That evil prevails when good people remain silent is one of the lessons the world learned as a result of the murder of six million Jews during the Holocaust.

Now and in the New Year, all must act to denounce and delegitimize white supremacy, anti-Semitism, and other forms of racism and bigotry. This is a time for all in our wonderfully diverse community to pray for healing. We are a resilient nation and we will endure as a just and free society, because we will stand up against hatred and violence, and good will win over evil.

To speak up or to remain silent, the choice is ours to make, and I pray that the decision is an easy one. We read in the Book of Deuteronomy that God says, “See, this day I set before you blessing and curse.” (11:26) May the decision to choose blessing be an easy one for all of us. May our eternal God, creator of all beings, grace us with wisdom and understanding to stand up against senseless hatred and bigotry. May God give us the strength to heal our imperfect world, striving to create a world driven by wholeness, justice, and compassion.

With blessings for health, peace and happiness in 5778.

Rabbi Sandra Bellush is the spiritual leader of Temple Am Echad in Lynbrook.