Rabbi Diana's Weekly Message

“Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder.

Help someone’s soul heal.

Walk out of your house, like a shepherd.”

Jalal al-Din Rumi

Cry aloud; do not be silent. Lift up your voice like a shofar. — Isaiah 58:1 

Dear Chevre, 

The poem and verse above spoke to me this week. Like many of you, I’m thinking about the people of Ukraine and am deeply upset about the violence and displacement they are facing. As Americans, we want to support a country striving toward freedom. As Jews we want to make sure that the Jewish communities in Ukraine know that they are not alone, and when possible, help either to relocate them or support them where they are. As our tradition teaches, kol yisraelarevim zeh bazeh, all of Israel are responsible for each other. We feel powerless, yet our hearts want to remain attentive to suffering and we want to make a difference. 

Just this week, thanks to the organizing skills of KHN member Cindi Sternfeld and others, a group of people including several KHN members gathered in Lambertville in support of Ukraine, waving flags and sunflowers and handing out information about where to give much needed funds. Almost everybody driving by honked and waved in support. We cannot remain silent. 

We are in the Hebrew month of Adar, days away from Purim when we are supposed be to joyful and playful. How can we do that in the face of the suffering in Ukraine and elsewhere? 

Organizer and educator Talia Kaplan writes, 

“Not only might our ancestors have felt like many of us do now, like their entire world was crashing down, but they also chose a life-affirming, action-oriented religious tradition in the face of these great challenges. Purim can remind us that facing the darker realities of our world does not have to come at the expense of affirming and pursuing what we value most. In fact, our tradition expects this of us…Perhaps you too are feeling despair. Whether the origin is the climate crisis, Russia’s ongoing attack on Ukraine, the pandemic, or circumstances in your personal life, such despair can be exhausting. Yet the stakes are too high for us to let the exhaustion become all-consuming, keeping us stuck in place. We can honor the feeling of despair and choose to act. Purim teaches us that when the stakes are high, we still have agency. It is in our muscle memory as Jews to affirm our core beliefs through action” [https://yaaleh.substack.com/p/we-affirm-and-we-receive]

We read in the Megillah, Perhaps you were made sovereign for just such a time as this,

Mordechai tells Queen Esther to embolden her to intervene on behalf of the Jewish people.

Perhaps we were made for a time such as now, trusting that our every action can make a difference. 

Here are some organizations we can give to, as generously as you are able, to support efforts in Ukraine and those helping Ukrainians who have escaped, recommended by T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights:

• Give to reputable organizations. Our partners at HIAS are increasing their efforts to resettle refugees from Ukraine. Give here to support their emergency efforts. 
• Take the opportunity to learn more about the region. I very much recommend Snyder’s book, The Road to Unfreedom, for understanding Putin’s goals, as well as Masha Gessen’s The Man Without a Face and Surviving Autocracy for understanding Putin.
• Call or email your members of Congress and urge them to support expedited processing for Ukranian refugees with family in the United States, so they can reunite with loved ones rather than wait in limbo with temporary protection in Europe. Now is the time to live up to our value of welcoming people in their moment of need.

Additionally, general humanitarian aid to Ukrainians can be arranged by Razom, which can take a credit card and give you a tax deduction.  They are a flexible group of volunteers and will cooperate with other partners in the US and in Poland and Ukraine.  Donate to Razom here.

Let us all be all be a lamp, a lifeboat, a ladder, a shepherd and a shofar in whichever ways we can by our actions, prayers, advocacy and support. 

Shabbat shalom, 

Rabbi Diana