Rabbi Michael P. Sternfield
Chicago Sinai Congregation
15 West Delaware Place
Chicago, Illinois 60610
Yom Kippur 2008
Yom Kippur has as its most sacred purpose what we call “chesbon ha-nefesh,” meaning taking account of ourselves. The purpose of day is largely personal: to look within ourselves, and ask ourselves hard questions. I feel a keen responsibility to speak with you frankly of my concerns for our people and Judaism itself. If I may attribute to myself one talent, it is that I am willing to call things as I see them, even when it runs contrary to the conventional wisdom.
My topic for this morning is: “Is Judaism necessary?” Let me cut to the conclusion immediately. My conclusion is that Judaism is necessary, but only if we wish for there still to be Jews.” This is not a tautology, and I am not trying to be clever.
Let us take a few minutes to review some of the most pertinent facts of Jewish history. Originally, the Jewish people, then called Hebrews, were a semi-nomadic people. They probably were not much different from the other clans of about 4000 years ago, except that they came upon a unique and great realization that has stood as the foundation of Judaism ever since, namely that there is only one God who created us and therefore there is but one human family on earth. This single great belief remains basis of all of Judaism.
Following the Exodus from Egypt, approximately 3200 years ago, the Israelites built a Great Temple in Jerusalem where sacrifices were the primary means of expressing their devotion to God. But eventually, sacrifice became obsolete. Even before the Temple was destroyed by the Romans in the year 70 C.E., a transformation had begun that enabled Judaism to continue. The priests were replaced by scholars, called rabbis. Devotion to God through sacrifices was supplanted by communal worship. The synagogue was born, and these houses of prayer and study breathed new life into the Jewish people.
That was almost 2000 years ago. Since that time Judaism has gone through many changes, and also serious threats to our very existence. It is almost miraculous that we should still be here. Why is that? I do not believe for a moment that we are here today because God selected us. That is pure myth. In fact, if I could erase one single idea from Judaism, it would be that we were chosen by God. That concept, well intentioned as it may have been, has caused us nothing but misunderstanding and resentment.
We are still here not because God has favored us but because the Jewish people has remained true to its convictions even in the toughest of times. The Jews have survived not for survival’s sake alone but because we have never have lost sight of why there should be Jews.
In the Mishnah, in a chapter entitled “Pirké Avot,” “The Sayings of the Sages,” is found the concise sayings of some of the most illustrious rabbis of antiquity. One of these was Rabbi Meir, a descendant of converts to Judaism. One of his best known quotations is: “Do not look at the vessel but rather what it contains.” This single sentence offers an important insight about the nature of Judaism, past, present and future. We the Jewish people are the vessel; the contents are the core values of Judaism. Without the contents, the vessel is essentially a worthless container.
Particularly since the Holocaust, and especially over the past 60 years, the Jewish people have been preoccupied with self-preservation, for good reason. With Israel still facing relentless hostility, that fear of our destruction has not ended. The latest ranting of the president of Iran and his country’s nuclear ambitions make this abundantly clear. We dare not minimize the seriousness of these threats. And yet, self-preservation is not the end in itself. The oft-quoted reason for Jewish survival, namely to deprive Hitler of a posthumous victory is not sufficient. We need to be remain concerned not only with the “how” of Jewish survival but also with the “why.”
We need to be able to answer the question of why there should be Jews and Judaism, or face the likelihood of our disappearance, or at the very least of becoming as marginal as the Amish of Pennsylvania.
It should come as no surprise to you to hear that fewer and fewer Jews attend religious services on a regular basis. Both public and personal religious observance undeniably is in decline. Although I continue to believe in the importance of uniting the congregation in prayer, traditional observances are not the be-all and end-all of Judaism. Many Jews never set foot in a synagogue, except perhaps for a family occasion. For many Jews, services simply have lost their impact.
Permit me a moment of levity. A rabbi friend of mine tells the story, probably apocryphal, that he was once invited to give a talk at a senior center on the subject of Jewish survival. As an illustration, he asked rhetorically: “So have you seen any Babylonians lately?” the inference being clear. But one lady took him seriously and responded: “Since I got old, I don’t get out much any more. But you don’t have to tell me that the neighborhood has changed. But I am sure that if you treat them well, they’ll be nice to you too.”
In this presidential year, the politicians are fond of four or five point programs. So, here is my sense of what it will take for Judaism to remain vibrant.
The first step needs to be self-evaluation. We need to be more candid with ourselves and confront the realities of today, instead of pretending that everything is fine. Organized Judaism just is not working the same any more. We need to acknowledge that we are badly in need of a Jewish renaissance. We need the religious equivalent of the plug-in hybrid in order to avoid spiritual bankruptcy.
Second, we need to realize that although many Jews tend to describe the Jews as an ethnic or cultural group, this does a great disservice to Judaism. We may describe ourselves as M.O.T, as members of the tribe, but definitely is not helpful. We need to stop thinking of being Jewish as if we are members of some kind of private club. This applies specifically to our perception of interfaith marriage. Over half of all young Jews marry non-Jews.
As I have said on many occasions, I regard this not as a threat but as a golden opportunity. We need to welcome them in our midst enthusiastically and without reservation, with or without formal conversion. I am absolutely convinced that all we need to do is open our doors wider, stretch out our communal arms, and embrace all those who would like to be a part of our community, either formally or informally. The Jewish people will become more diverse, more dynamic, larger and immeasurably enriched.
This leads me to number three: the core values of Judaism must take precedence over ethnicity. Judaism, at its heart, is more than a religion. It is a value system. You may be surprised to learn that the Hebrew word for religion, which is dat, does not appear anywhere in the Bible and hardly even in the Talmud. Dat is a Hebrew word of relatively recent vintage. Historically, the Jews did not think of Judaism as a religion. Rather, they embraced the conviction that to be a Jew meant to live one’s life according to a specific code of ethical conduct, that we call mitzvot, not just good deeds, but actual definable obligations. We need to do much more to emphasize that Judaism has standards and expectations rather than dumbing down Judaism to the lowest common denominator of mere ethnicity.
That is why I stated at the very outset that Judaism is necessary if we wish for there to be Jews. There will be Jews only if there will be a Judaism. Without Judaism eventually there will be no Jews because if there is no meaningful Judaism, then the Jews are unnecessary. The Jews are the vessel, but as Rabbi Meir taught, it is the content that is essential. The values and ideals of Judaism will never grow old or stale. But the vessel is definitely showing its age.
And this then leads to number four, which is that we are long overdue for the next transformation, for re-inventing and renewing Judaism for the 21st century. Religious services are, for most, an occasional activity, not a regular discipline. Most Jews go to many more movies than synagogue services in the course of a year, probably even more baseball games.... but let's not talk about that! This is not a criticism. It is a candid observation.
Two thousand years ago, Temple sacrifices were replaced by the synagogue. A whole new Judaism came into being and, as a consequence, Judaism flourished. I believe that it is time for another transformation, one based not on ceremonies and worship services but on more tangible applications of what our traditions are intended to convey. I am convinced that if we do so, Judaism will be more vibrant than ever, and more gratifying than we can even imagine. Worship services may articulate what Judaism is about, but services are not an end in themselves. They are intended to point us in the right direction.
Let me tell you about an experience from my previous congregation in San Diego. Over 20 years ago, as a congregation in the center of the city, we observed the growing problem of homelessness and urban poverty, and we decided to do something about it. We launched what came to be known as the Hunger Project in partnership with the St. Vincent de Paul homeless shelter. In time, the program grew to where we were feeding over 1000 people a week, and also providing them with clothing and personal care articles. To do so required the assistance of hundreds of volunteer and a lot of money too.
There were many Temple members who rarely would attend a worship service but regarded their volunteer work at the Hunger Project as an essential religious obligation, a mitzvah, and they would never consider skipping a week. The Hunger Project became the best and most rewarding element of their Jewish identity. They went home tired and grimy, but they went home proud of what they were doing and even prouder to be doing so as members of a Jewish congregation. When I recall the success of this particular program, I am reminded of another saying of the ancient rabbis: “What is the reward for doing a mitzvah? It is the desire to performing even more mitzvot.” And I know this to be true.
That, my friends, is what Judaism can be at its very best. And it is exciting. This is my aspiration for the Jewish people and, in particular, for Chicago Sinai Congregation; that we should be a part of the renaissance of Judaism. Very simply: fewer words and much more action. Overwhelmingly, we are a very privileged community, well educated and brimming over with talent and resources. We need to channel these qualities so as to become a fuller and better Jewish congregation bonded together by the satisfaction that comes from Judaism in action, when committed people work together for the betterment of our community and our world..
Our Torah portion for Yom Kippur, so dramatically and capably read by Peter Bensinger, contains the prescription for the renewal of Judaism. “See, you are standing this day….every one of you,” meaning all of us. “This commandment is not too hard for you, nor is it remote…No it is very near to you, in your mouth and in your hand, that you may do it.” That you may do it. Not just talk about it, not just pray about it. Just do it.
I have a dream and a goal: to forge this congregation into a community of mitzvah doers. For quite some time, our “Face to Face” program and our social action committee have been preparing us to move from being "just a congregation" to being a “Just Congregation.” Our first major step has been to adopt the Schiller School in the Cabrini Green, a school that has been badly neglected, where there has been almost no community support, and whose students come from the most impoverished existence imaginable and it is less than two miles away. We invite your help and your commitment to make a difference in the lives of the children of this struggling school. And when we succeed, and we are going to succeed, this will be just the beginning. As we do, we can become an exemplar of the very essence of Judaism. Consider this to be an invitation to every one of you to make your own Judaism more fully alive and meaningful. This is an invitation to participate in the rediscovery and renaissance of Judaism.
That is an exciting prospect for us all. Many opportunities for service will be presented to you in the months to come. No one can do them all; everyone can do something.
I would like to believe that all of us would desire to be more than the equivalent of empty bottles; that our worship here should be more than "sound and fury, signifying almost nothing." May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts inspire us and empower us. Let us strive to be the living examples of the lofty ideals which have keep our people alive to this very day. To be the vessels of Jewish values is our privilege, our blessing and our sacred responsibility.