Some observations, this Yom Kippur:

• Our Kol Nidre Sermon was quite surprising: Rabbi Brown spoke on Proposition 8. Now, he never explicitly came out and spoke on a particular way to vote (smart man, he), he did talk about how homosexuality was one of the last acceptable forms of discrimination in society… and how that discrimination was wrong. He talked about some of the various statements being made, such as the claim that if the law stands as is, teachers will be forced to teach about homosexual marriage — that’s wrong, because all they legally need to cover is the benefits of marriage, not what valid marriages are… and those benefits are independent of how the couples are constituted. He also noted that the claims regarding churches being forced to teach about gay marriage or officiate are wrong… the separation of synagogue and state (;-)) means the government cannot dictate church teachings. Churches can discriminate, but government cannot. He also noted on how the Board of Rabbis has officially come out as being against Proposition 8. I was pleased to hear this sermon — this is what the pulpit is for: taking a moral position and educating the congregation about what religion says. Of course, it probably didn’t hurt that I support the No on 8 cause.

• This morning’s sermon was less interesting. Rabbi Lutz spoke about the call to get involved, and not just stand idlely by. The basic point at the end was to get involved with some of the social action activities at the temple. I didn’t find it that stirring of a call.
• We did go to one of the afternoon discussions. We had a speaker from the Anti-Defamation League, talking about hate on the internet. This is something I’m well aware of, being prominant in the Jewish internet community. It is also one thing I’m worried about with this election and the current financial crisis: as the economy is tanking, guess what is rising: antisemitism (the comments in that link just make the point). All of us who are active on the internet must do our part to combat hate speech: it is our responsibility as good internet citizens.
• I should note that I’m very proud of my soon-to-be 14yo daughter: this is her first YK doing a fast (only water), and she has inspired me to do the same (although I have had black tea, just to warn off any migraine). She also went to the afternoon talk (although not afternoon services, which can be a bit snooze-inducing), as well as going to closing services.
• Sitting in services, I was thinking back to the various places I’ve been in services, from the Mormon stake in Van Nuys where TBT had their services, the sanctuaries at Ahavat Shalom and Kol Tikvah, the Hillel at CSUN, Warner Youth Center and Piness Auditorium at Wilshire Boulevard Temple, and the old sanctuary at Temple Jeremiah in Westchester. No point here, just interesting to look back at all the services and how they have differed.

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This is my annual recap post regarding services and sermons this Rosh Hashanah 5769. L’Shanah Tovah, everyone.

Erev Rosh Hashanah Sermon: This was our first HHD service as newly returning members (we left around 1991) to Ahavat Shalom. We went to early services, which were led by Rabbi Lutz and Cantor Linskey.

Rabbi Lutz’s sermon was a take on the Akidah, the story of the binding of Isaac (Genesis 22: 1-19), which is read Rosh Hashanah morning. Rabbi Lutz’s reconcieving of the story was that of a father who can’t sleep, and dreams a command from God to go on a roadtrip with his son… to where… God will tell him when they get there. So off they go… the dad thinking about work, the teenaged son isolated with his iPod and video player. Sound familiar? When they stop at the hotel overnight, the son plays WOW on his laptop, while dad gets lost in the sports channels and checks work from email. This continues until they are in the mountains, where the realization hits them that they have been bound by their technology, and that the need to free those bonds to relate (one should note that Rabbi Lutz is a techno-geek). Interesting sermon, so I felt I had to blog about it.

Rosh Hashanah Morning: Early services (830a) were too early for the rest of the family, so I went alone. They were going to go later, but were felled by colds. Today’s services were led by Rabbi Brown and the Cantor of the Day.

Rabbi Brown’s sermon (which was initially foiled by technology) was about the overuse of the word “love” when we mean “empathy”. It was actually a political sermon (although not about any particular candidate or issue), talking about how the Torah repeatedly commands us to feel empathy with others, with those downtrodden (because we were downtrodden), and with those on high, remembering that we are all humans with feelings. There was talk of the current financial problems (I should note that at this point Rabbi Brown noted how everyone is aware of Rosh Hashanah because the house is in recess today, claiming how it shows the Jews are in charge… but that if Jews were in charge, this problem wouldn’t have happened). He talked quite a bit about how there appear to be no qualms about corporate bailouts, but there was little empathy three years ago when backruptcy laws were revised making it harder for individuals. He noted that most individuals go bankrupt not from spending beyond their means, but due to job loss or medical problems that are beyond their control. He discussed how the wealthier have become wealthier, and the number of folks in poverty have increased. He also noted that the poor give a larger percentage of their income to charity than do the ultra-rich, and that poverty and hunger could be easily stopped if those who were fortunate showed empathy for those less fortunate. I certainly found it an appropriate sermon for the times (and made me firmer in my choices regarding this election).

Sartorial Observations: The last four years we were at Temple Beth Hillel in North Hollywood, which is filled with industry and lawyerly types. We’re now at Ahavat Shalom in Northridge, which is much more of a mix of incomes. During HHD services at TBH, folks were dressed to the 9s: lots of very high heels, very short skirts, and dresses that seemed to show the flash. At TAS, this was much more a down to earth crowd, much more everyday in their style and dress. It was nice to see.

On the other hand, with respect to religious attire, I think I saw more tallit at TBH. Even for the men at TAS, it was about 40% tallit and 60% not, and only perhaps 20% of the women. At TBH (and at Temple Beth Torah before that), there were more tallit. More bothersome (and I find it interesting that it was bothersome) was that those called up to the Bimah during the Torah service didn’t all wear Tallit. That was something that was ingrained in me by Rabbi Nosan-Blank (any of you in Orangevale, say “L’shana Tovah” to her for me–she’s now at Or Rishon). Yes, I know that’s now how classic Reform was (and I was raised classic Reform), but I thought Reform was moving back towards Tallit and Kippah. It was interesting to see the variation.

Other Observations: This was the first Rosh Hashanah in a long time without any sort of financial appeal. For those of you unfamiliar with HHD services, let me explain. One place where a rabbi is sure to see most of his congregants is at HHD services. Thus, this is the place for appeals: typically there is one for Israel Bonds, and one for the Temple, usually split across the two days. We didn’t get the typical one for Israel Bonds; I wonder if we’ll have a temple appeal on Yom Kippur. We did, however, have the usual bags handed out for Mazon.

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