In the past few weeks, many of you have completed a survey we put out to assess options for High Holy Day services this coming September. The information that will come back will no doubt assist our decision making, but it is one of many factors that will go into the final outcome. Other factors will include: medical guidelines from New York State related to Covid, our budget and technological capabilities, as well as our members expectations. Regardless, there will be no perfect solution, just best guesses. What we know for sure is that we will not be throwing our hands up in the air and giving up.
Giving up is exactly what ten out of the twelve spies want to do in this week’s Torah portion, Shelach. They had just returned from a tour of Holy Land and, while, they were amazed by the agricultural possibilities, they were petrified of actually attempting to conquer it. Throwing up their hands, they give up and prepare to return to Egypt. Only, Joshua and Caleb are there to prevent disaster. When the going got tough they got going.
Throughout the pandemic, our choices have been limited and often bad. But, they were still our choices. Our work is too important to choose the path of the ten spies. We must persevere. Giving up is not an option. Adjusting our expectations, we hold on to what we can, imaging the sweet taste of milk and honey that awate us at the end of our journey. That alone is worth the effort.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Alex
PS – Here is my My View Column from the Buffalo News
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