Lech Lecha
We all have the ability to create something good in the world and every year after all the High Holy Days, when we were so close to the presence of God, Now we can begin again. As humans to recreate our personal world and thus impact the rest of the earth in a positive way.
As God began His creation story with the “Bet” the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet, so too will we begin our personal positive creation stories that will affect our community of Congregation Sof Ma’arav starting not as if we were on first base but on second, starting in the continuation of what has already been in process. It is for us to seek other ways to engage, the unengaged and to welcome those who are on the outskirts of Judaism.
As we maintain a strong commitment to lead services, study, teach and leyn Torah to make sure that each week we have more than a minyan, to address each other in a positive, “we can do anything-together attitude” this is what we continue to do here. Other than Chabad, we are the only synagogue reading Torah weekly on Shabbat, just as generations ago our forefathers exiled to Babylonia retained Judaism and a Torah during weekly services, so too, in the middle of the Pacific maintain the same traditions. We as people look back, to look forward.
Judaism means something, Torah is vital to our existence, Sof Ma’arav is vital to the island of Oʻahu.
WE are continually evolving in re-creating. Our ability to adjust, change the parts of him/her that he/she doesn’t like and become the person that God meant us to be. To throw away the parts that just don’t work anymore and keep the parts of ourselves that do. To walk in God’s ways is to continually be aware of oneself and the presence of God at the same time. To drop the fear of the unknown in ourselves in order to recreate a more perfect model. I did not say a perfect model, I said a more perfect….to strive to be better in spirit and mind. This is quite a difficult task to change, be a revolving door of ourselves. Casting away what isn’t working. This is what Abraham was able to do. With God’s guidance and security in his faith, Abraham was able to change constantly. For the habits that are already formed in us, must be unglued, peeled away. And in order to become the man/woman we strive to be under the watchful eyes of God our creator, we need to be fearless in taking a new form, in looking at life in a new way, in accepting a new path for the good, for the better of the world and ourselves. To recreate ourselves, forgive ourselves, forgive others and create the person, the human. The man/woman that walks on earth to be something new, fresh, and alive.
We continue God’s creation story, every day, every week, month, and year to recreate our lives for the good of mankind and in our case the Jewish community.
Abraham went forth, Lech Lecha because God told him to, to find his authentic self in the wilderness of life.
Because when it comes down to it, we all live in the wilderness of life often not knowing whether to turn right or left, go backwards or forwards, take this direction of that. It was only because of His relationship with God. This personal one to one relationship that Abraham was successful in his life.
And this is what Abraham teaches us in the Torah. We all have the capacity to face our wilderness. To move ahead without fear. Because at one time long, long time ago. A man named Abraham went out into his wilderness in life and achieved a lifetime of blessings and eternal guidance.
Chaye Sarah
Why does this parsha start with the death of Sarah even though it is titled the life of Sarah?
Well in the most recent work of Eileen Lum, Gin Sgan’s sister who visits here weekly to learn Hebrew, she wrote and produced the book “A Beautiful Life and a Beautiful Death.” So yes, thousands of years later after Sarah dies, we in this community continue to study Sarah’s life and use her as a model for living, even bless our daughters with her name. And yes, after a year of us losing Gin Sgan, we have pulled together as a community to support each other, love each other, and strive to be better people because of her. Gin’s grace, kindness, intelligence, and love for all of us and for Sof Ma’arav has made us into better people, as does our biblical model Sarah.
Why were our patriarchs & matriarchs not perfect people, perfect models for us?
Sarah lived a colorful life. Our ancestors were not perfect people by any means. Sarah & Abraham had issues. Yet, God loved them, watched over them, listened to their prayers, and even spoke to them. One would think that you would have to be an almost perfect human being without flaws to have such a close relationship to God. But the Torah tells us otherwise. What Sarah & Abraham had, was enormous faith in one God. And having that faith, floated them through bad times and lifted them up spiritually during the good times.
Why are the voices/names of so many women in the bible unheard?
Here are a few examples:
The silent Hebrew letter Aleph is most profoundly equated to the silence of women in the Torah. As we separate the first letter Aleph and the second letter Bet we understand that in the Torah, the silent message of God, is just as powerful as the second letter Bet. As Tzvi Freeman describes “is an explosive sound indicating force and power…the mystery of Aleph stands silently behind it.” Women have a silent but powerful role in the Torah as the first silent letter Aleph. Aleph represents God in his glory and life which forever precedes all things. It encompassed all reality and gives strength before the Bet of creation.
I would like to quote Millie Ireijo one of our Sof Ma’arav members who Eileen quoted in her tribute to Gin. Millie said Gin led an exemplary life and stated, “When we were born, we were given a checking account and a number of years. We were also given a book on how to spend them wisely.”
Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh
A gathering of mourning – 11/01/2018
I am the keynote speaker for 300 in attendance at Temple Emanu-El in Honolulu.
And the life of Sarah was one hundred years and twenty years and seven years; [these were] the years of the life of Sarah.
וַיִּֽהְיוּ֙ חַיֵּ֣י שָׂרָ֔ה מֵאָ֥ה שָׁנָ֛ה וְעֶשְׂרִ֥ים שָׁנָ֖ה וְשֶׁ֣בַע שָׁנִ֑ים שְׁנֵ֖י חַיֵּ֥י שָׂרָֽה:
This week’s Torah portion is Chayei Sarah, which translates as the lifetime of Sarah. The title is her life. Just as we mourn our friends in Pittsburgh, it is their loss of living and breathing on earth that we mourn and yet we honor their lives, and in honoring their lives, they still live among us.
Yet what can we do in our grief over the senseless killing of our innocent friends gathered together for this weekly Shabbat Shacharit service? They were simply living their lives as Shabbat regulars to make a minyan of ten, to pray to God, to be part of a community. Tonight we can gather together and speak of our nation’s incredible loss. Yet, we can do one more thing to make our world a better place. We can affiliate, get involved, and become active members of a religious congregation. This is what our friends in Pittsburgh died doing.
As their precious spirits remain with us, what can we do, as humans, merely earthly creatures to fix this enormous, gut-wrenching wound to our people, the nation, and the world? Make a difference, stand up and be counted, honor those who were simply doing what they do best going to synagogue, a safe place to pray. They were mensch(es): people of integrity and honor. They were the mainstays of their congregation.
They came to the earlier morning Shacharit service to be part of their community. If you want to change our world, change our Jewish world and the religious island life of so many congregations. Right here, right now join in, affiliate, and make your voice be heard because our friends were killed doing what we have an opportunity, the freedom, the hope and the promise to fulfill here in Hawaiʻi. To create a more positive, more proactive more solid community and stand up and say I am going to be counted as a member of my faith and I will become a part of this right here right now at this place, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean – because the need is great and because I am needed.
Let’s dig deep in our souls and maintain the Yiddishkeit in the state of Hawaiʻi by being a part of something bigger than ourselves. Make a difference to others. When Jewish Community Services of Hawaiʻi comes knocking on your door to help the needy among us, respond to them. Sign up for Family Promise because these are all good people that are trying their best to get back on their feet again.
Today is a day to make a commitment to honor our faith in God, to honor all those who came before us and to retain the remnants of Judaism right here, right now, in this place that we call home, Hawaiʻi. To carry on today what our friends who were murdered can no longer do. We can take our forefather’s history of Sarah our matriarch and Abraham our patriarch from thousands of years ago and continue the future of understanding what it means to live a life of giving back to others. We have the power and the opportunity to change our lives for the better within a community.
The campaign across the mainland to show our solidarity as a people for this week is show up for Shabbat. This is a very good idea.
A Thank You Note
To the Sof congregation for Don’s Toast and Roast Celebration in 2018 for his 10 years of being President of Sof Ma’arav
Aloha Everyone,
As Donald has stepped down as President and I have stepped into his place, it is fitting that we both send aloha and love your way for the outstanding celebration that we experienced last night. Perhaps it was the combination of Sofers doing what they do best which is truly enjoying each other while admiring our talented cast of players. We laughed so hard at the “roasts and toasts” and we witnessed all kinds of terrific performances of singing, story telling, original poetry and comedy. Our reputation as the party shul was wonderfully upheld! When we get together both on and off the bimah we connect in extraordinary ways. Our personal thank yous will continue and in the meantime….
Todah Rabah to everyone who made this event so special.
Sandy & Don
Presidential Speech 5779-2018
As the new president of Congregation Sof Ma’arav
L’Shana Tova to all of you here tonight. And may we be blessed with a sweet new year full of laughter, joy, life and celebration.
We welcome you with open arms for those of you who are here with us today. Whether you join us today over the High Holy Days, weekly on Shabbat, or whenever you are able. We welcome you and your families and friends.
As God does not discriminate on who is to enter Congregation Sof Ma’arav, neither do we! We are a proud congregation who has been together for 47 years. We are also unique in that we are the only Conservative shul on Oʻahu that is egalitarian where both men and women are welcome to lead services, give prepared D’var Torah, and read from the Torah every Shabbat, with an average of 40-50 people weekly.
Our children are part of our Sof community and have formed a separate, joyous entity within ours. The giggles and laughter of young children learning what it means to be Jewish is beautiful music coming out of our adjacent library every Shabbat.
As we move into 5779 tonight let us remember all the good we did in 5778:
- Our newly created newsletter keeps us informed and unifies us in thought and action.
- Five new Torah readers were launched after a six month in-house course
- A Comprehensive Sof History project comes to completion and will be published this year called Honey and Poi
- Beginning, intermediate and advanced Biblical Hebrew courses continue to be offered
- Talmud Study weekly after the Oneg
- Delicious Mr. & Mrs. Potluck Onegs
- A popular, and insightful Book club
- An active 16 member board along with 11 committee members including a new board position to welcome our snowbirds
- A party shul that gives us the opportunity to truly celebrate our lives together with great joy as recently, Don’s 10 years of presidency and before that Bernice’s 10 years with “hats on” for Bernice.
- This year, we will celebrate again together in honor of Marlene Booth and Avi Soifer who are our nominees for the Jewish Community Service dinner on November 4th. Please save the date
- We come together for High Holy Day services and celebrations with boundless energy
- We have a High Holy Day choir and our wonderful visiting Rabbi, Rabbi Rosalind Glazer who you will hear from shortly
- Bikkur Cholim comforting and visiting the ill
- Yahrzeit reminders and a memory book read weekly with names of our loved ones
- Announcements and representation from T’hara committee on Jewish Burial Preparation Practices
- Unpredictable as life can be…Kaddish minyans to comfort those families who need our support both at shiva minyans and graveside funerals at our local Jewish cemetery, Abraham’s Garden in Hawaiian Memorial Park.
We bond together in life for those moments when a doorway closes as our loved ones pass away and we must say goodbye. But we do not say goodbye alone, no, because we are a loving community that takes care of each other especially in times of need. No one should be alone at the time of loss of a loved one. Through Sof Ma’arav we are comforted and not isolated in grief. When the tears stop flowing and the mourners look around again, they know that they will never truly be alone.
And today I stand before you as your new president to say that each and every one of your are important to the rest of us. For whatever your participation at Sof Ma’arav, we are grateful. Jews are tribal. All members of the tribe are included on whatever level they choose at whatever time they choose.
As we read in yesterday’s parsha, Nitzavim, God has handpicked each one of us in His/Her own way to be the BEST they can be as humans on earth. We need not take a rocket ship up to heaven when truly God is in this place and in each of our hearts.
If you are new to Congregation Sof Ma’arav tonight, please join us in the adjacent oneg room so that we can properly welcome you and learn your names.
Jewish Girl Meets Not-So-Jewish Boy 