Today’s world is increasingly polarized by individuals digging deeply into their personal convictions.  Friends and families are torn apart over politics and social policies.  Newspapers and news shows, journalists and commentators do not even bother making claims of neutrality.  Our national government, built on the foundation of opposition through compromise, has been drawn to a halt on the most important issues facing us.  There is a brooding sense of angst and discomfort in our lives.

 

There is, however, one place where we want people to feel comfortable and that is at Midbar Kodesh Temple.  We want people to feel of sense of calm, safety and comfort.  In our sanctuary, chapel, classrooms, and even in our offices and hallways, we want people to feel at ease.

 

Our brand of Judaism, Conservative Judaism, works hard to make everyone feel comfortable in the synagogue.  From the ways we have “egalitarianized” the service for men and women to the strides we have made with the LBGTQ+ community; from the openness to interfaith families to the welcoming of people of color; Midbar Kodesh Temple serves as a beacon of inclusivity in the faith community of Southern Nevada.

 

In a few weeks, we will usher in the High Holidays, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.  Within our High Holiday liturgy we find a notion of broad-tent Judaism where people from all walks of life are welcomed into the room to pray together regardless of differences.  One of the places we find it is in the famous “Al Chet” Prayer. We read this prayer almost a dozen times over the holidays.  The list is written in the plural.  Each transgression on the list starts with “for the sin which WE have committed….”   There is no one person sitting in the pews on Yom Kippur that has committed all the transgressions on the list.  But the rabbis were aware of the power of the community; the power of everyone coming together to pray for atonement on behalf of others.  No matter your status, you are welcome, and we will pray together.  Another example is found in the introduction to the Kol Nidre prayer when in chant, “we are permitted to prayer together with the abaryanim, those who have transgressed.” 

 

One of the lessons of the High Holidays is the idea of inclusion, of making everyone feel relaxed and at peace while coming together to pray and contemplate. This is also one of the messages of this year’s theme for the High Holidays,  “Embracing Inclusivity.”  What can we do over the coming year to enhance and improve on our warmth and accessibility?  What individuals or groups are feeling ignored or alienated, unwelcome or uninvited? 

 

We hope to reach out to you to get your input and to use the High Holiday season to kick off the effort.  May 5784 be a year filled with joy, love, health, compassion and success. 

​

On behalf of my wife Susan and my family, I want to be the first to wish you all a Shana Tova U’metukah, a Happy, Healthy and Sweet New Year. 

​

Rabbi Bradley Tecktiel