September 2025 - From Despair to Repair

This year as we approach and celebrate the High Holy Days together, we pray, and pray, and pray. And what do we pray for? For more time, more goodness, and for God’s favor. If you are wondering whether your prayer will be good enough to be answered, here’s a tip: if you complete your prayer and are a better person than when you began, then your prayer was answered.

We will sing and chant and slog through many prayers, as you know. And I will offer some words and thoughts, which I am preparing right now. We are steeped in the brokenness of our world, divisions in our own country, the situation in Israel, and increasing anti-semitism. We know these things may not be resolved quickly, and we could sink into despair as we contemplate it all.

However, we have the opportunity to engage in shifting our thinking from despair to repair. One way in which we can make this move is to focus on positive words of hope and faith. To this end, I will be offering a “feel good” sermon at each of our morning services, as well as at our Yom Kippur Mincha/Ne’ilah services.

May our time together be as sweet as the apples and honey that we will enjoy together, and may you all be inscribed for a shana tova u’metukah, a good and sweet year. 

B’shalom,
Cantor Rena