A Shabbat of Surrender

Dear Friends and Family, 

The opening words of last week’s Torah portion, Vayahkel-Pekudei, recount Moshe’s first act after coming down from Mount Sinai, having just received the Ten Commandments. Our text tells us: “ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וַיַּקְהֵ֣ל מֹשֶׁ֗ה אֶֽת־כָּל־עֲדַ֛ת בְּנֵ֥י”- “And Moses gathered all of the community of the Children of Israel” (Exodus 35: 1). 

David Ackerman, the president of the Association of Jewish Community Centres of North America commented on this verse, sharing that the events of this week have proven that "unity”- and I would add community- “is a state of mind, not a geographic designation". 

I have never physically gathered less than I have in these last couple of weeks. I made it into Canada after a teaching placement in LA just before the borders closed, and have been in quarantine for almost two weeks now, seeing nobody except for my parents (from a distance). I am so grateful to be safe in my big childhood home, but as my friends continue to learn and pray together online half way across the world, my heart is broken that I remain 8 hours time difference and many miles apart from them. I'm not sure when I will be able to return to Jerusalem, but with each passing day it seems less likely that a timely return to life at Pardes will be possible.

And yet, I have never felt more emotionally surrounded by community. On Friday I "Zoomed" into three Kabbalat Shabbat services, held by different communities that I belong to around the world, including my beloved Egalitarian Minyan at Pardes in Jerusalem and BBYO’s international teen network. I celebrated Havdallah with a group of camp friends, many of whom have not brought in the new week together in many years. It has been deeply comforting in this time of such a loss of control to sing, learn, pray, and smile with the people I love in the communities have raised me. 

I hear it all the time- if you’ve got facts, you don’t need faith. Right? 

But we don’t have facts right now. We don’t have control- the events of this week have shown us that any control we thought we had was simply an illusion. 

Shabbat, and each other, are the only constant things in our lives right now. Here in Calgary, Shabbat will arrive in just a couple of minutes. It will come whether I am ready for it or not. And in this time of upheaval, of changing plans and of uncertain days ahead, we can still gather. We can still braid our challah, bless our children, light our candles, and sing our prayers. 

The very next line in last week’s Torah portion tells us: “In six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a sabbath of complete rest”. As my friend Meital puts it, the world needs a Shabbat. We need this reminder- to slow down, yes, but also to let go. To surrender. We need Shabbat to remind us that we are not in control. That we don’t know what might come next, and that we can use each other- our community and its rituals- to ground ourselves where ever we may be, in hopes that it will warm and comfort our hearts just enough to prepare us for whatever is to come our way. 

Wishing us all a week of surrendering control and of gathering in unusual ways,

Lara