Thinking Torah Blog

Earlier this week we sat around our seder tables retelling our sacred narrative of liberation from Egypt. We drank wine or grape juice, we ate bitter herbs, we crunched on matzah and fulfilled the mitzvah of gathering and telling our story. We also ended our seders in a particular way, as we do every year, we said, “L’shanah Haba’ah Birushalayim,” Next Year in Jerusalem.

We are all aware of the horrors of October 7th and the continued horrors of this war. God willing, the war will come to an end soon. Even in the face of those horrors, I have traveled to Israel 4 times since October 7th, and on my most recent trip, I went with my entire family. We all felt safe during our visit.

This coming December, the Ann Arbor Jewish community is traveling to Israel together. I know it isn’t the easiest time to decide to travel to Israel, and I also know how vital travel to Israel is right now. Israel needs us, both as a support and as a mirror. Traveling to Israel allows us to speak with love and authenticity about what we see. Regardless of where one stands on the Israeli government’s actions, I hope we all agree that our people need us now in ways we could hardly imagine before October 7th. Please consider joining us on this important trip.

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While you are thinking about Israel, please also take a moment to vote in the World Zionist Congress for ARZA, the Reform Movement's zionist organization. Your vote will help ensure liberal values in Israel and the future of liberal Judaism in the state. We need your vote before May 4th.

Choose slate #3 Vote Reform!

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