‘Here I am’: challenged but emboldened for High Holy Days

COMMENTARY /// This year’s High Holidays



A NEW YEAR—Cathy Cole of Thousand Oaks lights candles for Rosh Hashanah during a previous year’s observance. Chabad of the Conejo will provide safe services both online and in person. Acorn file photo

A NEW YEAR—Cathy Cole of Thousand Oaks lights candles for Rosh Hashanah during a previous year’s observance. Chabad of the Conejo will provide safe services both online and in person. Acorn file photo

We’re all being tested this year, and I’m not referring to the swab invasions up our nostrils.

We’re being tested for our sense of priorities, our core principles and attitudes, and our underlying faith.

These “tests” are being manifested in virtually every area of our lives. A few weeks from now they will take on yet another dimension for members of the Jewish community regarding if and how to observe the High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah (Sept. 19 and 20) and Yom Kippur (Sept. 28).

The Days of Awe marking the beginning of the Jewish New Year are recognized by Jews as a time of spiritual and communal renewal, a time to get that “Jewish recharge” for the year ahead.

Many go out of their way to attend services and observe the traditions of these sacred days.

But what about now? Concerns about COVID-19 and mandated guidelines and restrictions will make it difficult to congregate and hold services.

To that I say, bring it on! As a community, we will not be aiming for mediocre simulations of what we’ve done in the past. We’ll find creative ways to make these days more special, memorable and meaningful than ever before.

Bryski

Bryski

In the Torah (the Hebrew Bible), the word “test” is interchangeable with the word “summons.” Scripture is replete with accounts of inspirational figures whose faith and devotion were repeatedly tested under the most trying of circumstances.

With hindsight, we can see how the tests were instances of God summoning those individuals to new heights of greatness that would inspire generations.

Our ancestors—including Abraham, Joseph, Moses and Isaiah— responded to the challenge with a single word: hineini, which means “here I am.”

Beyond a statement of mere presence and availability, hineini connotes a sense of readiness to rise above adversity and embrace a unique mission and purpose.

The chapter of the Torah traditionally read aloud in the synagogue on Rosh Hashanah— Genesis 22—recounts one of the greatest tests in the Bible: the binding of Isaac, wherein Abra- ham was summoned by God to bring his son Isaac as an offering on Mount Moriah. In that chapter, Abraham invokes hineini on three separate occasions.

When Abraham’s hand was ultimately stayed by the angel, a ram was offered on the altar in Isaac’s stead.

One of the reasons for the sounding of the shofar, a ram’s horn, on Rosh Hashanah is to recall the unstinting faith and devotion displayed by our patriarch in response to a test of unimaginably trying proportions.

The blasts of the shofar are a nonverbal declaration of hineini— a triumphant cry from the soul that says, “Whatever the circumstances, I am here with God, as he is here with me. Whatever the hardship before me, I shall muster the courage to persevere.”

This is the way the Jewish people have responded to the trials and tribulations of our storied history. The greater the challenge, the stronger our resolve.

I would suggest that the upcoming High Holidays represent a historically opportune time to access our inner hineini.

If in past years we’ve simply gone through the motions, perhaps this is the year to invest more of our heart and soul into every aspect of these auspicious days.

If in past years we’ve been somewhat on the fence and doing the minimum, perhaps this is the year to leap off that fence and do the maximum.

If in past years, we’ve stayed away altogether, perhaps this is the year to show up.

This year will require creative adapting. This can serve to enhance the depth and richness of our celebrations.

Accordingly, we at Chabad of the Conejo will extend various COVID-kosher avenues of observance people can choose from for the High Holidays.

To avoid the use of electronic devices on the holy days, sermons will be broadcast live on Zoom and Facebook on Sept. 17 and 24, before Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The sermons will be accessible thereafter via YouTube for non-Sabbath/holiday viewing.

Chabad will offer free High Holiday handbooks which folks are welcome to pick up at the Center for Jewish Life in Agoura Hills; call in advance.

The handbooks provide details for the observance of the High Holidays in the home.

Chabad will offer in-person outdoor High Holiday services at select locations. Held under a canopy for shade, the abbreviated services—which will be offered several times throughout the day—will adhere to county health guidelines.

Due to this year’s restrictions on capacity and spacing, attendance will be by reservation only.

On the second day of Rosh Hashanah, we will provide short shofar-blowing ceremonies requiring masks and social distancing at designated public parks.

I encourage my fellow Jews to use the spiritually propitious moments of the approaching High Holidays to attain precious insight, perspective and growth, not despite the pandemic, but because of it.

The challenges are great, but so is the opportunity to stand up and proclaim, “Hineini! Here I am! Ready to serve! Ready to bless and be blessed!”

For details, schedules or to reservations, visit chabadconejo. com or call (818) 991-0991.

Bryski is the executive director of Chabad of the Conejo, serving the greater Conejo Valley with nine regional centers.