“I will grant peace in the land, and you shall lie down untroubled by anyone;” (Leviticus 26:6) Each week we recite this line as part of a prayer we say pleading with God to bring peace to the world. Each week we beg God to do something because we are incapable of realizing the answer to conflict is never war. War has never solved anything. Sure, it brought about the end of the dictator Benito Mussolini but the world birthed the heinous Hitler. Yes, it brought about the demise of Osama bin Laden but Ismail Haniyeh has been propped up by Hamas. And the lists go on and on and on. We can’t get it right and wars seem inevitable. Since October 7th we have asked ourselves with extraordinary urgency, “how can we change the paradigm?” What can we do to change the approach? Many answers have been proposed. New education. New leadership. New partnerships. New thinking. I don’t know if the land of Israel will ever find peace. However, that does not stop me from praying and working for it.
Shavuot: The Holiday of Receiving the Torah will be observed Tuesday evening June 11 and Wednesday June 12 (Yizkor). Our congregation’s custom is to gather on Tuesday evening June 11 and learn from each other. This year that observance will take place at8:30pm. The theme will be Healing/Resilience: What helps us get through hard times? If you would like to share a text, please let me know.
Greenburgh Hebrew Center rabbistein@ghcny.org 515 Broadway Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522 914-693-4260 office@ghcny.org www.ghcny.org
