Shabbat Shalom, BAI
As summer begins, the BAI annual meting is taking place on Sunday starting at 10 am. It’s a chance to have a delicious brunch, install new officers, thank our many, many volunteers for all they do to make BAI what it is, and to look back on the many events, learning opportunities and times we’ve shared together (and get a peek at what is coming in the year ahead.)
With that in mind, I want to highlight a few of the moments that stand out for me from this very full, very intense, and at times very heavy year.
Oct 7, the day before Simchat Torah. That entire day, Rabbi David, Lori, Cantor Jenn and Donald (with many congregants weighing in as well), discussed how on Earth we would mark a night of celebration on one of the darkest days in the history of Israel and our people.
There was pressure from all sides: to cancel, to not cancel, to hold a vigil, to not hold a vigil, to grieve, mourn and just be together. In the end we opted to do both: To grieve and dance, to hold each other, and sing and celebrate. It was imperfect but it was also very Beth Am. Without knowing it at the time, it set a template for how we would continue to address our need to hold space for this terrible war, and at the same time, make room for life to go on. Not ‘as normal’, but as a way of demonstrating that we will endure, grow, and figure out this new reality together.
A few weeks later, as if to prove the point, we brought the game show (planned months in advance), “Who Knows One” to Beth Am. And while that might feel like a thousand years ago, it was just this past fall, and it was great! Kudos to Cantor Jenn for bringing it to BAI and for seeing it through. We laughed a lot and had a much needed break from the daily news.
This spring we had a real NYC deli meal, with all the fixins! Road tripping with Donald (now our third time!) is always a blast, but seeing the delight on the faces of over 120 congregants enjoying the food (especially those mini-knishes!) was fantastic. Look for the next iteration of this new BAI tradition!
Souls Shot exhibited paintings of victims of gun violence and it was no less harrowing and beautiful than in years past. At the opening, hearing from the women whose lives were shattered and their stories of resilience, uncommon heroism, and leadership was remarkable.
And of course, getting to the point…Laurel Canyon was just…perfect. It was a full BAI team effort and it paid off in every way. The Sanctuary walls are still smiling…
Last but not least: On a sun-soaked Shabbat morning last fall over thirty BAIers met at a state park, for a mindfully prayerful infused walk. This outside the box Shabbat experience affirmed the desire of many to connect with Shabbat in a different way. We set out to create a series of offerings we call ‘Something Different’, culminating in our first of its kind, “In-house” Shabbat retreat.
For me, finding not just the permission but the encouragement to keep experimenting, to keep exploring different ways to connect with prayer and ritual, and continually expanding the boundaries of how we find meaning in all of this is truly a shared gift. To everyone who shows up to lead, take a solo, add a harmony, beat on a drum, or simply show up and be present, all of you, all of us, make this space and more importantly, the time we are together, holy, and I thank you.
In the year to come, we are planning to offer many ‘Something Different’ opportunities while at the same time, preserving and deepening our commitment to our traditional modes of prayer and our time honored rituals.
Keep reading the Luach (our weekly email on Sundays of programming and events) come out to sing, make a s’more, watch a movie, and so much more. And: Tell a friend, bring a friend, and spread the word of who we are and what we do!
Shabbat Shalom.
Hazzan Harold
