Rosh Hashanah Morning Sermon

October 4, 2005

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Rabbi Anthony D. Holz

The High Holy Day season reminds us that decisions have consequences.  This is true for us as a nation, as individuals and as a congregation.  When confronted with pressures and problems, it is very important to make wise decisions, the kind that will lead to a better future, because the alternatives are not good. 

Hurricane Katrina provides a compelling example.  This major storm had destructive consequences that clearly could have been prevented if over the years local, state and national leaders had made better choices.  The Army Corps of Engineers repeatedly warned that the New Orleans levees would collapse and horrendous disasters would follow unless 14 billion dollars was spent to prevent the flooding of Lake Pontchartrain and the breaching of the levees.  Because leaders at all levels would not or could not find the funds to do what was needed, it is now clear that the water damage and destruction is enormous and the economic costs will be in the hundreds of billions of dollars.

Katrina is evidence not only of a failure of political and economic leadership but also of moral judgment.  At the mouth of the Mississippi River, New Orleans is a major shipping port and tourist attraction; Louisiana is a state awash in oil; and the current wealth of the United States is without rival.  But the huge income available was never permitted to reach tens of thousands of poor people who lived permanently with poverty and crime and no hope of escape.  Hurricane Katrina has exposed the leaders of Louisiana and its biggest city as morally no better than the oil-rich sheiks who run Saudi Arabia.  And, because (whether led by Republicans or Democrats) our Federal Government ignored repeated warnings and so permitted this state of affairs to continue indefinitely, we are all tainted by the toxic sludge of New Orleans. 

Bad decisions can lead to corrosive consequences.  And, lest we think that the setting aside of reports of impending trouble and the inability to address fundamental, structural problems is limited to our national refusal to deal with poverty, let us remind ourselves of the widespread current information about the potentially deadly consequences of nuclear proliferation and global warming, issues which our national leaders once again seem unable or unwilling to address seriously. 

We also know that the decisions we make have major consequences for our families and for us as individuals.  In today’s Torah portion, Abraham the great pioneer of monotheistic religion and the founding leader of the Jewish people, shows an inability to adapt to new circumstances.  As a result, he almost sacrifices his son.  When asked by his son Isaac, “Where is the sheep to be sacrificed?” his response is anything but that of a leader.  The patriarch tells his son, “God will see to the sheep for his burnt offering,” God will provide.  The result of Abraham’s inability to do anything other than continue on a three-day journey that must have seemed nightmarish  and endless, is that he almost sacrifices his son, and has to be rescued at the last minute.

Some might describe Abraham as the unquestioning “knight of faith.”  But a close reading of our Biblical narrative suggests that when faced with this test, Abraham, old and set in his ways, falls very short.  Indications that something went very wrong include the fact that father and son go up the mountain together, but Abraham returns alone, without his son. 

Abraham comes home and his wife Sarah dies.  The two events seem connected. How would any wife and mother feel about the possibility of her husband killing her only child?

We also know that in the earlier chapters of the book of Genesis God speaks to the founding patriarch a number of times.  But after the events in today’s Torah portion, God never again speaks to Abraham.  Today’s absorbing narrative can easily be read as an example on the family and individual level of regrettable decision-making and failing leadership, with many sad results.

We who claim descent from Abraham and Sarah can learn not only from their strengths and successes, but also from their weaknesses and shortcomings.  Specifically, we want to make very sure that by our decisions today we do nothing that might endanger or harm our children, our future.  The time that we have the little ones at home is very short, and the window of opportunity for us to influence them is small. Because we want our children to thrive and be happy in a future which we know will be different from the world we grew up in, it is vitally important that we make good choices, the kind that will help them build vigorous bodies and healthy minds. 

The decisions parents make for their children directly shape their future, for good and for bad.  This is especially so when it comes to their schooling.  There is a real difference between indoctrination and education.  The responsibility of parents and teachers is not so much to teach children the old ways as to rather provide the next generation with the tools they will need to respond constructively to the world in which they find themselves.  And here there is surely no more helpful tool we can give our children than the ability to think for themselves, to think critically. 

Most specifically, if we want our children to grow up to be confident and productive in their Jewish identity, it is vitally important that as Jews they learn to think and question and figure out for themselves who they are and what they stand for.  This implies both that they will be presented with religious options and choices, and that they will have a Jewish education beyond Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah.  If our children are only taught to parrot the received beliefs, values and actions of previous generations and not to build their own Jewish identities, if our children never learn anything more than a child’s Judaism, are we not undermining their ability as adult Jews to face novel and difficult situations with confidence and creativity?  By encouraging a childish and unexamined Judaism, are we not eroding our Jewish future?  For the sake of our children’s future, we have a major responsibility to ensure that the religious knowledge that our youngsters receive will help and strengthen them not so much as children but as the adults they will become.

So far we have looked at the consequences of our decisions on a national and on a family level.  The decisions we make also have consequences for us as a congregation.  Here we may consider the positive example set by Moses during the forty years that the Israelites wandered in the desert.  After the Exodus from Egypt, when Moses began to lead the people, the Torah tells us how conscientious he was. Throughout the day anyone with an issue or problem would bring it to Moses and he would seek solutions.  Fortunately, Moses had an experienced father-in-law, Jethro, who told Moses:  "You cannot do it alone, you’re getting bogged down.”  So, Moses implemented a support structure, involving a number of other leaders who helped lighten his workload.  As a result of such intelligent decision-making and advance planning, Moses did not burn out and the people’s needs were met.  And so, with the aid of qualified helpers, Moses was able to lead the people productively for several decades. 

The book of Deuteronomy recounts how at the end of his life Moses recalls that crucial decision:   “At that time I said to you, I cannot bear the burden of you by myself.”  Moses provided the community of Israel with long-term leadership because early on in his career he and they understood that he could not do it all alone, he needed help. 

Obviously, Tony Holz is no Moses.  But in some ways I identify with the great Biblical leader.  I do this for two reasons:  First, when I celebrated my Bar Mitzvah fifty years ago, on July 23, 1955, my Torah portion was Moses’ words reminding the people of how he needed help, and could not do it alone. 

And second, I find close similarities between the situation of the young Moses and my current experience as your rabbi.  Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim is a richly diverse congregation in which many good things are happening.  But I believe that there is a real gap between public perception and reality.  The reality is that important aspects of congregational life are being neglected, while at the same time as your rabbi I am constantly busy and pulled in multiple directions.  In contrast to an era when Beth Elohim was a smaller congregation, there is now no slack time in congregational activities: the rhythms may vary but something is always happening.  As an experienced religious professional I may be good at operating in a triage fashion, where I continually decide what needs my immediate attention, what is important and what can wait.  But this kind of permanent “flying by the seat of one’s pants” is not good for the long term health either of the congregation or of the rabbi.  So, I say to you the Biblical words of Moses:  “I cannot bear the burden of you by myself.” 

The involvement of more volunteers in a number of congregational activities is good, but doesn’t address the central problem.  Some might think that if KKBE had a younger rabbi, all would be well.  My sense is that we have a structural problem, independent of the individual who is the rabbi. 

Others may point out that, faced with financial difficulties that are directly linked to our responsibilities as custodians of historic buildings, now is not the time to speak about adding personnel to our payroll.  I certainly feel that fiscal responsibility is essential for congregational life. 

But, at the same time I must tell you candidly that the current situation where a growing and active KKBE has only one professional clergy person is not good and is potentially unstable. 

My contract as your rabbi still goes for a couple more years.  At the end of that time, subject to the decision-making processes of this congregation, it is my hope to renew my tenure with Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim for a few more years.  What I am saying to you is that there are warning signs which we would all do well to heed.  Other Reform congregations of our size in the southeastern United States typically have a full-time senior Rabbi, a full-time Cantor or Associate Rabbi, and often also both a full-time Temple Educator and Program Director.  There is unmistakable evidence that KKBE is underserved, understaffed, and underfunded.  Is it surprising then that I identify with Moses’ question: “How can I bear the burden of you by myself?” 

Yes, there are financial implications to what I am saying.  And, yes, you who belong to Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim are being asked if you are adequate to the task at hand.  These are questions which only you and your elected leaders can answer. 

The High Holy Day season reminds us annually that decisions have consequences.  Today’s Torah portion about Abraham and the recent events in New Orleans remind us that in families and as a nation bad decisions or avoiding decisions can have unfortunate outcomes.  At the same time the long leadership of the biblical Moses reminds us not only that good decisions can be made, but that their benefits may be long-lasting.   The lessons we may learn are not to ignore warnings of danger, not to assume that the old ways are best, and not to overextend our leaders.

The stirring sounds of the shofar remind us that we live in a time of change.  Visually we may see change as a wild animal, perhaps an untamed horse that gallops into our lives.  We may respond in various ways.  Surely the most constructive way is not for us to run away or resist, but for us to mount the steed and ride the horse of change and to use all our best resources to guide change in the directions that we choose.  May our choices be wise ones.  Amen.