A High Holiday Message from Rabbi Gilah Langner

High Holidays at Kol Ami 5785/2024

Welcome!  As we turn our thoughts to the High Holidays, it is stunning what a difficult year this has been.  It was at the end of last year’s High Holiday season — October 7, the holiday of Simchat Torah — that the terrible attack on Israel occurred.  The horrors of that day and the destruction that ensued are still continuing their toll on Israelis and Palestinians.  Here in the United States, we are in a tumultuous political situation facing a crucial election.  Divisions in the American Jewish community during this past year have been a sad accompaniment to the disturbing rise in anti-Semitic actions and anti-Zionist sentiment.

So we find ourselves in a difficult place, a narrow bridge, if you will.  Which evokes our theme for the High Holidays this year.  Some of you may know these words as a song.  It’s a saying attributed to Rebbe Nachman of Bratslav, a Hasidic master (1772-1810) who battled personal depression and  despair over the situation of the Jewish people.  The words are:

Kol ha-olam kulo gesher tsar me’od … v’ha-ikar lo l’hitpached klal. 

All the entire world is but a narrow bridge… and the main thing is not to give in to fear.

You might be familiar with a slightly different version, one that ends with the words:  lo l’phached klal / not to be afraid at all.  But the version above appears to be a more authentic text — historically as well as emotionally.  We can’t banish fear completely, nor should we try to.  Fear is built into our neural networks, and it’s a necessary part of staying alive.

But that’s different from giving in to fear, becoming paralyzed or cowed.  The reflexive verb l’hitpached — that’s what Rebbe Nachman was cautioning against — making ourselves afraid.  We can readily acknowledge that the world is a narrow bridge and that we live in perilous times.  We can see the reality of the world and its threats.  But we need not amplify the threats nor cower in fear.  We can fortify ourselves without barricading ourselves in fearful isolation.

Let the High Holidays be a time to come together with others and fortify your soul.  Our services are filled with music, reflections, topical discussions, and uplifting prayer.  Kol Ami welcomes you into our community.

Rabbi Gilah Langner