Make Your Jewish Identity Come Alive! (Temple Beth Or)
The last few years have not been easy for those in the Jewish community. With rapidly rising rates of antisemitism in the United States, it may feel harder than ever to be Jewish. In the last few months, especially, there have a great number of attacks on American Jews: Including the recent spate of attacks on Jew in New York during Hanukkah, culminating in an assault on a Hanukkah party hosted at a rabbi’s house in New York, the number of attacks can feel overwhelming. It might even make you want to hide your Jewish identity… but, that is precisely what those who commit such attacks want Jews to do. Instead, I encourage you to engage with your Jewish identity all the more so, to make the world know that Jews will not go into hiding. Make this February a time that you make your Jewish identity all the more integral to your being, something that can change the world for the better. To that end, below are 36 fantastic ways to make your Judaism come alive in the next month. How many can you get?
Light candles on shabbat…
and make a challah…
or even go crazy and host a shabbat dinner!;
Make a point of attending Shabbat services at least once this month;
Wear a kippah…
Or wear a Jewish star necklace;
Make a kugel (extra points for using a family recipe);
Have a bagel…
with lox!;
Bring your kids to Makor;
Attend one of Rabbi Chessin’s Tanakh study classes…
or any other adult education program at Temple Beth Or;
Use a little Yiddish;
Learn a little Hebrew;
Tell your kids about your family’s Jewish story, to be sure that the history lasts for generations;
Create a piece of Jewish art…
or, if you’re not artistic (like me!), find a work of Jewish art that you love;
Hang a mezuzah on your door;
Pre-order your corned beef sandwich at templebethor.com!;
Study the week’s Torah portion (good summaries are at: https://reformjudaism.org/learning/torah-study);
Read a page of Talmud (if you need a recommendation, just ask!);
Volunteer on one of Temple Beth Or’s many excellent committees;
Relate even just one aspect of your daily life to a Jewish teaching you find meaningful;
Recommit yourself to the pursuit of social justice: stand up against daily injustices which harm people…
and volunteer for or make a donation to a cause for social justice that speaks to you;
Support an Israeli company;
Register now and vote ARZA (the Association of Reform Zionists of America) in the ongoing World Zionist Congress elections (you can do that here: shorturl.at/bdU58);
Attend Temple Beth Or’s upcoming Purim extravaganza!;
Stand up for a person in need;
Make a donation to support the poor or hungry…
or give your time and volunteer at a food pantry;
Visit a Jewish cemetery and place a stone on a loved one’s resting place;
Say the Shema when you wake up and when you go to bed;
Say the Mi She-Beirach for a person who needs healing;
Have a conversation with someone non-Jewish about how being Jewish changes your outlook on life, shapes your experience of the world, and makes you you.
And, of course, you can always seek to be a light unto the nations!