A Note from Rabbi Jeff - Friday, June 5, 2020
Shabbat Shalom Well Dwellers!
(Is that the thing to call folks who love The Well?)
We at The Well (Marisa, Marni, and myself) hope this finds you and your loved ones healthy and safe.
My name is Rabbi Jeff and I'm delighted and honored to join you as The Well's incoming Executive Director/Rabbi in July. My soon to be wife Stephanie and I will be moving in about a month and are so excited to meet you, and I wanted to take a moment to wish you a Shabbat Shalom and share some of what I’m feeling as we enter this Shabbat.
It’s hard to know quite what to say. On one hand we haven’t met yet, so how could I say anything? I’m only starting to understand who The Well community is and what makes it so impossibly special. And on the other hand, how could I not say anything? At its core, The Well is a community of relationship maestros. People who are thoughtful and know how to love, how to gather, how to welcome and care for people you’ve never met just as much as those you’ve invested in over the years. The Well is all about being in sacred relationship: “We're here to introduce you to the five best friends you didn't know you didn't have but always wanted.”
This has been a long week of tragic and shocking events showcasing how we as a society are - and are not - in active, healthy, loving, and caring relationships with our communities of color. How could we not be provoked to feel deeply for our own families, for our neighbors, brothers, sisters, and fellow Americans? There is obvious community work to do and less obvious avenues for how to effectively and safely make positive and systemic change - especially amidst the backdrop of a pandemic.
I, for one, feel deep sadness and outrage intermixed with hope and a deep desire to do the next right thing (#frozen2) to soften the sharp edges of this painful moment. I feel disoriented and overwhelmed on account of what I’ve witnessed in our country this week.
What I know is that when feeling this way, the best thing you can do is trust the tools that work for you to find your orientation. This way, our next steps forward will be grounded in our community values of inclusivity, love, learning, and empathy. Your tools for orienting to these values may look like connecting with a sibling, niece, nephew or friend - maybe one of the five you didn’t know you didn’t have and now couldn’t live without. One of my tools is Shabbat.
Shabbat is my time to reflect inward and examine and connect what I care about and who inspires me. Shabbat is never an escape from the world, but it can serve as a respite from the pain in the world for 25 hours to recharge, reorient, and reimagine what the world could be. I hope that on this Shabbat, you can make some space in your weekend to touch what inspires you, and hold onto it in the week ahead.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Jeff
WHAT NEXT?
Reach out to us. We want to hear from you. You can reach Marisa at marisa@meetyouatthewell.org and Rabbi Jeff at rabbijeff@meetyouaththewell.org (yes, we know he hasn’t started officially yet but you can reach out - officially!) It may seem like a silly way to introduce yourself to someone new but we are feeling the feelings of this national moment we’re here for you. Let’s talk.
LOOKING AT OURSELVES
It starts with each of us, and there are lots of small things we can do to help ourselves be better allies and better community members. For example, you can keep learning and growing your perspectives by reading a book (check out this article for a great list of recommendations for adults and kids, with a list of independent bookstores you can support), or expand your social media timelines to include new voices (this article features some incredible activists and authors).
LOOKING TO OTHERS
Support the work of others, both financially and socially. There are dozens of important organizations that you can give to if you are able (here’s a great starting list), and you can support Black-owned local businesses. You can also familiarize yourself with growing social movements and proposed legislation (like this one), and sign petitions and contact your legislators about causes you support.
IN THE PIPELINE
We Want To Read With You: Like a Shared Interest Group, but not. We’ll intentionally bring a group of young adults together in community to read and discuss relevant literature on racial consciousness and social responsibility. More information will be available soon. In the meantime, email Marisa if you’re interested and stay tuned!
You Inform the Future: Here at The Well, we approach the world’s most challenging and complex topics through the lens of Jewish learning. We’re working on an event that bridges Racial Justice with Jewish Learning and allows our community to hear from the most important voices in the field. Which people or organizations would you be interested in hearing from? What kinds of questions do you have that you’d like to tackle at this kind of event? Share your thoughts here.