I am writing this Rosh Hashanah message a month before the actual holiday, knowing there is a chance that something significant (and potentially negative) will happen before this is published. Between the time I write this – and you read it – it’s possible that haters will be unmasked in disappointing but not surprising ways. That there will be more tragic loss of innocent life. That a politician or celebrity will say something offensive. This is not to minimize any such incident, but rather to recognize the world we live in right now.
As we enter this holy time of cheshbon hanefesh (accounting of the soul), there is a heightened level of clarity as we look back and ask: how did I/we do this year? How did I/we measure up?
Looking Back with Clarity
On Oct. 7, 2023, the people of Israel and Jewish people everywhere experienced a terrorist attack that far exceeded our worst nightmares. As Jewish Cleveland has done for generations, we responded immediately to this trauma by doubling down on caring for each other here and in Israel…