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November 2005

I’m slowly coming back to earth after our High Holiday services. I think these may have been, for me, the most moving and the most congregationally-connected High Holiday services in my experience anywhere. I’m doing nothing to expedite the slow return to the world.

As I’ve mentioned to some of you, such services, regardless of the preparation that goes into them, are unpredictable. But when a service happens, through some combination of kavanah or spirit or whatever, we usually know it’s happening. I had the feeling at the services this year that no one in the room would allow anything to go awry. That sense of connectedness is such a blessing.

Jim Levinson, Sh'liach Tzibur, and immediate past president of BAJC, Rachel Prabhakar
 

A few highlights of our time together particularly stand out for me: John’s sermon which was so heartfelt, Paul’s thoughtful words to the congregation asking for “just five or ten minutes of feedback” from our guests, Rebbe Joe Moses’s moving uv’chen prayers and his explanations, Richard’s psalm, the Torah readings by Moss and then by our young adults: Sarah, Miriam, Hannah, Gareth, and Jacob, and by the young-at-heart, Mara and Jennifer, the Haftorot by Johnny Lee and Dora, and the sensational shofar blowing.

And how about Daniel’s “Shema” on Rosh Hashanah, and Louisa’s and Susanna’s offerings on childhood understandings of love!

Lots happened with the Jonah story this year. I was, of course, filled to the brim with nachas by Dora’s sermon, but I also loved time with the kids at the Ne’ilah service as we talked at a different level about that story. Sophie took my breath away when she asked, after I read one of God’s pronouncements to Jonah, “How did he know it was God?” I have to think long and hard about that one!

I don’t think I’ve ever experienced such wondrous music in such a service. Some of this, of course, was from our terrific choir. The Hashivenu led by Hannah and her sister Ali with able assistance from the Erica, Joanna, Paula,and Andi was moving to all of us. Erica’s cello Kol Nidre was particularly haunting, but lots of the beauty also derived from the kavanah and harmony-filled singing we all did together (and thanks to all for participating so eagerly in that 12th century Turkish chant!).

Andi is such a gift to all of us. The spirit she brings to our services is nothing less than contagious, and she keeps us focused on why we’re praying together in the first place. I really missed her during the Kol Nidre service when I had to do so many of the bits alone. We hope next year to have Andrea also back with us on the bimah, hopefully our newcomer Kate Judd as well, and perhaps others of you.

As always, we’re so grateful to everyone who worked so hard to help these services happen - greeting and setting up and taking down and cooking and baking and phoning and e-mailing and worrying, with Paul, Laura, Faith and Abe spearheading so much of the planning and execution. This is a remarkable congregation indeed.

B’Shalom,

Jim