5771 Rosh Hashanah Sermon: Be a Coffee Bean
by BAJC President Martin Cohn
I'd like to relate a story.
A young woman went to her mother and told her that her life was too hard. She was tired of struggling to overcome one obstacle after another. She did not know how she was going to make it.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first, she placed carrots. In the second, she placed eggs and in the last pot, she placed ground coffee beans. Then, she put the pots on the stove to cook. Mother and daughter sat quietly and watched them boil.
After twenty minutes, the mother turned off the burners. She fished out the carrots and placed them in a bowl. She pulled out the eggs and placed them in a bowl. Then, she ladled out the coffee and placed it in a bowl.
Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me, what you see?"
"Carrots, eggs and coffee," the daughter replied.
Her mother asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noticed they were soft.
The mother then asked her to take an egg and break it. After cracking through the shell, the daughter observed that it was hard-boiled.
Finally, her mother asked her to sip the coffee. She picked up the bowl, breathed in its warmth and richness and then took a sip. "Okay, mom, what's the point?"
The mother explained that each had faced the same adversity - boiling water- but each reacted differently.
The carrot went in strong but after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.
The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its delicate interior. But, after experiencing boiling water, its inside became hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. While they too sat in boiling water, they changed the water.
"Which are you?" she asked her daughter.
"When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?
Ask yourself this: Which am I?
Am I the carrot that seems strong until I face pain or adversity, when I lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a fluid spirit, a malleable heart, and becomes hardened and tough on the inside as external pressures change me forever?
Or am I like the coffee bean? In spite of its situation, the bean improves the hot water.
If you are like the bean when things are at their worst, you get better and change WHAT YOU CAN.
Congregation Shir Heharim, Brattleboro Area Jewish Community has and continues to help us change and get better. We may not be able to change the situation around us but we learn how to change ourselves to better deal with the situation.
This has not been an easy year. For some, family and personal issues have been challenging. For many, the economy has forced us to reevaluate priorities. If we listen to the experts, the next year or so still will not be good.
BUT, as we have in the past, we shall persevere and survive. I firmly believe that we shall adapt like the coffee bean and produce something BETTER.
As we gather here on Rosh Hashanah, our thoughts RETURN to earlier years and remembrances of events that made us who we are today.
On Yom Kippur, we will use the word, Tshuvah, sometimes thought of as repentance but the rabbis tell us actually means RETURN.
Today we "return" to temple because of our beliefs and our memories.
For some the memories are new and recent; for others the memories come from their youth.
We enter this sanctuary and we remember. Some of us remember the pride we felt at our own Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Some of us remember the sweetness of our wedding. Some of us remember the faces of our children at their baby naming. Some of us remember the times we have been blessed with the honor of opening the ark or holding the Torah, reciting the Torah blessings or carrying the Torah through the congregation. And we also remember the tears we cried as we said Kaddish for those who are gone.
We are here because we want our traditions to continue; we need to know that Reform Judaism will be around for future generations. Some of us may not believe in God, some may not believe in prayer but we all remember that in the face of all history, this temple, this congregation, is the place where we practice what it is to be Jewish. This temple is where we, as a community, mark the most joyful and the most painful moments in our lives.
And every year, at the end of Yom Kippur, we stand to hear the blast of the shofar and we pray aloud that we will be back next year to hear it again.
In these uncertain times, we need to be here for each other. We must devote ourselves to strengthening this community in every way we know how - for our friends, for our families and for ourselves - because everyone needs a place to celebrate; everyone needs a place to grow; everyone needs a place to mourn. This is our place for every aspect of our lives.
We are a community and we need to function as such. We need to help those who are struggling to maintain their membership and to educate all our children.
This is the answer to the question "Why" does the mention of Congregation Shir Heharim, the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community bring a smile - joy -to my face. It is because we are there for each other!!!
Today we heard the story of the Akedah, the binding of Issac. However, I would like to point out a phrase in the Akedah – in the Hebrew, va-YEI-l'chu sh-NEI-hem yach-DAV
It means, and the two of them walked together. It appears twice in the story; first, right after Abraham has loaded all the implements needed for sacrifice onto his son's shoulders, and then, right after Isaac realizes there's no lamb to sacrifice – and the truth begins to dawn on him. Even then, when Abraham and Isaac realized the sacrifice being asked of them was beyond comprehension, the two of them walked together still.
We know that for many, if not most in our congregation, membership dues alone may be a huge sacrifice for your families to make. Now, as temple president, it is my responsibility to stand here on this sacred day and ask you to sacrifice even more, for the benefit of your congregation. I confess; it is not my favorite part of the position!
But because I love BAJC, and because I have gotten so much out of participating and supporting this institution, I want to encourage you to have the same experience.
The entire congregation gathers together during these High Holy Days – and it is wonderful to see you all – but some of us are here the other 363 days of the year as well. If we were not, we wouldn't be able to come together now. Those who contribute their time, their energy, their creativity, and their financial support throughout the year, make it possible for us to provide these High Holy Day services to everyone. Thank you for being there – for walking together with us throughout the year.
My prayer would be for everyone in this congregation to participate – yes, to support us financially, but equally important, to participate spiritually – to attend a worship service, a class, a social program -- sometime during the year. You will see for yourself how gratifying it is to "walk together with us."
Abraham and Isaac did not know what sacrifice would be required of them when they set of for Mount Moriah, yet the two of them walked together. We can't predict precisely what will be required of us in the coming year – but we hope that at this moment you will open your hearts and act with the faith and commitment of our ancestors by donating as generously as you can. The personal sacrifice each one of you is willing to make will enable all of us to continue to walk together.
Throughout our services on these high holydays, we have many opportunities to repent. Throughout these services, we have many opportunities to pray.
Now it is time for tzedakah. This year, the appeal for tzedakah – an act of justice and righteousness - the performance of a duty - is focused on the needs of our congregation.
Unlike many congregations, we do not have pledge cards that we pass out. Instead, we know that each of you, both by your presence here and by a donation you will give from your heart, makes a significant difference in the life and continuance of our congregation.
Let us be like the coffee bean in the original story. The boiling water did change the bean - it produced coffee. It made the water better. We can make things better. Let us give from the heart and ensure that Congregation Shir Heharim will continue to inspire us, to educate us and to change us for the better too.
On behalf of the Board of Trustees, as well as my family, Yael, Rachel and Jessica, I say L'Shana Tovah. May we all be inscribed in the Book of Life. Thank you.
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