TRANSITIONS

(Sermon delivered Shabbat Shuvah, 5783)

SO… while this is not the biggest question for today, I have for us A Question.  

How long did it take to get Queen Elizabeth the second’s Wikipedia page updated after she died, on Sept 8?  

I mean… did someone say, “the Queen is dead, long live the king and quick, update her information on the web?”  I ask as … well. I checked the next day when I heard about it. And it WAS already updated. Somebody in the Royal continuity office was prepared for change. 

While I don’t actually wonder what type of King Charles will be, I’ll be curious to see how he changes things. As… well there WILL be changes. At least I hope so.  Change - momentous or gradual… represents opportunity for refresh and resiliency. 

We’ve seen this everywhere… with the pandemic. Changes big and… small. That are allowing for greater reach and connections in our community.  … in fact… I think one of the first little-at-the-time shifts we participated in together was at the beginning of the pandemic.  we streamed our Purim service in March 2020. And Temple Beth Sholom leadership has continued to adapt and shift… as our synagogue looks to serve our folks better.  

As I’ve noted a couple times this evening…this shabbat shuvah marks a time change for each of us – to shift more deeply into self-reflection. What ARE we doing … each of us… to determine where we fell short last year – and what we are truly going to do about it.  

The JOY is that none of us has to be in this alone. Again… the pandemic has taught us that we ARE deeply connected by the very air we breathe… and to reach out to community is HOLY – both to LEND support… and to ASK for it.  

And the COOL part of all this… is that once again.. it’s NOTHING new to us. As I just read… In the THREE verses, God tells Moses twice that he’s about to die – “the time of your death is near” and then, God pivots to change;  “let’s make plans and be sure Joshua is ready.” 

But/and what is interesting.. is Joshua is NOT instructed/prepped to be the leader of the Israelites like Moses… and even as we remember “there was no prophet like Moses”1… because the methodology of Joshua’s leadership is different;  

We will no longer be messing around in the desert. We’ll be taking our land. The requirements of leadership changed;  For example, Moshe’s STAFF gets us across the Reed Sea2… whereas for Joshua has different expectations to get us across the Jordan – he tells our ancestors that we can only cross when each tribe sends a representative to help with getting the ark of the covenant across.3 NOT to put too fine a point on this… but basically, Joshua required everyone to pitch in – more than they had, before.   

The change in leadership was more than just the individual; more was expected – including self-governance. It was shifting from leadership on a macro scale – the GRAND MAN… to more …. Localized. PERSONAL.  

And that is OUR shift.. tonight… on Shabbat Shuvah – heading to Yom Kippur…beginning in just under 4 days. It is time to shift to our internal work;  

 What are we doing… with US? With who WE are? Has space been made to contemplate OUR place… MY PERSONAL role in this beautiful, complicated world in which we live – how do I respond to ALL its joys and sorrows – hopes and fears?  

There is a Midrash that tells us that Moses bargained fiercely at his impending death, at the end of Deuteronomy. A few hours before his death, God says to him: “How long will you endeavor in vain to avert your death? You have only three hours to live. Make better use of them.”4 

God could be speaking to us all. We have about 118 hours before the end of the High Holidays…. May we ALL use each of those hours well.  

 
Shabbat Shalom.