We should challenge ourselves to be more identifiable as Jews, more confident and more positive, to dedicate ourselves with greater passion to our heritage and ancient mission: to be a holy nation that respects all human beings.
How do you thank someone who welcomes you without hesitation to a holy city so that you will know, without any doubt, that “God is in this place?”
We don’t know what the impact and the implications are, or will be, when we do teshuvah in a world drowning in evil and hatred.
When we sit in the sukkah, our King, our Parent, our Teacher, our Friend, is there as well, within us, beside us.
The middle ground lies in observance of Shavuot each and every year after Matan Torah, the giving of the Torah.
We know the fear and reality of illness and loss. We’re uneasy about getting close to one another, accustomed to distancing from our loved ones, friends, and communities. We may feel distanced from God as well.