Our Values

Thoughts on Israel

Our hearts continue to break. We are deep in Shivah. 134 hostages still hidden lost, maybe held. 134. 19 young women. The language about this war has been hostile and libellous – the Jewish world is in deep Shiva. Is mourning. We are all. Suspended between  life and death. And even in that some there and here in the diaspora are walking around that block and bearing witness as well to the unbelievable massive unbearable well of human suffering that is in Gaza – humanitarian catastrophe unrolling before our eyes. Women, men, children, pregnant women starving to death – reduced to eating bird seed. And even in our grief we know and pride ourselves that the central tenet of Judaism, that predicates for many our faith and identity is that that Every person is created in the image of God-B’Tzelem Elohim.  It is possible to feel both. And to articulate that concern and grief. The end of Exodus is parashat vayakhel holds the extraordinary description of anyone whose heart so moves him or her,כֹּ֚ל נְדִ֣יב לִבּ֔וֹ anyone with a willing or generous heart. I wonder about that willing generous heart to mean more than financial practical generosity but a wide open heart. SO we can hold multiple truths. Orchot Tzadikim 28:15, 15th century commonalty on ethical behaviour.

“There is nothing in this world that brings a person to love of (or from) from the world like generosity.” This כֹּ֚ל נְדִ֣יב לִבּ֔וֹ calls to us. We can hold complexity we can feel love, grief, fear and hope. To quote Walt Whitman in his Song of Myself;

Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)

We at FPS are trying to hold all of this. Together. Join us for any service or just to be connected.

We are directing people who want to support to :

Leo Baeck Center (we have a strong relationship with this charity)

Kehillat Raanan

Yachad

New Israel Fund

PODCAST UNHOLY or Ezra Klein both informative and thoughtful.