Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis Sermons

You are the first Board of Directors of the 21st century. Your decisions will be made in a new world. Your agenda will reflect the revolution of a new age.

A cultural revolution has swept over all of us and affected economics, politics, government, commerce and inevitably religion itself.

The critical term for that revolution is globalization.

Globalization means that we do not live in an insular society. Yesterday's geographic borders and limitations even ideological divisions have been blurred. In the last year we have seen Congress, both Republican and Democratic branches alike approve NAFTA opening relations with Mexico and Canada as never before. Congress, both Republican and Democratic branches alike, have approved permanent normal trade relations with China.

Globalization means that the old military, political and geographic divisions between East and West have collapsed.

The fall of the wall in East Berlin symbolized the collapse of what Ronald Reagan called "the evil empire". That event shocked America and the West to its core but left it challenged as never before. Who are we after the evil empire is gone?

When you are used to leaning on a wall in order to gain your balance and the wall collapses, if you keep holding on to the wall, you yourself will fall. You have to find a new footing, a new position. You can't rely upon the old wall to define your position.

The Jewish people for decades was held up by the walls of anti-semitism. Anti-semitism was universal, ubiquitous, and for all its tragedies, kept Jews together. The most un-Jewish of Jews were reminded that they cannot lose themselves because "they won't let you". That was an unbeatable argument. Anti-semitism became the dybbuk that could not be exorcized.

Recall one of the early Hollywood movies on anti-semitism was "Gentleman's Agreement", starring Gregory Peck. It made the point that while you can change your name from Greenberg to Green, and cut your nose to spite your fate, you will sooner or later be discovered. Everyone soon learned that Tony Curtis, Lauren Bacall, Tony Randall, Hedy Lamar, John Garfield and Melvin Douglas were all monikers camouflaging Jewish birth.

Anti-semitism has long served as the rationale for Jewish identity and loyalty. The most celebrated theological argument after the Holocaust was that of the theologian Emil Fackenheim who appealed "Do not give Hitler a posthumous victory." It was a cover-all position. Join a synagogue, give your child a Jewish education, send your kid to Camp Ramah, don't marry out of the faith. Why? So that Hitler may not claim a posthumous victory. That orientation produced Jews as "anti-anti-semites". It spawned Jews by double negation, which turned out to be a far cry from Jews of positive affirmation.

Walls collapse and, in their wake, new landscapes appear. America no longer has the Soviet Union. It has lost the enemy that united us. Of course, there is Cuba but Castro is not Khrushchev. America searches for a new vision to affirm its promise. Its new foreign policy gestures toward globalization.

Jews have lost anti-semitism. Of course, there is Farrakhan, Falwell, Buchanan and David Irving but they do not create fear in the hearts of our children. In the hearts of our children and our children's children, Hitler is as scary as Haman, to be booed and hissed but not really to be feared. Our children will not be scared to life.

The wall of anti-semitism has collapsed. Seinfeld did not change his name, Streisand did not change her nose, Spielberg has come out of the closet and Hank Greenberg is enjoying Jewish resurrection, the academic world has given up its quotes.

Globalization in the field of spirituality, faith and religion means that we can rely less and less upon birth as the automatic mark of Jewishness. That is part of the significance of the phenomenon called Jews by choice. You cannot rely on externalization to provide positive Jewish identity and continuity. You cannot rely upon anti-semitism as a guarantor of Judaism nor can you rely upon inherited chosenness as the congenital guarantor of Jewishness.

In the age of globalization we are more and more a choosing people. With the advent of globalization our global village offers our young multiple choices: Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, New Age.

We can't rely upon fate or biological ancestry to cultivate Jewish loyalty. We can't return to shtetl nostalgia to assure Jewish continuity: Tevya's cry of "tradition" is no answer for his children's questions. In fact, Tevya failed with his children. "Fiddler On the Roof" is musical entertainment, not reality. The shift has turned from external to internal, from fate to choice. Our children ask "what for?". They must be persuaded morally, spiritually, intellectually of the meaning and merits of Jewish purpose.

Given the revolution of globalization, Judaism must speak to the world. Globalization calls for Jewish inclusiveness, largesse and grandeur. Judaism more than ever before must assert itself as a universalistic, particularistic particular tradition. No oxymoron in that combination. We have to resurrect the voice of the Jewish prophet who refused to segregate God and who addressed not only Israel but all of its neighbors.

The world impinges upon us and we must be enlarged. Judaism is global. The VBS congregation through its programs on Keruv has reached out to the spiritually interested of all faiths, the unchurched Christians and unsynagogued. Let us not hide our treasures under a parochial bushel.

The programs with the Roman Catholic Church and the presence of Catholic priest, nuns and Cardinal Mahony in our own congregation reflect the importance of a Jewish agenda that recognizes a new world, and the revolution within the Catholic Church of John Paul II.

Our synagogue celebration of other countries: Denmark, Italy, this year Spain and next year Bulgaria echoes the globalization of Jewish interest, self-interest and concern. The medical-spiritual conferences dealing with cancer implemented by Rabbi Feinstein indicate our recognition that Judaism is more than a few ritual celebrations.

By way of illustration let me say a word about the Keruv plans for this coming year. It will be divided into three five week sessions. The first five dealing with the books of the Bible led by scholars, rabbis of all Jewish schools of thought, who will discuss the unique character of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The last five lectures dealing with the people of the Book will deal with the five megilloth, those books of the Bible that are read during the holidays: the book of Ruth, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, the book of Esther, Lamentations. In between these biblical seminars we introduce five lectures on Judaism and social justice and ethics. Our speaker experts will deal with such issues as Judaism's relationship to the Aging; Judaism's relationship to those in Asylum, with those who are voiceless and have no legal defense; with Judaism's attitude toward the death penalty, capital punishment; with Judaism's attitude toward the dispossessed and the condition of health of our citizens.

Dear Board members, you are living in the most exciting and challenging times. Globalization is something we Jews ought not be frightened of, for we are the faith that introduced to the world the notion of a God who is King of the universe and who created each and every individual in the image of God. We taught that as God must not be segregated, the synagogue and our lives must not be isolated. God, Torah, Israel live here, now and in this world.

I envy you this moment of possibility. I envy you your decision-making power to create a synagogue that will give moral relevance and spiritual purpose to our community.

I have been profoundly enriched by my friendship with Buzzy Bookman. I have profited from his counsel, fidelity and spiritual growth. He has led us into the new century and is succeeded by his Joshua, Avery Greenberg. I pledge to Avery my energy, loyalty and friendship. To you, our newly installed Board, a biblical prayer to frame your old-new agenda. It comes from the biblical prophet Joel: "Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old shall dream dreams, your young shall see visions."

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