Far from focusing on locked doors or increased numbers of security guards, rabbis will probe such issues as criminal punishment, parental responsibility, Jewish commitment and community. The Days of Awe start at sunset tonight. Rabbi Alan Lew plans to emphasize the power of supporting one another in a time of collective crisis. Lew, the rabbi of Conservative Congregation Beth Sholom in San Francisco, has noticed a decided insecurity among Jews in his midst.
People are just nervous.
To their credit, they don't seem to be reacting so far by trying to run away from their Jewishness. If anything, I think they're coming in larger numbers. Instead, each of us is faced with a societal ethos of 'looking out for No. 1' and a message that our worth comes solely from how much money and how much power we have been able to accumulate. Living in a society where one's identity is measured by money or power can lead to a sense of desperation and hopelessness, Lerner said. The shootings at the JCC are only the tip of the iceberg of the violence and abuse that permeates a society filled with people in pain, often blaming themselves for their failures, and unable to make sense of their own lives.