Happy MLK Day Thanks, Sarah, for insightful comments, as usual. My question is how can all spiritual leadership help us evolve to understand ourselves as earthlings first and foremost. Love to you.
Laurie
Keeping spirit and earth united It's a great question, Laurie. It seems to me that in Judaism there isn't a bifurcation in human begins between "body" (earthling) and "soul" (spirit). They are a package deal. And mitzvah - the deed done with an awareness of the sanctity of our lives and all creation, whether ethical or ritual - is meant to be the connector. At least that's the aspiration. To be continued when we talk!
Rest provides time for reflection Sarah, thanks for posting your reflections. I like your colleague's point that feeling provoked by the stories of the Torah is part of resting. Only when I'm resting do I have enough time to reflect on my life and on where humanity and I are going. Shavuah tov!
I love this virtual travel. Sarah, thanks so much for all three interesting and illuminating blogs. The sadism in fascism is almost impossible to grasp- we shall talk soon. Shanah Tovah to you and the kids.
L'chaim! Sarah, am so glad that we live in this generation, rather than during the one of the Holocaust ... but by living in this generation, we see the tragedy of a synagogue being transformed into a bar -- and not to be chic, like the Limelight in NYC, which was housed in a former church that had stopped being a church simply due to merging with another church. Thanks for your reflections while you were in the thick of the pilgrimage and for the photos. What a sacred journey! Travel safely. Shabbat shalom.
Im eshkachaych ... The next blog entry isn't yet inviting comments, but I'm compelled to comment after reading it, so I'll comment here: How touching to see the mural of Jerusalem with the statement underneath in Hebrew, "Im eshkachaych Yerushalayim ...."/"If I forget Jerusalem ...." Your version is, "Im eshkachaych Polin/Polska ...."
Hard, but essential reading It was hard to read, especially the detail about the babies and the tree trunks, but I figure if you can be there in real life, the least I can do is read about it. Also, am glad to hear about the great people who are there with you. Please keep your posts coming.
Hi I am enjoying reading your impressions of the conference and the places you are visiting. I forwarded the link to friends who recently returned from a trip in Eastern Europe. Interesting blog! Will talk more when you are back :)
I'm reading a novel while you're facing history in RL Sarah, I'm reading *Those Who Save Us* by Jenna Blum pre-bed nightly and marveling that while I'm reading this novel, you're actually in the Poland that Hitler tried to take in Real Life (RL). Am so grateful you're blogging about your experience as well as sharing photos. This morning while rowing indoors, I was thinking about how my ancestors left Russia -- on the border of Poland, but it was Russia while they lived there -- to escape pogroms. Because they did, they missed the Holocaust period, thank God. I think it's a sacred pilgrimage you're on. Looking forward to more posts.
To life! What an amazing trip this has been for you Sarah! I have appreciated these entries so much. What else can we do in the face of such unthinkable evil and injustice and suffering but just return to our bodies in stillness and contemplation and gratitude. there is a kind of affirming prayer in this, To life!
Visceral Thoughts vs. Speech I so appreciated your account of the crunching pebbles et al and then of going swimming. It's easy to see how things can escalate when people say what we're thinking when we're angry or frustrated. Picture this: Pat & I are heading toward the Kotel and a local guy greets us. I say nothing because I sense that there's some commerce opportunity he wants to realize. Pat is more polite than I and returns the greeting. He says nothing more for some minutes, but continues walking alongside U.S. Finally, as we reach the Jaffa Gate, he starts to speak and I say in Hebrew, "Please leave us alone." He says in English, "What?" I repeat the request in Hebrew and he says in English, I own a shop here [in the shook and I was just wanting you to buy something from me]. F*ck you!" Without a moment's pause I replied, "F*ck you!" And this was (it seemed) an argument among Jews! He walked away and we were rattled and found ourselves saying, Well, we were much bigger than he was. No wonder he finally left us alone, I.e., we were considering that we could have "taken" him. Oy!
Yes, it is so easy for us as human beings to get triggered. It is work that we all need to do, gently but purposely, to find ways of peace rather than aggression.
Stamina Sarah, I am so grateful for this travelogue as Pat & I travel in Israel in parallel. We were in the Old City on Tish'a B'Av, where there was an atmosphere of protest and we didn't know why till reading about it in the newspaper. Reading this post, I feel like you are my beloved rabbi and not just my oldest friend. The best rabbis always build linkage and relevance and manage to inspire and uplift me while making me think and feel. Thanks for your gifts.
Moving family history Sarah. How movingly you write;you made me cry reading the history and your comprehensive mixture of history, religion and geography. When are you going to write the best selling to be biography of all of us? Call it REFLECTIONS. DAD
Laurie Baumgarten
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Happy MLK Day
Thanks, Sarah, for insightful comments, as usual. My question is how can all spiritual leadership help us evolve to understand ourselves as earthlings first and foremost. Love to you. Laurie