Rabbi's Week in Review Blog

This past week felt like a good week for connecting. A meeting a week ago Monday in Washington, D.C. (Faith in Action - National Clergy Advisory Board), gave me the opportunity to connect with an old college friend/fraternity brother, in addition to connecting in person for the first time with other members of the Clergy Advisory Board. 

Then on Tuesday, a meeting with national religious leaders of Gamaliel, MORE2’s national organization, was about connecting to make a powerful statement on voting rights, and to fight racial injustice in our criminal system.

A MORE2 Clergy Caucus meeting Thursday morning addressed how we can organize more people to change our local system of policing, to engender a greater sense of trust between our police and the communities they serve. Specifically, we discussed steps we can take to have local control of our police, and not leave that control to the whim of the state. Do we really want a state senator from Branson making decisions about our police department in Kansas City?

Thursday afternoon, I spoke at a rally organized by Stand Up KC in support of efforts by Starbucks workers to unionize. There was a palpable sense of love and support for one another, and appreciation for the opportunity to be in physical space together for a common purpose.

Friday was breakfast with an old dear friend in the morning  and Shabbat worship Friday evening. It was nice for people to have the time before and after the service to share conversation. I felt the same sense of togetherness at our house on Shabbat morning as we continued our study of prayer.

We do better when we can be together. There are plenty of good reasons why we come together as the synagogue community that is Kol Ami: to pray, study, care and support one another in both good and challenging times, and to work together to create a more just community and world. Above all, it is the act of coming together in and of itself that is why we are Kol Ami. We need human contact and to have a community in which we can share our lives. That may be one of the great lessons of the pandemic.