It’s a week before midterm elections. Our participation, as Jews, in our country’s democratic process is essential for the well-being of our own community and the nation. Help make Wise a 100% voting congregation. Don’t forget to vote!
Jewish values. It’s a term that is easily and glibly bandied about, yet if we drill down deeply into the concept, we quickly discover that the Jewish voice is by no means monolithic. Wise is a Reform congregation, meaning that your clergy are influenced by their education and identification with the Reform movement. As such, we will often—though not always—reflect values that capture Reform Judaism’s interpretation of the principles that appear in the Torah and subsequent Jewish literature. This will sometimes differ from those perspectives found in more traditional strains of Judaism.
It is important to recognize that each conclusion based on our shared tradition is refracted through the lens of Reform, Conservative, Orthodox (or other) philosophies. Often, those ideas themselves are influenced by the range of other preconceived notions held by those who espouse those views. For this reason, being aware of the source and its biases are critical in the formation of our own opinions. Recognizing a bias doesn’t make a given source’s words, ideas, or opinions meaningless. Rather, it only makes you—the consumer of those ideas—cognizant of where your beliefs might overlap or differ.
Over the next few days, I’ll reflect on some of the ballot initiatives and provide perspectives from Jewish sources. I’m hoping that my writings will provide you with some insights, drawn from Jewish tradition, as you seek to make your own decisions about how to vote on the proposals. It is not my intent to influence your vote in a particular direction, but rather to bring another perspective to your decision making.
Above all, I do believe that as Jews, our tradition can help us continually refine our own values, which can serve as the foundations for the conclusions we reach. At the same time, I hope that capturing the depth and breadth of Jewish tradition helps us achieve a state of open-mindedness as we apply our own Jewish values to the way that we approach vital issues in our world.
—Rabbi Ron Stern