Daily Kavanot
Writings of reflection by the Stephen Wise Temple clergy.
Each weekday morning, members of our mailing list receive the “Daily Kavanah,” which includes messages of thought, inspiration, and contemplation from our clergy, along with a schedule of events. Every Thursday, the “Daily Kavanah” turns into “Eyes on Wise,” our weekly newsletter featuring the latest news, photos, videos, stories, and tikkun olam opportunities from our community. Sign up and don’t miss out!
Daily Kavanah – Wednesday, February 7, 2024
Rabbi Yoshi and Jacqueline are leading a Stephen Wise Temple solidarity mission this week in Israel. Each day Rabbi Yoshi will share reflections on the visit. The Diameter of the Bomb By Yehudah Amichai (1924-2000) The diameter of the bomb was 30 centimeters and the diameter of its effective range about 7 meters, with four dead and 11 wounded. And around these, in a larger circle of pain and time, two hospitals are scattered and one graveyard. But the young woman who was buried in the city she came from, at a distance of more than a hundred kilometers, enlarges the circle considerably, and the solitary man mourning her death at the distant shores of a country far across the sea includes the entire world in the circle. And I won’t even mention the crying of orphans that reaches up to the throne of God and beyond, making a [...]
Daily Kavanah – Tuesday, February 6, 2024
Lately, I’ve been attempting to limit my nightly doomscrolling and overconsumption of Israel news by replacing my phone with something far superior: the volumes of Jewish books that adorn the bookshelves of our home. Last week, I re-read Primo Levi’s Survival In Auschwitz, a book I first read in high school when I likely did not fully understand its depth and meaning. Levi was a Jewish-Italian chemist who was arrested by Italian fascists in 1943 and deported to Auschwitz, where he survived ten months of systematic cruelty. While, of course, it is difficult to relive another painful chapter in our people’s history, Levi’s words frequently—and surprisingly —filled me with a remarkable sense of hope. He explains, in short, that while perfect happiness is unrealizable in a human life, perfect unhappiness is equally unattainable. A man who lived such a dehumanizing experience might be filled with hate and despair, but instead, Levi clung to [...]
Daily Kavanah – Monday, February 5, 2024
Shabbat ends each week when three stars appear in the sky on Saturday evening, but we are still permitted to say “ shavuah tov” or perform the havdalah ritual as late as sunset on Tuesday. Our tradition understands that during some weeks we might feel a hasty enthusiasm for the start of a fresh week and during others we might need a bit more time to jump into action with renewed energy. In Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Tarfon teaches us: “The day is short, the work formidable, the workers not always active, but the wages plentiful, and the Boss ever-insistent!” (Pirkei Avot 2:16). Rabbi Tarfon understands that each of us has a normal balance of apathy and inertia. During our most energized days, we remember that life is short and we pursue our purpose. On those days, we must ask ourselves “If not now, when?” and commit to the sacred work of [...]
Daily Kavanah – Friday, February 2, 2024
On Sunday I’m flying to Israel, my third trip since October 7. This time I’m leading a solidarity mission with members of our Wise family. We have three primary goals: 1) bearing witness to the atrocities, the stories of those who lost their lives, those who survived, and those who are still in captivity; 2) providing support through our presence, our labor, and our tzedakah; and 3) learning as much as we can about the current situation including possible ways forward that would include the return of the remaining hostages and the removal of the Hamas terrorist regime.A few friends have asked me why I keep traveling to a war-zone. Generally one would endeavor to flee from a place of hostility and danger instead of the other way around. But that’s not true when we’re family. What wouldn’t you do for a family member? Most of us, I’m sure, would fly [...]
Daily Kavanah – Thursday, February 1, 2024
With the October attack on Israel and subsequent public antisemitism, especially at universities, it is important to ask: What are the reasons for the hatred of Jews and Israel? This week Rabbi David Woznica shares his thoughts. The Jews are the Conscience of the World For many reading this, to be a moral conscience in the world is a source of pride. But to the greatest antisemite in history, Adolf Hitler (Yimach shemo*), it was evil. “Conscience” he said, “is a Jewish invention; it is a blemish, like circumcision.” “The Jews have inflicted two wounds on the world: Circumcision for the body and conscience for the soul. I come to free mankind from their shackles.” A people who continually hold themselves, their society and the world to moral standards are likely destined to have great admirers as well as violent detractors. If you look at the nations and individuals who hold the [...]