Operation Tent of Abraham and Sarah is the name for United Synagogue's support of the Walk Across America by Pastor Corey Brooks to protest gun violence. I wrote about walking with him in New York on June 5, and posted about his stop at Congregation Ahavas Shalom in Newark. As he returned to Chicago, members of our Conservative kehillot were there to greet him.
I am very pleased to share a report from Debbie Koller, an amazing volunteer from Anshe Emet Synagogue, who first brought Pastor Brooks' message to the attention of her rabbi, Rabbi Michael Siegel. She's in this video saying, "We're praying with our feet as we walk...", and has continually tried to connect the Jewish Community with the Pastor and his message:
Sunday, July 15th, Pastor Brooks led an 11.7 mile walk from his church in Chicago all the way to Navy Pier. Since this was his home city he had a crowd of thousands.This was a diverse crowd. The walk began with a rally in front of New Beginnings Church on the grounds where Pastor Brooks lived for 94 days in a tent to protest the gun violence in his neighborhood and raise funds to purchase the abandoned motel. Eventually he will build a Community and Economic Development Center. On this day it was filled with a crowd ready to say they had enough of the violence in this community and across the country. Pastor Brooks said, "This is not a black or white problem but an American problem," when he spoke about the gun violence that is plaguing cities like Chicago. This weekend in Chicago four young people lost their lives to gun violence, which is becoming a common weekend occurrence on the South Side of Chicago. Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and Governor Pat Quinn, were there to say that this is not normal and we need to take a stand against the violence.
Many clergy spoke including Rabbi Heather Altman. Rabbi Altman visited Pastor Brooks in the winter when he was up in the tent on the roof. She brought her style of RavYoga to the roof to help the Pastor when he was weakening in the tent. While doing yoga she brought a kind Torah study with yoga to Pastor Brooks. The common Torah/Bible teachings we share brought the two together in study and in friendship.
Rabbi Heather Altman spoke and delivered Rabbi Siegel's speech to a very enthusiastic crowd.
Rabbi Abe Friedman from Anshe Emet walked with several Anshe Emet Community Members as well as several b'nai mitzvah children. My son, Sam Koller, his cousin, Summer Kawalek, and Asher Rappaport all were walking as part of their mitzvah Projects. The kids were enthusiastic as they cheered "Whose Streets! Our Streets!" sang a blues call and response as well as sang "Down by the Riverside." I was brought to tears knowing how inspired the kids were. They also made friends along the way and learned about the challenges in this community and others like it.
When people from the community ask me how I got involved and I relay how I brought Rabbi Siegel to the roof in the middle of winter, they get a look on their face of such joy. Many church members have seen Rabbi Siegel speak and have been inspired, just as I have been inspired by Pastor Brooks. One man even told me, because of Rabbi Siegel's talk about "Praying with your feet", he has become an active member of New Beginnings after a long time away.
My hope with connecting Rabbi Siegel and others in the Jewish Community with Pastor Brooks and his work with ProjectHOOD was to rebuild the bonds we once shared through the Civil Rights Movement with Dr. Martin Luther King and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. Rabbi Heschel has been quoted as saying when he walked in Selma he was " Praying with my legs." The Walk Across America Team wears a version of his quotation on the back of their shirts "Praying with our Feet" with Rabbi Heschel's name. It is amazing to see our communities once again come together and support this very important message.
Operation Tent of Abraham and Sarah continues as Pastor Brooks will be welcomed in St. Louis at Congregation B'nai Amoona on July 27 at Shabbat morning services.
A man approaches me on the street. "My car broke down," he says, "and my wallet is at home. I have to take a bus to get there, and I just need two more dollars for the fare. Can you help me?"
I am a trusting person; I give him the two dollars. Then I watch him walk on and say the same thing to someone else at the end of the block.
I am also an optimistic person. I leave home without an umbrella. I cheerfully commit to very tight deadlines for projects. I volunteer to talk to unhappy people. Except for thinking that the weather will always be sunny, (which is denial, not optimism), I believe that people and situations generally tend to work out for the best.
I trust people until I can't trust them anymore. The things I have lost in my lifetime because I trusted someone have been a few dollars, a car that came back dented, and a couple of underpaid professional years. I have the luxury of trust and optimism because my world is populated with people whose motivations I know and with whom relationships can be built or repaired.
This is not true for synagogues. In May 2011, two men were arrested for allegedly plotting to attack a Manhattan synagogue. Earlier this year, four synagogues in Northern New Jersey were targets of violent attacks, including a molotov cocktail tossed into the window of the rabbi's home. In the Manhattan case, the suspects discussed dressing as worshippers to enter the building.
As sacred communities, our kehillot are sanctuaries. They are places where our sacred actions create the feeling of refuge and protection. Safety is the prerequisite for creating sanctuary. Unfortunately, in order to build safety, the leaders of our kehillot need to pay attention to the work of security and safety that puts trust and optimism on hold.
Do you have procedures for dealing with suspicious phone calls, packages, visitors or vehicles? What will you do with property in case of fire or flood? How do you create a welcoming atmosphere that also protects the people in your building?
Rabbi Paul Drazen, United Synagogue's special assistant to the CEO, has prepared resources to begin asking the right questions to assess security and safety measures, and has arranged for a security webinar by Secure Community Networks on Thursday, August 23, 2012 at 2:00 EDT.
As the High Holidays approach, this is the time to review the security of our buildings with clarity so that we can open the doors to our kehillot with trust and optimism.
British Airways announced that it will be googling its business class passengers as a way for their staff to recognize and better serve their customers. The "Know Me" program, they say, allows their staff to view photos of passengers and find out about their patterns and preferences. British Airways has given 2,000 iPads to their customer service representatives so they can look up and greet an expected 4,500 people a day. If this sounds specious to you, you're not alone. Businesses like airlines or hotels give their customers options to set up their own profiles through a preferred customer status. Customers can upload their own photos and preferences; why staff would need to google people is raising suspicion and complaints about privacy and potential errors.
An airline might be stepping out of bounds by using Google as a way to get closer to customers, but the idea of getting to know people is at the core of creating communities.
So should we google our kehilla members? What would we learn and what would we do with the information?
A fundraising professional colleague of mine tells me that he googles everyone he meets. In addition to finding out what they do or what they're interested in for fundraising possibilities, he looks for connections that he might help them make. What town did they grow up in? What organizations do they belong to? Who does he know that he might put them in touch with? How can he help them feel more connected to someone else?
In a quick sampling of what I would find if I googled 10 of my close friends, I have to admit that I did learn some surprising things. My friend, Jack, published a book about staff performance review. Sherry is certified by the American Academy of Sports Medicine. As a speech pathologist, Jean has no complaints or sanctions against her, (good news). Andy was executive director of our congregation (alert - that was incorrect information!).
Googling my friends didn't uncover much about their needs, aspirations or interests. It would not help me know if they want to learn Hebrew or invite someone for Shabbat dinner now that their children are out of the house. I did, however, learn about some of their accomplishments and professional profiles. That information could be critical if I wanted to approach them to volunteer or move into leadership.
We're going to be talking about volunteer engagement next week as we roll out the final module in United Synagogue's Sulam for Current Leaders series: The Volunteer Development Plan. Rabbi Charlie Savenor and Bob Leventhal will cover how we approach volunteering as avodah, sacred work, in a kehilla of sacred relationships. Knowing every person's skills, achievements and passions is key. Register here if you want to join the conversation.
And, in the meantime, feel free to google me.
