What if Abraham had a Fitbit? (November 2014 KOL)
As we begin the month of November, we find ourselves in Parashat Lech Lecha (Genesis 13-17), where God tells Abraham, “Go forth from your land, your birthplace, your father’s house, to the land that I will show you.” Debbie Friedman feminized the portion with her beautiful song, “L’chi Lach.” Literally, in masculine or feminine, the portion means “walk, YOU!” So, I have tried over the past two years to follow God’s command. As often as I can, I walk. And when I reach 10,000 steps on my Fitbit, I get so excited. I feel accomplished. Periodically, I pass milestones and the Fitbit company sends me awards in an email. And, as I remember a time in my teenager years when I was bedridden and unable to walk, I am so grateful to be able to do so at this stage of my life. I love knowing how far I have gone in a given day, and I really like the positive feedback. When my Fitbit flashes 10,000, I feel as if all of Times Square’s lights are flashing and taking note of my accomplishment. When you sit in an office chair, making time to be mobile is sometimes quite a choice.
Imagine if Abraham had a Fitbit, or one of the other devices, that measured his walking. He walked from what is today Iraq all the way to Egypt and back to Israel in the course of his lifetime. He walked for God; at God’s command. Along the way, God rewarded the young Abram with a name change to Abraham. I can only believe that there were many moments of rewards for Abraham on his sacred Jewish journey and in his relationship with God.
At times, I wish we had “Jewbit” to offer feedback in our Jewish journey. Wandering through life, as so many Jews tend to do, there aren’t as many positive markers along the way for the observances and deeds that make a difference to God, to the Jewish people, to humanity, and our planet. I am sure that Abraham had days when he asked himself, “Why am I doing all of this? Is it for God? For my family? For me? There are those who remain actively Jewish in the spirit of “use it or lose it.” There are others who belong, because it is the Jewish thing to do. It saddens me when someone leaves our community with the note, “we aren’t using the Temple.” Please know, that just belonging is saving lives every day and keeping Judaism alive. That is more than you can say for almost any other expenditure in your budget. For those of you who do take advantage of what is offered, you discover avenues for spiritual growth or moments of invaluable support at times you need them. The more we do, the more we get, the more we grow, the more we care, the more we support, the more we sustain. As with the Fitbit, more is better.
Sometimes my Fitbit doesn’t match my outfit and I don’t wear it, and don’t get credit for all of those miles I walk that day. It doesn’t mean that I stop walking. It just means that there is no official record of my steps. A Jewbit would be a way to get “credit” for all things you do that really are important to your spiritual health and to the health of this holy community. The rabbis invented the “mitzvah system” to do just that. Knowing you have done a mitzvah makes such a difference in your life. And knowing that metaphorically each mitzvah gets recorded in the Book of Life offers a sense of accountability for us and for God.
We are 1/12thinto 5775, I want to offer you praise and feedback for some of the amazing ways you have walked the “Jewish Walk” so far. Here are your Jewbit rewards for the month of Tishre that has just passed:
Thank you to so many of you who have been regularly filling the LCAC food bin as a result of my Yom Kippur morning sermon, and to those of you who sent me checks to buy food, and wrote me pledging that you are designating funds each week for feeding the hungry. I am so grateful to you for turning a sermon about action into a reaction of mitzvah that is ongoing.
Thank you to those of you who appreciate my efforts to go above and beyond for you and your families during life cycle and other events, and to those who say thank you for honors and other moments in your life, with a significant donation to my Discretionary Fund, which empowers me to support causes near and dear to my heart and to the heart of TBS.
Thank you to all the little ones who were inspired by our teens and donated generously last Sunday to worthy causes. Your cards of support adorn our hallway as we approach Thanksgiving. Mitzvah Mall is a wonderful “walking the walk” for our young people.
Thank you to all of you who come to hear the name of your loved one when it is read at services and to those who come each week to be there so that the person observing the yahrzeit is not alone. And thank you to those of you who keep reminding me that you could not have gone through your recent loss without me and TBS. Belonging is an insurance policy for the worst of times, which we all pray never come, but do.
Thank you to all the people who faithfully come to my support groups, lunch and learns, and other events to grow Jewishly with your rabbi and community. A caring community of adult learners does more than have High Holydays, and I am honored that so many of you are using the temple to guide your grief, motherhood, journey with aging parents, and navigating being a child of Holocaust survivors. When we learn and share together we grow and thrive.
Thank you to everyone who shares your talents with TBS: musical, volunteer, comical, and organizational. We have come from some other place to this place that God has shown us, and your efforts to enrich our congregation and all of us are greatly appreciated.
Thank you to those who help out with no Jewbit attached to your wrist…the quiet and devoted members of our security team, our committees, our greeters and ushers, our kitchen support, membership, auxiliary, school, and special project volunteers. Thank you for giving and growing this community each day.
Thank you for saying “thank you” to me, to my staff, to our volunteers, to fellow members, and to our teachers. November is the month of gratitude, and it follows Sukkot in October upon which Thanksgiving was based. Thank you for your attitude of gratitude. It makes each day so much better.
Whether you run or walk, you know that it all starts one mile at a time. The year is young. One act of kindness, gratitude, or generosity is the way to begin logging mitzvot on your Jewbit. From step to step, mitzvah to mitzvah, it is an honor to walk beside you.
Lech Lecha, L’chi Lach, as God commands us to walk a righteous path, I am so blessed to be walking it with all of you. There is so much to see and to share. Enjoy the beauty of autumn and this thankful time in American life.
Fondly,
Rabbi Amy R. Perlin, D.D.