Rabbi Howard Morrison

Dear Congregational Family,

Throughout the Torah, we are accustomed to reading, "Moses spoke to the Children of Israel." In the opening verse of Parshat Vayakhel, we read, "Moses gathered all the entities of the Children of Israel." The word "Vayakhel" is translated as he (Moses) gathered. 

Throughout Jewish history, synagogues have been identified by the words "Kehila Kedosha - sacred congregation." The word for congregation harkens back to the opening word of this week's Parsha.

The mandate of any congregation is to create and maintain meaningful points of entry and fulfillment for all the various entities within a congregation. Moses intuitively knew to gather all the various segments of the community, whether their diversity might have been based on ideology, perspective, background, or identity. Most synagogues today comprise memberships who also represent a broad spectrum of interests, beliefs, practices, and ideas. The strong congregations recognize their demographic realities and responsibilities.

In a certain way, not much has changed from the Tabernacle established by Moses and the Children of Israel to the synagogues of the twenty-first century.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Howard Morrison