If you are Shomer Shabbat, it means you aren’t going to fire up the car for anything short of an emergency.
No one is asking you to.
Instead, I’m asking you to take a walk out of what might be your comfort zone on Shabbos, Oct. 30.
Beth El Congregation, a Conservative shul, with a rich Jewish history in this town, especially for when it comes to doing the right thing, is sponsoring a Shofar Coalition event. It’s part of the “regular” service, though I don’t ever consider Shabbat services regular.
At this service, three survivors of trauma and abuse will be given an opportunity to tell a small part of their stories. It is important for them to tell their stories, and it is important for us to hear their stories.
If I can almost guarantee one thing, it will be that at least one person is going to come out of the service and get in touch with the Shofar Coalition. He or she will make a phone call that’s always been there to make. Fear, however, humiliation, the dragging up of old demons all come into play.
Rest assured, there is support now in this town.
If you need a kind word, a good feeling of self worth, then I need to urge you to come to Beth El.
Now, let’s talk about the big elephant in the room.
Beth El is a Conservative shul. If you are Orthodox, someone along the way could tell you that you are not permitted to step foot into a non-Orthodox shul, especially on Shabbat.
That, my friends, is part of the holistic problem we have here.
Nobody is asking you to covert, to become something or someone else.
We just want you to begin healing and to find people who you can identify with.
So, take that walk. Get yourself to Beth El.
Listen to these three survivors, these three heroes.
Don’t find a reason not to go.
Find every reason to be there.