Shalom, Friends.
The year that has passed was not what we expected it to be one year ago. And the year ahead remains indeterminate. With that, High Holidays in a post-10/7 world requires a special kind of reflection – of our place in a changed world. With all of the change in the greater world, we also have some changes at Open Temple.
I have given the community a lot of thought as I moved through 6,000 miles of America this summer. I saw a lot. Mostly, I had a front row seat to a country divided. The division we are seeing in the Middle East exists between our two coasts; my heart is heavy with all of the miscommunication and the pain it causes. America needs to do life differently, lest we fall into patterns like we are seeing in Europe and the Middle East.
With that, I am announcing that if the world is not going to change, I am.
It’s been a difficult year for many of us in the Jewish world, and I strive to lead by example and model the value and importance of self-care and personal reflection through these times. In order to continue holding and pouring generously into our community, I need to fill my own cup first by honoring my needs and allowing myself to receive holding. I need to hear my own heart as it breaks and feel the tears I have been holding back flow. This year, I am focusing on healing – myself, our community and through this, our own little corner of the world.
In this spirit, I invite everyone to attend a healing High Holidays this year. We begin with a healing ritual at WiSpa for Selichot on September 28. We will sweat, soak and meet for some learning in the jimjilbang over smoothies and tea. And a few days later, Open Temple Band returns and together we offer a healing Rosh HaShanah service on the beach, October 3 at 4 pm as the waves crash on the shoreline. The service we are preparing models the work that I have been doing, and hope others will engage in as well.
On October 7, I invite 26 souls to attend the Nova exhibit for an impactful ritual experience which will culminate with a creative ritual in what I call “Nova’s Shiva room.” Then, on October 10, everyone is invited into the healing waters of the Pacific for a moonlight mikveh as we prepare for Kol Nidre.
Our Ritual Lab continues with an important announcement: for the first time, Kol Nidre will be held in the space originally intended for Open Temple’s Cemetery Service: Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary. We are invited to bring all of our grief, our ancestral wounds, and our hopes for A New Beginning, and return through our unique and intimate service on October 11. And in order to provide the greatest care I can for myself, I am not offering a Yom Kippur Day service. Instead, I am leaving Hillside and getting on a red-eye to New York to honor Yom Kippur with two synagogues that deeply inspire me. While I will miss spending Yom Kippur with you, I know that this choice is ultimately in service to my ability to connect more deeply to what spiritual leadership is in a post-10/7 world. Like you, I have many questions: about faith, God, connection, purpose – I need the space to see how some admirable colleagues handle these times in order to achieve the spiritual transformation required for me to bring Open Temple to its next incarnation.
With that, we are approaching this year’s High Holiday Ritual Lab with deep intentionality, prioritizing quality over quantity. I look forward to journeying with those who feel the call.
If you are still reading, we also have changes internally at Open Temple that we are excited about. We are thrilled to welcome back our High Holidays logistics whiz, Conrad Starr as Director of Operations at Open Temple as we wish good things to our outgoing managing director, Kirsten Hudson. We are also thrilled that our communications wizard, Bri Rubin, continues to keep us connected, our returning Rabbinical Student, Rabbi-in-Training CJ Mays continues his work with our B Mitzvah class, and Rabbi Ilana Grinblatt will continue as a tutor for our B. Mitzvah students. And we’re giddy with anticipation for what Kent Jenkins and the Open Temple Band have in store for us this Rosh HaShanah and Kol Nidre. We are also beyond excited for our Soul Journey Fellow, Micah Bernhard who will also be living at Open Temple House. Please stop by and say hi, and look for the new creations we are cultivating for our healing year ahead.
Lastly, I do hope to return with the full High Holiday Ritual Lab next year. However, I can only do this with your support. This year, Open Temple has been impacted by many monetary factors, including everyone feeling the economic pinch, the need to give to Israel and other factors. We hope that in the coming year you consider becoming a Co-Creator, or making Open Temple a part of your philanthropic giving. All of our funds go towards keeping Open Temple open. I am holding the vision for those who share the desire to re-enchant Judaism to emerge from this year’s High Holiday portal feeling more deeply connected to one another and to our Jewish souls, inspired to work together to create an abundantly nourishing community- with trust that our contributions will return to us tenfold. We welcome your call and any insights you may offer. Thank you for your authenticity through this time.
If you feel strongly that Open Temple should once again offer services on Yom Kippur (for 5786), let us know. The best way to do this is by renewing your Co-Creatorship or becoming an Open Temple Co-Creator for the first time. We simply can’t do it without you.
Looking forward to shared meaning as we walk through the portals this coming month of Tishrei, as only community can begin to piece together this broken heart.
Authentically and Gratefully Yours,
Rabbi Lori