Jewish Connection Forged in the Desert Sun

Just a few weeks ago we sat on the floor on Tisha B'av and read Eicha, the book of Lamentations. The ninth of Av conjures memory of loss, despair and longing. Loss of our land and holy places. Despair for our future. Longing for a new beginning, a second chance.

Chanting this sacred, depressing scroll, we repeat the word Eicha several times and can feel all of the pain associated with it. Eicha actually means "how", and in the context of Lamentations it broadcasts  weighty questions for us to consider: How did this tragedy happen? How did what was so complete shatter into pieces? How did our people lose its way?

This year, just short four days after reading Eicha, I had the privilege of leading a service on top of Masada in the one of world's oldest synagogues. As part of United Synagogue's Family Israel Experience, our group celebrated the b'nai mitzvah of six youth during Shacharit (morning services). Surrounded by family and a bus of new friends, Jonah, Ryan, Allison, Jamie, Andrew and Josh each had a role in the service to mark this important milestone. That day the sun served as spotlight as these youth embraced a new understanding of and commitment to Judaism.

For some reason during the service, Eicha somehow popped into the forefront of my mind. While the distance between the disconsolate imagery of Lamentations and our joyous ceremony were light years apart, a thread seemed to connect these two experiences. At that moment, I realized that these youth and our group celebrating Jewish life in 2012 was answering a question not mentioned in Eicha. How do we move forward towards a strong future as a people?

We intentionally craft this Israel program to be meaningful, memorable and fun. These three pillars of our mission may actually constitute how we can ignite the flame of excitement within our youth - and ourselves - that leads to an increased connection and engagement with Torah, Israel and Judaism.

Under the hot morning sun, we discussed how each of us can make our own commitment to Judaism even stronger. Ultimately we encouraged everyone to remember their feeling at that moment and to take it home with them.


Celebrating our youth's coming of age in the modern State of Israel, we could see the future in front of our eyes, and it felt bright and inspiring. Oh, how their enthusiasm and sense of purpose radiated that morning as strongly as the desert sun!