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Repairing the Cracks in the World

03/20/2018 08:39:09 AM

Mar20

By: Rabbi Brad Levenberg

I promise not to write about him every week. But I found myself traveling to California for our annual gathering of Reform rabbis and listening to Leonard Cohen on the five-hour flight. I came across the song Anthem, one of the more recent songs by Cohen, which contains the following lyric:

Ring the bells that still can ring

Forget your perfect offering

There is a crack in everything

That’s how the light gets in.

These lyrics remind me of the famous quote from Pirke Avot: “You are not obliged to finish the task; neither are you free to neglect it.”

In a world with so much that needs fixing, it can feel overwhelming. But what we do, how we contribute, need not be perfect or complete. Each of us simply needs to do something, to contribute in some real and tangible way to causes that make our world more just. This weekend, on Sunday, March 25 at 4:00 pm, we are presented with another meaningful opportunity to make a difference by attending and supporting a concert featuring our own Beth Schafer where the proceeds go directly to the Sandy Springs Community Assistance Center.

Temple Sinai was instrumental in the founding of the Sandy Springs Community Assistance Center. The CAC helps residents of Sandy Springs and Dunwoody who are facing emergency situations by providing basic needs of food, shelter, and clothing. The CAC helps families and individuals deal with short-term financial and situational strain brought about by a reduction of income, medical emergency, divorce or illness. They offer food, clothing, adult education, job placement assistance, summer lunches for children…the list goes on and on. Our own Second Helpings donates food to the CAC and Family Promise counts the CAC as a founding partner.

Yes, there are cracks in everything; yes our world is broken. But that's also how the light gets in. As we approach Passover in a just over a week, let's keep exploring ways to shine our light and provide the miracles of support for which so many pray.

See you Sunday.

Thu, March 28 2024 18 Adar II 5784