I’d like to welcome those of you who are worshipping with us for the first time and family members of congregants who have traveled a distance to spend the holiday with loved ones. I would like to offer a special welcome to spouses and partners not of the Jewish faith who are sitting here today. Your presence enriches our congregation.

This morning I want to talk about something which is very near and dear to me, Bridging the gap between our Secular and Spiritual lives

Over the past few months, I have been busy balancing the demands of the needs of my family, caring for my grandson William or as I affectionately call him Billy Bob and the work of the Presidency. And as I juggle my life between these different worlds, I have come to the realization that as American Jews, we tend to keep our spiritual lives and our secular lives separate. Many come to Temple during the High Holydays, but rarely enter the building the rest of the year. Even those who attend services and Temple activities more regularly tend to keep their involvement with the religious community separate from the rest of their lives. Even I feel this separation between the secular and the spiritual. And so this year I am issuing a challenge –

I challenge each of you to integrate these two halves of your lives. To find Jewish, spiritual meaning in the things you do; to live Jewish values, to make Jewish decisions.

Think about how we responded to Hurricane Katrina, or the atrocities in Darfur, and what about our lunch program for our little brothers & sisters in Ethiopia, don’t forget our involvement with Foodshare and of course our sister Temple in Tula, Russia which Todd & Pam Nicholson have championed over the past few years.

You gave tzedakah generously to help our fellow man in each case. All these acts are not just the right thing to do, they’re the Jewish thing to do.

Okay, so natural disasters are a good reminder of our need to do the right thing, ethically and religiously, and most of us do. The real challenge is how to create a connection that bridges the gap between our secular lives and our synagogue lives on a daily basis. And so I ask: What spiritual values do you have? What will you do to leverage the values from within your Temple community so that they carry over into the rest of your world? And what is your obligation to help shape and sustain that community?

People join synagogues for many reasons. Some join to provide a Jewish education for their children. Some join to feel a part of something Jewish, a community. Some join because they have family members who belong. All of these reasons are valid. And all of us, every single one of us, is ultimately looking for something deeper: a sense of meaning, a sense of purpose, a place to help us make sense out of the chaos in the world. This is what TBH provides.

When I talk about support, I don’t just mean financial support, although your financial support is vital to our ability to exist and to offer the education, worship and other experiences we provide. I am also referring to your personal commitment to the future of TBH, your time and involvement and participation in the many things our congregation does; and not just your participation, but your capacity to contribute thoughts and ideas and to help shape the things we do. So indulge me for a moment as I talk first about financial support, and then about personal commitment.

There are many ways that each of you financially sustains and supports our congregation. Your annual dues help us meet the basic financial obligations of running the Temple on a day-to-day basis. You pay the salaries of our professional staff, you keep the heat going in the winter and the air going in the summer, YOU provide a foundation for all of the programming and activities we offer. But your dues are not enough. Your ongoing, sustaining gifts also support our day-to-day operations, and provide a way for you to contribute beyond your regular dues amount, according to your own personal financial capacity. I encourage everyone to participate in our different funds plus one very exciting fund which has just been approved by the board of directors, at whatever contribution level is comfortable for you. And in return, I hope you take advantage of the incredible offerings these dollars allow us to provide.

Nine years ago eighteen TBH families had a dream and a vision for a new building in which this Congregation could grow and flourish. A capital campaign was formed in 1997 and donations were solicited. In approximately 8 week $538,600 was pledged. The donations most of you made were probably the largest donation you ever made. What a historic moment in TBH’s history this was. Look around and see what this dream and vision has produced. I must personally say thank you to each and every one of you who helped provide the needed capitol to make this dream, this vision a reality.

Now, I have a dream and vision that I hope each and every one of you here today will join in.

I proposed to the board of directors and the board has endorsed the establishment of an endowment fund. What we want to initially raise is $2,000,000 over the next 5 years. If we raise this $2,000,000, I can assure you that a number of things can come true. Two major areas this initial funding would impact on are:

1) Dues would NOT have to be raised and as a matter of fact dues could be lowered or remain stable for a number of years. And

2) We would be able to provide more services & programs.

With your help, we can make this dream, this vision, a reality also. And to do this, we will need all of your financial support. Your contribution to our endowment fund, both large and small, is vital to the growth and health of this congregation. This endowment fund is exciting, invigorating and life-altering for us and the future generations of TBH-ers. Now, what I am asking each and every one of you to do is make as generous a commitment as you can. The sooner we reach our initial goal the sooner we can start providing expanded services. This endowment fund, just like this building, will be a legacy this congregation will pass on from one generation to the next.

Okay, enough about money. Let’s talk about personal commitment. Let’s talk about how you can influence your Temple community through words and actions, and how your Temple community can influence the spiritual nature of your daily life. The first step is to get to know your Temple community and to begin to participate in those things that are meaningful to you.

Of course, there are many ways to get to know the TBH community. Some are very time consuming, such as taking on the presidency (and believe me, I know what I’m talking about!). Others are less time consuming, though no less important. And what you give of yourself to TBH, you will reap in the knowledge that you have made a difference in maintaining and sustaining our community.

So let me share with you a few ways you and TBH can get to know each other better. For those of you who want to shape what we do here, from worship experiences to membership recruitment and retention, from financial development to caring for each other in times of need, from maintaining the building to maintaining our connection to the State of Israel, from shaping our adult curriculum to taking a stance on issues of social justice, boy do we have a committee for you! Please let us know that you are interested, and we will get you involved.

This year, as you rise to the challenge of bridging the gap between your secular life and your spiritual life, as you seek to become involved in the material conditions which realize your values and find meaning in the things you do each and every day, my wish is that you give to TBH with your heart and with your soul, according to your capacity, as we continue together on this sacred journey.

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There is just one more item I want to share with you before leaving the Bima. TBH is blessed with a number of three generation families who are very active in the Temple, but for the first time in our Temple’s history, we have three generations of adults in one family as active members of our congregation. Recognizing all the wonderful things this family has done for the Temple over the years, I have asked the RPC to extend HH honors to Herb Shook and the McCanns. It will be a privilege and an honor to have Herb, Becky, Jennifer, Ashley & Melissa McCann up on this Bima at the same time today accepting HH honors.

Here’s to a sweet, happy, healthy and successful New Year to all of you. It is with great pleasure that Darlene & I wish all of you L’Shana Tova.