CBI Blogs

The last two weeks have been challenging. There have been a lot of declarations, attempts at power grabs, battles over tariffs, and threats to most minorities and underserved people in our country. It is scary and confusing, and many people have reached out asking what we can do. One thing I have been sending around is Ezra Klein’s opinion piece from The NY Times on February 2. It is not perfect, but it did calm me down, and I hope you find it helpful.

Klein basically suggests that many of the things that are happening are illegal, impossible, and unsupportable, and therefore will be taken care of through the checks and balances of our democracy. The part that makes it difficult is twofold. First, there is a lot being thrown out there, which is confusing to many of us because we do not know what to focus on and it keeps our heads spinning. Second, the aforementioned checks and balances are much, much slower than the signing of executive orders. They are also require more resources, and because of the first reason the others in power need to decide which things need to be dealt with sooner and which can wait a little more (and which will sort themselves out through actions of other entities like Canada and Mexico),

His general tenor reminds me of Will Smith’s character in After Earth, who says repeatedly to his son (played by his irl son Jaden), “Danger is real. Fear is a choice.” The way I would interpret that for our current situation is that when something happens we can either react to it emotionally (with fear) or with action. Of course, it is harder than a line in a movie to control our emotions. At the same time, if we focus on the things that are actionable, we have the ability to think through what actually needs to be done to counteract the attempts to remove our rights and freedoms.

I am also reminded of two pieces of text. The first is familiar and known as The Serenity Prayer, attributed to Reinhold Niebuhr: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” This is a much softer version of Will Smith’s line, reminding us that when we do have the ability to make changes, we need courage, strength, and the power of community behind us. Serenity is not as easy when we lack control, but we can still find help from others by relying on their strength and calm.

The second is from Pirkei Avot 2:16 and may be equally familiar. “[Rabbi Tarfon] would say, ‘It is not your duty to complete the work, neither are you free to desist from it.’” Natalie recently put this text to music in a piece called “Too Heavy,” which brings a great deal of comfort for those of us who are musically calmed.

No matter where you find comfort or strength, please remember that Rabbi Levy, Sarah Avner, and I are here as sounding boards, as sources of comfort and strength, and of course as your clergy. We are here to offer advise when we have it, a shoulder to cry on, an understanding ear, and even a space to vent frustrations. Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of us.

May God grant us all the wisdom, patience, and courage we need.