Strive for Ideals – Torah Reflections – Feb. 2016

I presented this at Temple Sinai on Saturday February 13th 2016.

T'rumah

“Let them make me a sanctuary so that I may dwell among them” comes from this week's Torah portion. It is also inscribed on the front of the ramp on Webster Street. The Torah portion goes into great detail as to how the tabernacle should be built. Indeed, one can wonder, how can anything be built so grandiose and beautiful so that God could and would want to live in it? If God is one and we are all part of God, what does it mean to build a sanctuary for all of us?

Clearly, Temple Sinai is beautiful! When we planned the new building, a great deal of thought went into trying to make it accessible to all people. The preschool area was designed for small children. The quiet room in the chapel was designed for children unable to sit through an entire service. There are no steps or pews in the chapel that prevent those of us who use wheelchairs from sitting wherever we like. We have prayer books in braille and we have hearing devices for people who are hard of hearing. We will soon have an adjustable height lectern in the Chapel that will enable some people to more easily lead services and chant from the Torah. Yet undoubtedly there are people who are not comfortable being in our community. I imagine people with intellectual disabilities may be very alienated attending services here. I know that people with environmental illnesses (EI) and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) have difficulty being here especially when people come here wearing perfumes and colognes. People with print disabilities, including people with visual disabilities and people who have difficulty handling books and paper, do not feel very welcomed by our continued reliance on paper handouts.

However, knowing that it is impossible to ever build a sanctuary that everyone can dwell in is no excuse for not continually trying. Indeed that is one of the Jewish values I treasure the most – the idea that just because a goal may seem unattainable is no reason not to try to get as close as you can towards the goal. For me, this Jewish value can be summed up as 1) appreciate what you have, 2) be proud of what you've done, 3) know what your priorities are and 4) work as hard as you can to attain your goals even if they seem impossible.

February is Jewish Disability Awareness Month. This year, as I thought about disability awareness, I was struck by the overlap of the Jewish values I just described and the lessons disability teaches. As a person with a disability, I am very appreciative of all that I have, especially all the great people in my life without whom I literally wouldn't be here. I am proud of what I've done. I have a beautiful, wonderful family, home, friends and community. I'm even proud of having designed the 1^st 24 by 7 banking system in the U.S. for Wells Fargo. I've always been clear about my priorities. Currently, I'm focused on getting a program called CareerACCESS tested. Career ACCESS programs will be created by changes in federal policy aimed at significantly increasing the employment rate of people with disabilities by expecting young adults with disabilities ages 18 through 30 to work. CareerACCESS will provide required support and services recognizing that disability benefits are offsets to the high costs of disability rather than subsidies for the inability to work. I'm not sure I'll be able to change the entire Social Security disability program in my lifetime, but I am definitely trying!

Often, as I sit in our sanctuary, I am awed by its beauty. When I look at the ramp to the lower part of the bima, I am proud of what we did. As I look at the steps to the upper part of the bima, I am disappointed that we were not able to make that accessible, but I believe that some day someone will figure that out. As I look at the steps leading to the ark, I wonder what it will take to enable God accessible to all people and to truly have a world that we can all dwell in.

Please join us on February 23^rd for a mini film festival that will show 3 short films about different aspects related to disability. Please note that on February 24^th and 28^th, there will be a very exciting program for our religious school students which includes a recorded Skype interview with Judith Heumann, a longtime disability activist and presidential appointee currently working on disability issues worldwide for the U.S. State Department. Judy is one of the most acclaimed people with disabilities in the world who I have been friends with since I was in kindergarten.

For the last few months I have participated in a Temple Sinai task force that is looking at the Temple's mission statements and the need for a vision statement. As I prepared for the task force meeting Thursday evening, I wondered whether the quote inscribed on the ramp may be the basis of the vision statement. Imagine building a community where everyone is welcomed, included, needed and wanted!

Shabbat Shalom and Go! Go! Go!