Dear Friends,
With the fall holiday season having come to a close it is time now to move on to…debate season! The season actually began with last week’s presidential debate in Denver, which left Democrats with agita and Republicans jubilant. Who knows what we will witness this Thursday night when Vice President Biden and Congressman Ryan get together at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky?
All of this, of course, is mere prelude to the big showdown, which takes place this Sunday at our very own Temple Sinai between Congressman William Pascrell (D) and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach (R), candidates for Congress in the 9th NJ Congressional District. OK, granted, we won’t have Jim Lehrer hosting and 70 million people watching on T.V. On the other hand, no one was serving you free bagels and coffee for the presidential debates, as our Brotherhood will this Sunday. In all seriousness, it’s quite an honor for Temple Sinai and our Brotherhood to be chosen to host this important local event which is sponsored by the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey, and the New Jersey Jewish Standard.
This Sunday’s debate at Temple Sinai will also represent a rare moment for Jews in our local community from across the political and religious spectrum to come together. As I discussed in my sermon on Yom Kippur, there are so many divisions within our community, yet we are all “holding onto the same tallit.” We need to make an effort to engage one another in open, civil dialogue. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to do so.
Breakfast starts at 9:30 a.m. The debate itself will run from 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. See below for more details. I hope you can make it.
As I mentioned in my Yom Kippur morning sermon as well, I am looking for a few good women and men, conservatives and liberals, to participate in a Sunday morning political dialogue group. Our goal will not be to get everyone to agree (a crazy thought in any Jewish group), but to get a small group of people with strong views to listen and learn from one another. Please contact me at rabbimillstein@templesinaibc.
L’Shalom,
Rabbi Jordan Millstein
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