Watching the unfolding events related to the Susan B. Komen for the Cure’s decision (and subsequent reversal) to stop funding Planned Parenthood, one couldn’t help but realize that we were watching our own revolution of the masses. Unlike Tahrir Square and the Occupy movement, however, this latest chapter in our era of mass mobilization never really moved from cyberspace to the streets. It didn’t have to. As the nation of pink ribbons turned into a sea of red faces, Komen realized the rebellion in its midst and decided to change course. There is no question that there are many lessons to be learned from Komen’s unplanned Planned Parenthood experience. Politics aside, even while assessing all of the steps and missteps Komen has made (and, we hope, continues to learn from), the Pink … Continue Reading
Toward the Miraculous Future: A Chanukiya of Predictions for 2012
“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle.” Albert Einstein “Daddy, how do we know it REALLY was a miracle, not just that somebody counted the oil the wrong way?" Morgan Cohen, age 9 For the serious adult student, Chanukah presents interesting questions about Jewish history, the challenge of heroic narrative and the complexities of a Jewish authority. But for a nine year old, a simple question belies its profound impact: was it really a miracle that the oil burned for eight nights? This question, asked last week by my daughter Morgan, has been burning in my head ever since, especially as I prepared my annual list of predictions for the coming year. In many ways, 2011 was a year filled with surprises that, despite the … Continue Reading
Dayenu and the Mitzrayim of Complacency
As the Jewish world transitions to the Passover holiday, there are checklists aplenty. Of course there are the checklists of items to purchase for the family seder, as well as the list of to-do’s in order make sure that the home is chometz-free. But for professionals and volunteers in Jewish organizations there is also a rush to finish tasks and responsibilities before the Pesach vacation brings work to a halt for the holiday. It is often a time to take stock of the work that has been done and yet to be done - yes, it is a spring break, but work (and breadcrumbs) will return before too long. Over the past few weeks as I have spoken to friends in the Jewish world I have been struck by the delicate balance of optimism and pessimism held by many professionals and volunteers. While there is a great … Continue Reading
Our Brightest Lights: Supporting the Miracle of Jewish Communal Workers
While dreidel games get all of the glory around the Hanukkah table, the game of guessing which candle will burn longest or fastest is a game that (seemingly) relies more on skill rather than chance. Everyone has their opinion and logic as to their guess, and after the bets are placed, everyone sits back and watches carefully. Then the game ends, and there are winners and losers. One night earlier this week, as I watched the racing candles, I thought certain lights in our communities that burn much longer and brighter than we all should reasonably anticipate - our Jewish community professionals. In many ways, just as the dreidel gets all the songs, our community volunteers often receive much of the glory. But behind the games and the songs stand the burning candles, the professionals who … Continue Reading
Yes We Can: The GA and the Great Jewish Mash-up
Now's the time for all good men to get together with one another; we got to iron out our problems and iron out our quarrels and try to live as brothers. –Lyrics to “Yes We Can” by Allen Toussaint Last Monday night in New Orleans, well after the midnight hour in a nondescript bar in uptown, one of the great local house bands, Papa Grows Funk, started belting out the words of the Lee Dorsey classic and post-Katrina anthem while a room of dancing, sweating and smiling listeners grooved along. Certainly not an unusual sight for a city that has made its reputation by singing and surviving, but what made this room different from the standard Mardi Gras/JazzFest/Spring Break crowd was who was in the room and why they were there. Jewish professionals, young leaders from across the US, social … Continue Reading
The Jewish Agency’s Strategic Plan: Now For the Hard Part
"At a time when the Jewish Agency should be looking ahead to improving its role at the nexus of the emerging world Jewish polity... the Agency must complete putting its own house in order in whatever way it chooses to do so before it can truly play the leading role that it must on the world Jewish scene." Daniel J. Elazar z"l The Jewish Agency: Historic Role and Current Crisis (1992) Last week in Jerusalem the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency approved its new strategic plan, one that The Jerusalem Post called “the most significant redefinition of the Jewish Agency’s purpose since the declaration of the state.” Without question, the Agency has set off on a path that, while uncharted, is also grounded in the belief that the fundamental challenges of the Jewish future require … Continue Reading
Philanthropic Horizons and the Future of the Jewish Funders Network
If you spend enough time around philanthropists you quickly realize that their diversity of passion is equaled by their diversity in motivation. That is, they each have a different catalyst for their philanthropic activity - for some it is the result of family, for others is it is the result of personal experience. For many philanthropists it is the friend they found that activated their philanthropic impulse and for an equal number it is their internal value system that finally found an avenue of expression. Whatever the case, each philanthropist is the lead character in their own charitable narrative - a story for which they are often the author and the editor. In the context of the broader philanthropic narrative, the Jewish Funders Network (JFN) is an interesting story. An organization … Continue Reading
Incrementalism and the Need for a New Jewish Philanthropic Narrative
People need a sacred narrative. They must have a sense of larger purpose, in one form or another, however intellectualized. E.O. Wilson, American biologist Although the Jewish people are often described as a people of the book, perhaps the “people of the narrative” might be a more apt description. Yes, the Torah is a rich and inspiring statement on Jewish faith, law and identity, but for most Jews the Torah is accessible largely as a narrative. Equally, the post-biblical history of the Jewish people is a tapestry of narratives, spanning the ages, geographies, challenges and triumphs in a series of interconnected chapters and verses. Indeed, the endurance of the Jewish people is a testament to the narrative it has created for itself, and the complexity of that narrative is a testament to the … Continue Reading
The Great Reset: The Jewish Agency and the Pursuit of an ‘Exemplary Society’
“We once were a people without a home; will we become a home without a people?” This was the question I asked last week when addressing the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency as part of the presentation of the Agency’s new strategic plan. A simple question, but one that embodies the countless fears we all share regarding the future of the global Jewish family. In the face of existential challenges on all fronts relating to the physical security of the State of Israel, we must nonetheless face a question that we can ask only to ourselves - will our failure to remain connected to one another in the pursuit of our common ideals be the ultimate risk to the survival of the Jewish people? In his recent book, The Great Reset, Richard Florida writes about the impact of highly stressed … Continue Reading
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