ROSH HASHANAH 5774 – The Lemonade Stand by Rabbi Michael Pont
The inspiration, for what I wanted to speak about today, comes from a lemonade
stand. One April afternoon, a few months ago, my daughters and their friends
from across the street decided that they wanted to set up a lemonade stand.
They charged .50 for a small, $1 for a large. “What will you do with the money,”
I asked, expecting to hear about buying toys or ice cream. Instead, my neighbor’s
child looked up and w/o missing a beat said, “We’re going to donate all of the
money to charity.” “Which one?” “Juvenile Diabetes.” One of her cousins
suffers from the disease, and this seven year old wanted to help.
All of a sudden, moms and dads were out buying lemonade mix and setting up the
stand. The girls were making signs and getting excited. Then, I’m not sure when,
other kids showed up to help. Before I knew it, there were eight kids holding up
signs along School Road, screaming at every passing car to buy a drink and
support their cause.
In about an hour, the kids raised over $100.00. More than the money, what
struck me was this spontaneous display of passion to help. The kids reminded me
that we all have the potential to do so much good. Age doesn’t matter - what
matters is that we want to do something to make the world a better place.
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Why did that lemonade stand evoke so much emotion? I think this expression of
kindness or chesed spoke to something at the very center of human nature – the
desire to do good. This sort of unselfish action makes us better human beings. It
connects us to other people so we won’t feel alone. To me, the act of chesed
is a vehicle to experience God.
I remember being the age of my daughters and having the same spontaneous,
enthusiastic approach to acts of chesed. When I was eight, my older brother,
sister and I organized a carnival in our back yard, and raised about $50.00 for the
Muscular Dystrophy Association. Remember the Telethon? This year it was a
two hour special on ABC this past Sunday. I remember, back in 1977, our family
drove to a community drop off point, where dozens of others came to donate.
My siblings, parents and I were so proud to contribute and to be a part of
something important. You probably have memories like this. Remember how it
made you feel? Like you were part of something larger than yourself; like you
were making a difference. But then we grow up and we get busy, and maybe we
don’t have as much time or energy or money to give, like we did when we were
young, and we get out of the habit. It’s not that we become selfish, God forbid,
rather adult responsibilities demand more of our attention.
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The very first selfish individual was Cain, who murdered his brother and denied
responsibility. God asked Cain, “Where is Abel, your brother?” God added, “your
brother,” in order to emphasize relationship, that Cain indeed was responsible for
Abel’s welfare. Cain’s famous question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” echoes
through time, ringing in our ears at this very moment. The answer to Cain, and
to us, is a resounding, “Yes!”
Today, on this Rosh Hashanah, I want us to resolve to get back into the habit of
chesed, of tzedakah, of Tikun Olam – contributing to the repairing of the world. I
say this not just for our individual sakes but for our community, the community
that is Marlboro Jewish Center. Tikun Olam has the potential to unite us as a
community. Through Tikun Olam we can join together for a greater cause. It
won’t matter if we are Republicans or Democrats, whether we are Shabbat
observant or come to services just a few times a year. We can be rich or poor,
single or married, young or old. None of our differences will matter. What will
matter, is that we will be united by a common cause – to make the world a better
place.
Doing acts of chesed, tzedakah, Tikun Olam is not a choice for us – it’s a
commandment. The Torah teaches, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” or
“Vahavta la-rayacha kamocha.” (Lev. 19:18) On this verse Maimonides, the great
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scholar of the 12th century, wrote, “That is to say that my concern and love for
others, should be the same as my concern and love for myself.”
In fact our Patriarch Abraham, who we revisit on these holy days through the
Torah readings, is a role model in this regard. About him God declared, “I have
singled him out because he will teach his descendants to do tzedakah u’mishpat,
what is just and proper.” (Genesis 18:19) Abraham stood for tzedakah and so
must we.
And why do you think this is a mitzvah, a commandment? Why does God,
through the Torah, teach us to take care of the widow and the orphan and those
less fortunate than ourselves? Why can’t we just take care of ourselves and our
own? The Torah urges us, to get involved in something larger than
ourselves, to become a community that is more than about just living,
but also about giving. So why? It is because God knows that what makes
a group of people a community, is what that community does to help
ALL its members live a good life, no matter what their needs.
But isn’t it human nature to compete? Isn’t that why we fight and wage wars? Isn’t
that what Charles Darwin discovered, that we value the survival of the fittest?
Actually, when Darwin wrote The Descent of Man in 1871, he mentioned survival
of the fittest only twice. He mentioned love and cooperation 95 times!
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Contemporary studies show that world-wide there are no selfish societies, rather
there is a strong sense of reciprocity influenced by both genes and culture. In
other words, Darwin noted a strong sense of compassion across species,
including in us humans! Tikkun Olam is in our DNA, how God made us!
We are here to help those in need, but how much? And how can we give when
times are still tough? Don’t we have to look out for ourselves and for our
families? The answer is yes, and this is not a call for austerity. But it is
recognition of the fact that we’re not fully alive until we give to others. Winston
Churchill said, “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we
give.” It’s not enough to just make a living – we need to make our lives too, by
giving. Similarly in the Talmud we learn, “When the community is in trouble, no
one should say, ‘I will go home, eat, drink, and be at peace with myself.’” (BT
Ta’anit 11a) Yes, take care of yourself and your family first but then care for those
in need. Isn’t this why when you’re on an airplane and God forbid that oxygen
mask drops from the ceiling, you’re supposed to put the mask on yourself first,
and only then do you help your child? If you don’t care of yourself, you’ll suffer
and won’t be able to help anyone else. Hillel, the great Jewish Sage, understood
the tension between self and society. He taught, “If I am not for myself, who will
be for me? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” (Avot
1:14) To be human is to embrace this tension. It is to know that each of us
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deserves a life of blessing, but if blessing is limited to us, is that really
living? Are we fully human if others are suffering? About the selfish
individual, Hillel’s challenge is what am I – the one who doesn’t care isn’t truly
human! Like the oxygen mask, take care of yourself in order to go out and repair
the world.
I would like our synagogue community to embark on a year of Tikun Olam,
repairing the world, during which we consciously commit to making a difference,
in our community and around the world. We start with our High Holiday food
drive. Last year we donated 2,200 pounds of food to the Monmouth and Ocean
Counties Food Bank. Let’s pledge that this year we’ll bring even more canned or
boxed goods to stock the pantry shelves. Mitzvah Day is Sunday, October 13, so
you will have ample opportunity to give. Many of us can give the gift of life at our
semi-annual blood drive on October 22. But one day or one time, is not enough.
This year, I want each and every one of us to make a commitment to participate
in Synagogue Tikkun Olam projects. This is part of our synagogue mission,
and I want each of us to feel empowered that we can and should help
on a regular basis.
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Bring food donations on Kol Nidre, and anytime after because we’ll keep the food
bins out both here and at the Chai building year round. Participate in our
synagogue’s Mitzvah Day activities on October 13. And bring some shoes to shul.
Why shoes? Because we have them and people need them. Raise your hand of
you have more than five pairs of shoes? Ten? Fifteen? Should we keep going?
Did you know that there are 1.5 billion people who don’t have shoes?! A great
organization called Soles 4 Souls collects new and used shoes and distributes
them to those in need, in the US and throughout the world. We will start
collecting for Soles4Souls on Kol Nidre, so along with your usual food, bring along
a few extra pairs of shoes you or your children no longer wear.
You may be wondering why I’m focusing on material goods. First, it’s inspiring to
actually see how many food items and how many pairs of shoes we donate. It’s
tangible. Second, most of us have more than we need, so let’s give some of it
away and create a just world.
I don’t expect anyone to give away their entire fortune, but what about half? In
2006, a 14 year old girl in Atlanta named Hannah Salwen wanted to make a
difference. She convinced her mother and father to sell their 6,500 square foot
landmark home and move into one half the size. The Salwens donated half the
sales price to combat poverty in dozens of villages in Ghana, roughly $800,000.00!
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Hannah’s aha moment came in the passenger seat at an intersection. On her left
was a homeless man, and on the right was a man in a Mercedes. Hannah nodded
to the luxury car and said, “Dad, if that man had a less nice car, then that man,”
nodding to the poor person, “could have a meal.” The two men, embodying two
extremes, allowed Hannah to grasp the world’s imbalance, and motivated the
southern super teen to act.
Hannah Salwen is truly remarkable, but she was already heavily involved in
charitable acts when she realized how much more she could do. Maybe it will be
the same for us. I want to be sure that each member of this congregation, old
and young, wealthy and less so, will have the chance to give of themselves so they
might learn to feel as inspired as Hannah. We can change the world, one kind act
at a time. And together, I know that our concerted efforts will have a giant
impact.
We’re not going to focus solely on material goods this year, but food and shoes
are the starting point. There will be many volunteer opportunities, some of
which I’ll discuss on Yom Kippur. Please watch for more information.
Think back to the lemonade stand. As self-centered as kids can be sometimes,
they’re also surprisingly altruistic. They have a freedom to give of themselves that
I’d like to see continue into their adult lives. That’s why I’m excited to announce
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that thanks to a donation from a generous congregant, we will incorporate this
spirit of tzedakah, of Tikun Olam, into our Religious School curriculum. This
year, students will engage in projects that empower them to make a difference in
the world. They will not only help directly with this year’s material collections by
organizing food and shoe donations, but they’ll do a wider variety of mitzvah
projects. Further, with part of this donation we will bring in Danny Siegel as a
visiting scholar in the spring to work directly with our Religious School students.
Many of you may know Danny Siegel, but if you don’t, he is known as the Mitzvah
Man. Danny has raised millions of dollars for worthy charities, but also he has
spent over 50 years inspiring people world-wide to get involved in tikun olam
projects. I’m honored to have his support and guidance as we transform our kids’
education, and ours as well.
A man is strolling along the beach and sees hundreds of starfish that have been
washed ashore. As he is walking, he sees a child picking one of them up and
throwing it back in the water. The adult says to the child, “Why are you doing
this? There are hundreds of starfish on the beach. What difference does
throwing one back make?” The child replies, “It makes a difference to that one!”
Again, kids are not as jaded as adults, so let’s borrow from their
idealism. Let’s not say, “We can’t come close to putting a dent in the
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poverty epidemic, so why even try?” One can of food, one pair of
shoes, one act of kindness at a time.
We are going to do incredible acts of kindness this year – it’s what God created
us to do; it’s what we do in order to be fully alive, and fully human. We are
looking for volunteers to help on the Social Action committee, with these and
other initiatives – please contact me and say, “Yes rabbi, I want to fix this world
one act of kindness at a time.” I am also interested in your ideas - what other
acts of chesed should we do together? Please bring your food and shoe donations
next week, and throughout the year. On behalf of my wife Natalie, and my
children Gabe, Emma, and Dani, I wish a shanah tovah u’metukah for us all. Amen
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