Rabbi Fox's Message for March 2008

Jewish Happiness

What makes you happy? Is it the love of your family and friends? Is it waking up in the knowledge that you are healthy and able to meet the day before you? Is it the simple pleasure of the enjoyment of food? Is it a sense of spiritual calm?

The search for happiness is, perhaps surprisingly, what the month of Adar is all about. This year, we are blessed with two months of Adar – just think . . . this year's “leap month” brings us double the opportunity for happiness! In considering the holiday of Purim and our ancestors' successful avoidance of their pending genocide, the Sages decided that not only should the day of Purim be one filled with dance, drink, and dazzle, but that we should approach the entire month of Adar with a lighter swing in our step. After all, they clearly reasoned, there is no greater happiness than being allowed to live and to do so in peace.

And so we are commanded, essentially, to be happy at the arrival of the month of Adar. So I ask you: What makes you happy?

What makes me happy is a sense of safety and comfort that comes from a combination of things, not the least of which is the peace I receive from spiritual pursuits such as prayer and small acts of kindness. I strongly suggest that we all need a life filled with spiritual moments, however they appear in our lives. And yet, I believe that thriving and not just surviving in one's life requires us to seek out the connections we have to that which is greater than ourselves. Frankly, we can do this in many ways.

If you are connected to Temple Beth Shalom, however, I suspect that there is some aspect of prayer or the physical act of creating and sharing a community with fellow Jews that makes your life more meaningful. What makes us and most Jews happy, then, is to be a “creator,” of sorts. Clearly, this is the case for me or else I would not have been driven to become a Rabbi.

So, how do we bring even greater happiness to our lives? I would argue that, if you are reading this, you might consider joining us regularly (or even irregularly) at Shabbat and holiday services, donating time or money to the holy endeavor that is Temple Beth Shalom, or becoming involved in the day-to-day tasks that transform our shul by the sea from just another congregation into a vibrant and warm community. None of these require a great deal of time or effort (or money), but the happiness you receive in return is without measure.

As you consider this Adar just how you will fulfill the mitzvah of being happy, I hope that you take a look at our website (www.seashul.org), peruse its calendar, come to services and events, and drop me or our President, Lillian Shender, an email or give us a ring to let us know how you'd like to be happy by being a part of this holy place.

Finding holiness is often viewed as a very serious pursuit. Part of what is wonderful about being Jewish is that it is much more than that – it is even a byproduct of being happy!

May you all have a very happy Purim and may your spirits rise with each moment of happiness you encounter . . . and make.

Rabbi Gerald Fox

© Rabbi Gerald R. Fox