During past summer vacations, our kids always enjoyed asking from the backseat: “Hey Mom! When are the High Holy Days?” The first year they asked the question, I turned pale and panicked. Right! When is Rosh HaShanah? What am I going to preach about? Aargghh!
It’s that time of year. The countdown clock to Rosh HaShanah has started, and it only seems to speed up after Labor Day weekend. There is an extraordinary amount of work that Jewish communities put into preparing for the High Holy Day season: When are services? When are meals? Where will the children’s services be held? How will we seat everyone? Who will blow the shofar? And, the $64,000 question, what will the rabbi’s sermons be about?
Probably one of the biggest concerns these days in brick-and-mortar congregations is physical security. How will people be protected from harm, within and outside the synagogue building? What will the security personnel wear: uniforms and visible guns or plain clothes with their blue sports jackets, handguns not obvious to the untrained eye?
If we want people to be able to settle into a position of openness to the messages of the Days of Awe, we need to first help them feel safe—physically as well as spiritually. I would like to recommend that this year synagogue professionals and lay leadership plan to provide an additional layer of security. I call it “spiritual security.”
People might bring their tickets, prayer books, and prayer shawls to services. People will definitely be bringing their fears, anxieties, vulnerability, and negativity biases. All of these emotional states activate our survival brains.
When we are on high alert, we stay vigilant against the potential threats in the moment. It is difficult to focus, engage with a new idea, or even close your eyes if you feel unsafe. Only when our fears are quelled and we feel physically and spiritually safe are we able to take in information, learn, and grow.
The modern Hebrew word for security is “bitachon.” The security guard at the entrance to a restaurant or hotel in Israel wears a vest that says “bitachon.” In traditional Hebrew, this word refers to “faith,” “trust,” or “confidence.” The Hebrew word itself guides us to consider both physical and spiritual security.
So, how will congregational leadership help people feel that faith, trust, and confidence in the prayer space? How will we help people be conscious of nervous system activation, and how will we help them shift from activation to engagement? How will we guide people to engage their curiosity and creativity as they sing, read, meditate, and talk about the prayers, the Torah, and the teachings of these sacred times?
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Teach people to anchor their prayer in the physical space.
Teach people to set an anchor for their prayer experience that they can return to if, or when, they start to lose focus or become anxious and agitated. These all can be strong anchors for people:
- Breath: feeling your breath go in and out of your nose, chest, or belly
- Sounds: the voice of the prayer leader or speaker, the sound of the fan or AC system, or birds outside the windows
- Sights: colors and shapes
- Touch: the texture of the seat, the texture of the prayer book cover, the feeling of one hand holding the other hand
Telling people to “take a deep breath and relax” is pointless when their autonomic nervous system is readying them to fight, flee, or freeze. The more attention you give to guiding the experience of prayer, for example as you would a meditation service, the more you will be providing experiences that ground people in the present moment and help them take care of themselves throughout the long service.
2. Invite people to greet congregants nearby.
For the high holy day services, when the pews are often more crowded and there are more family, friends, and first-time visitors, this is a great way to establish spiritual security. If I meet the people sitting on every side of me, I can sit down in my seat with a greater sense of ease. My negativity bias that tells me to beware the stranger behind me or next to me can relax.
3. Invite congregants to ground themselves before prayer.
If your congregation has a tradition of standing for various prayers, have the prayer leader invite the congregation to ground themselves: “As we rise, I invite you to take a moment to feel your feet on the ground. Look around the sanctuary at the different faces of people gathered here today. Notice the colors of the sanctuary decor and the sounds that arise during quiet prayer. These are all ways to help yourselves access spiritual security and engage with the meaning and message of these holy days throughout our time together.”
4. Name that there is a range of faith in the room.
An unspoken truth is that many people in the sanctuary struggle with faith, “bitachon,” and are uncertain what they believe about God. Their theological struggles often separate them from the prayers and lead them to feel insecure and uncomfortable. Addressing the fact that the congregation represents a range of faith—from unquestioning to uncertain to even rejecting God—relieves people’s concern of whether they truly belong there. Can clergy share their own faith journey and affirm that in our relationship to God and the world, our faith will wax and wane? Prayer leaders can speak about the different ways a particular prayer affirms or challenges their faith and why they continue to sing the prayer nonetheless. These efforts will put people at ease and help them to feel a sense of belonging, synonymous with spiritual safety.
5. When choosing sermon topics, consider bitachon.
Choosing sermon topics and themes for the clergy’s and congregational leadership’s messages is the single most important issue when considering people’s spiritual security. I don’t believe that we need to discuss antisemitism, the politics of Israel and Palestine, or the politics of America. These are the hot-button issues in every congregation, and most clergy have addressed these matters many, many times. In resilience and trauma work, there is a saying that “what we pay attention to grows.” If you are spending 20 to 30 minutes addressing antisemitism, you are more likely growing and expanding people’s fears rather than alleviating them.
Any challenge to people’s thinking or beliefs will be better received if it is personal not global. I highly recommend addressing the major themes of our liturgy–our tendency to sin, our need for forgiveness, the difficulty of asking for or offering forgiveness, the resources of hope in our tradition, and the possibility of personal and communal renewal at this auspicious time.
If you believe that you must address antisemitism during this High Holy Day season, know the “why” for your talk beyond analysis of the threat. How are you empowering people with your message? How are you helping them to shift from their fear response to the present moment? How are you helping them align their values with their life choices?
Additionally, any discussion of antisemitism needs to acknowledge that everyone in the sanctuary comes with different experiences. Some people may encounter antisemitic graffiti and messaging on public buildings, trains, and sidewalks. Some people may encounter antisemitic people who threaten their life and the lives of their family members. There is no one approach to antisemitism because there are a multiplicity of ways that antisemitism can show up in one’s world.
Finally, preachers and teachers can begin their message with a preface that engages everyone in a centering exercise, calls on core values of the congregation, and encourages people to consider the message even if feelings of resistance arise.
“I imagine that you are all sitting there wondering what the message will be today and how it will make you feel. I want to provide this message in a way that you feel spiritually safe. You do not have to agree with everything I say. I just would like to invite you to hear my ideas so that you can consider your own approach in relation to mine. Please know that in this moment, the only judge in the room is our own internal voice and the Holy One. In this space we are all united in our desire to learn and grow in a way that is spiritually fulfilling and personally meaningful.”
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Our world is filled with strife and change, dislocation and anxiety. The uncertainty of the future weighs on people’s psyches. Our sanctuaries can be resources of “bitachon.” Within our prayer spaces, we can work to provide security to thwart any physical threats to the community. We can also strengthen people’s spiritual security and help them develop “bitachon” in Judaism’s core teachings—humanity’s purpose in the world, how our relationship with God and others can evolve, and how our souls and spirits can find rest and renewal. If we are able to strengthen people’s faith, or “bitachon,” then we are supporting their hearts and souls so that the traumatic impact of any future challenge will be lessened.