Dear clients and friends:
It is my sincerest hope that this email finds you and your family, as well as all of your friends and colleagues healthy and happy!
Once again, I am writing to you on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana, which is an ancient holiday whose title literally means, the “Head of the Year”. This is a solemn occasion, and one in which all people stand in judgement before G-d for their conduct in the previous year. While it is true that G-d will judge our actions with
compassion and forgiveness, this is the time when our fate is determined!
As we all know, this is also the time when all Americans will soon gather to choose a new president to lead our nation. We know these times are fraught – we hear and see it every day. And yet there is something in the Jewish tradition which can bring us some comfort here. On rulership, the Jewish elders have said, “Ein melech b’li am” which literally translates to, “There is no king without a people”. What does this mean?
It means that a king cannot possibly rule a people, without the people first appointing the king. At first blush, this might seem like a concept with little meaning, and yet throughout history there have been kings, dictators, and tyrants imposing their will on the people and enforcing their rule with an iron fist. And yet the Jewish peoples’ relationship with G-d is different – the Jewish people choose G-d to govern over them!
And in much the same way, I hope our nation will choose a leader to govern us, and that he or she will do so – we hope and pray – not as a tyrant or a dictator, but with grace and humility, which will be rewarded with the peoples’ blessing and acceptance. When leaders do otherwise, they break the bonds between them and their people.
I know many of you will enjoy the holiday’s delightful traditions, from blowing the “Shofar” ram’s horn to eating apples dipped in honey (to symbolize our wish for a sweet new year to come). And I hope all of you take time to relax in the spirit of these traditions, with good food, good libations, and the wonderful company of loved ones!
I send to you all the traditional Jewish holiday greeting of “l’shana tova”, which literally means, here’s to a good and sweet year ahead!
