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January 16, 2026 |
Dear Friends, a time of renewal
We are about to welcome the new month of Shevat - a time of renewal, growth, and vigor. In just two weeks, we will gather together to celebrate the birthday of the trees: Tu B’Shevat. The midrash for this month teaches that towards the end of the people’s journey across the wilderness, Moses started teaching Devarim (Deuteronomy), which was a new story for the first time at the same time that the trees were shaking off their slumber and beginning their new year. We are reminded that we are like the trees in the field and like the Israelites, ready to start anew.
The image of reawakening is an important one. In our hemisphere, we are not unlike the bears, wishing to hibernate and be fairly inactive as we wait for the spring thaw. But that is a luxury we can most certainly not afford. The amazing thing about trees is that they are constantly taking care of themselves; the process that the trees undergo in the winter months is just hidden from our view.
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Mitzvah of the Week
This time of year, with its early sunset, often brings on bouts of depression. If we add that to the unstable times in which we are currently living, finding one's balance can be quite a challenge.
In times like these, and there have been times like these before, one can look to wisdom from those who came before. With that in mind I share with you the wisdom of Reb Nachman of Bratslav. Rebbe Nachman of Breslov taught that joy is a vital spiritual duty, not just a feeling, emphasizing it as a conscious choice to actively bring happiness into life, even forcing it through silly actions, music, or dancing to overcome sadness and depression, because true joy empowers spiritual growth and strengthens one's connection to God. He stressed that sadness robs you of strength and control, while joy brings clarity, so one should actively strive for happiness, using any means necessary, even "borrowing" it until it becomes real. Ultimately, joy has the capacity of strengthening us as we navigate these times together. Even as we mourn together, we rise up together to recapture the light and joy that exists and gives us the strength to go forward.
| Oseh shalom bimromav, hu ya'aseh shalom aleinu ve'al kol Israel, ve'imru, Amen. |
| May the One who makes peace in the heavens, make peace for us all and all the people of Israel. |
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