Holding onto Humanity
Parashat Mattot Rabbi Esther Hugenholtz Holding onto Humanity I knew that this day would come: the day that I would have to give a sermon that I dread giving. A sermon that is uncomfortable, difficult, confrontational. And not just in a theoretical but in a very real way, through polarizing opinion and lived experience. It would be tempting to hide from the stuff that provokes strong emotions: anger, hopeless, judgment, helplessness, revenge, nihilism, perhaps even hate. It certainly is tempting to focus on the innocuous parts of this week’s reading, or go straight to the Haftarah. Just like it is tempting to switch off the TV and the computer and to bin the newspaper. Although that would be the safe choice, it may not be the appropriate one. Sometimes we have to dive into the painful conversations. When the world around us is in turmoil, silence fails to show the moral courage that our tradition demands of us. I came home Thursd...