Miketz and Hanukah: Mindful Compassion and a Call for Compassion for RI Homeless

Shabbat Hanukah 5771  Parashat Miketz                      Torah Reading:  Genesis 41:1-44:17

Parashat Miketz is often the Torah reading for the Shabbat of Hanukah.  In his rich and insightful book, The Everyday Torah, Rabbi Brad Artson characterizes the the themes of the Torah reading and the themes of Hanukah as "Dedication, Transformation, and Cleansing."  He writes:  "The miracle of the human capacity to refocus, to begin anew, to reconsecrate our deeds to a path of mindful compassion is a cause for wonder and real celebration...."

This week, we celebrate the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its defilement by Hellenistic Seleucid invading forces in 165 b.c.e.  Everything within the precincts of the Temple grounds was cleaned and rededicated to the exclusive service of the God of Israel.  Rabbi Artson encourages us to internalize that dynamic of cleansing and transformation so that we may dedicate our resources, our priorities and our actions to mindful compassion.

I am so engaged by Rabbi Artson's phrase, "mindful compassion."  Among the meanings and associations that come to my mind is the principle that help is really only help when we understand the needs of the person we are helping.  Mindful compassion compels us to enter into the world of the person we are encountering, and to offer them resources that will address their own perceived needs, not the resources that will bring them closer to a goal that we think they should aspire to.

There are also moments when mindful compassion pushes us to forgo intellectual exercises and simply act to relieve acute suffering.

This Hanukah, this season of re-dedication, well over 200 Rhode Islanders are facing the appalling reality of sleeping under bridges.  There are enough shelter beds in Rhode Island to provide a warm, clean, dry place to sleep for just about everyone in need, but the state lacks the funds to open, heat and staff those shelters.

For this reason, the Jewish Federation of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Board of Rabbis have come together to organize "A Call for Compassion During Hanukah," our communal response to the crying need in our state.

There is a collection box in the lobby at Torat Yisrael, and there will be one at my Open House this Sunday afternoon, as well as Sunday morning at the Cohen School.  You may donate cash or a check to this emergency appeal.  Checks can be made out to: Rhode Island Board of Rabbis with "emergency shelter fund" on the notation line.

You can also donate online directly to the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless at www.rihomeless.org

Mindful compassion also compels us to use our imaginations to understand the realities of someone else's life.  Please be generous.