During the month of Elul, as individuals, we apply candor and self awareness to the gap between our values and our behavior in preparation for the Days of Awe.
Now we are engaged in the season of counting the Omer, the bridge of 7 weeks between Passover and Shavuot during which we have stood together to honor the memories of those who were victims of the Holocaust, and those heroes who fell in defense of our country and we have celebrated the anniversary of the establishment of the State of Israel.
Following the Jewish calendar we are now on a journey. Slavery is behind us and the moment when we will stand at the foot of Sinai and recite “we will do, we will obey” still awaits us.
This is the time for soul-searching as a people.
What are the values which should guide us as a nation?
This is the moment to remember that the Holy One created all of humanity, not just the Jewish people. This is the time to remember that Abraham is the founding patriarch of Judaism, and Christianity and Islam.
This is the time to emphasize a not very Israeli personality trait: humility. For as we read in the book of Numbers [12:3] “The man Moshe was very humble.”
With humility, we have an obligation to ask ourselves, as a nation, how are we to lead the State of Israel in justice, to respect and protect all of our country’s residents?
