Tikkun olam is our sacred duty and honor as Jewish people. We have the choice, the agency, and the power to change and repair our world, both in a larger global sense and here in our own community. This has been and continues to be challenging, rewarding, and sometimes uncomfortable work. But we do this work because we are commanded to stand up, to speak out, and to heal a world in dire need of repair.
If not now, when? If not us, who?
We are inspired by the words of our tradition: “It is not yours to finish the task, but neither are you free to desist from it. At Temple Sinai, we have spent the last few years identifying our role, as individuals and as a community, in how we can take action to mitigate the climate crisis, address food insecurity in our community, and determine how we can support immigration justice. While these have been our main focus, we continue to work to advocate for voting rights, lgbtqia+ rights, civil rights, and partner with organizations like GHIAA (Greater Hartford Interfaith Action Alliance) and the IRJEN (Interreligious Eco Justice Network). We also work closely with our Religious School students to provide meaningful experiences with Tikkun Olam.
We hope you will join us in this sacred work.
We also believe in the sacred work of social justice, and work hard to bring about positive social change through the lens of our Jewish values. We know that by bettering the lives of those around us and the world in which we live, we are ‘praying with our feet,’ as Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel would say. And as the great talmudist Rabbi Solomon Bar Isaac (otherwise known as Rashi) wrote, “The main descendants of the righteous are their good deeds.” And that’s a big part of our mission at Temple Israel – to bring about positive social change through our Jewish values. Our hope is to continue Temple’s tradition of preserving these cherished values for future generations.