Good Afternoon RMBA!
There is a famous story told of a man who sent a letter to the Lubavitcher Rebbe wherein it roughly read, “I am depressed. I am lonely. I feel that life is meaningless. I try to pray, but the words don’t come out. I keep mitzvot (commandments) but find no peace of mind. I need the Rebbe’s help.” A few weeks later the man received a reply from the Rebbe. He replied without a single word. Instead, he simply circled the first word of every sentence and sent the letter back.
The first word of each sentence was “I.”
At the end of this week’s Torah portion, פרשת ראה, we are reminded of the שלש רגלים, the three times per year where the entire Jewish people come together to celebrate פסח שבועות וסוכות (Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot). When describing the holiday of סוכות, the Torah uses a unique set of directives:
וְשָׂמַחְתָּ֖ בְּחַגֶּ֑ךָ אַתָּ֨ה וּבִנְךָ֤ וּבִתֶּ֙ךָ֙ וְעַבְדְּךָ֣ וַאֲמָתֶ֔ךָ וְהַלֵּוִ֗י וְהַגֵּ֛ר וְהַיָּת֥וֹם וְהָאַלְמָנָ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר בִּשְׁעָרֶֽיךָ׃
“And you should rejoice on the holiday (of Sukkot), you, your children, servants, maidservants, the Levi, the convert, the orphans, and the widows that are in your gates.” - Devarim 16:14
The holiday of סוכות is the only Jewish holiday where we are given a clear directive to rejoice and be happy. We are told in the Talmud in Pesachim 109A exactly how this joy should be experienced and shared:
תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן: חַיָּיב אָדָם לְשַׂמֵּחַ בָּנָיו וּבְנֵי בֵיתוֹ בָּרֶגֶל, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וְשָׂמַחְתָּ בְּחַגֶּךָ״. בַּמֶּה מְשַׂמְּחָם — בְּיַיִן.
“Our Rabbis teach us that we are required to rejoice as a family on Sukkot, Passover and Shavuot as it says ‘You shall rejoice on your holidays.’ How is one supposed to rejoice? With wine.”
Our process of rejoicing is meant to be experienced around our tables full of delicious food and drink in the company of friends and family. שמחה, true happiness, is not something that we can achieve alone. It is joy that we share, the joy we have because we share.
I was once asked in an interview a few years ago that if I could create my own job title and description what would it be. It was certainly the first time I was asked the question but not the first time I considered the idea. I answered that I wanted to be the Chief Joy Officer. The interviewer was confused. I explained that I wanted to help cultivate environments where all of our stakeholders - students, parents, teachers and administrative staff - felt part of something bigger than themselves, that each interaction with our school brought them a sense of joy and pride and that our staff felt a sense of fulfillment and pride in what they do. I wanted to help tell a story of a school community and their journey together. I wanted to cultivate both joy itself and the act of sharing it with others.
As storytellers, as Joy Officers, we have committed ourselves to cultivating and nurturing the newest chapters of the RMBA narrative. We have introduced new platforms to connect and share with our parents and greater communities as we communicate and welcome you into the daily experiences that your children are a part of each day. Whether it is through our PhotoCircle app, weekly class newsletters or through our social media accounts, we look forward to continuing to improve our communication and sharing experiences.
We are all RMBA and our story starts now.
Shabbat Shalom!
Rabbi Jordan Silvestri
Head of School