The flight to Israel is always an experience. First, the people watching and the new friends one meets on a flight. Opportunities to hear stories about other's lives, families and communities.
I sat next to a man from Ashdod who quickly learned how different Reform Judaism is in the United States. Every time we turned around I could say, he's a rabbi, she's a rabbi, and there is one of my teachers, Dr. Spicehandler. OK that was just way too cool to see him again.
Steve got up early in the morning to daven in the back with the minyan. Yet he wondered about the minyan itself. Isn't the purpose of a minyan to pray in a community? To have 10 men (in this case) to daven together and allow those who need to, say Kaddish? Yes, except in this case, no one of the 14 who were in the back were willing to take the lead. All prayed on their own and when one reached the Kaddish, he said it and the others responded as they were in the middle of their own prayers.
Where was the community? Was it a minyan? Technically, sure. But it's not all about technically now is it?
30 minutes from Tel Aviv...
Heidi
-- Post From My iPhone
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