I choose what Judaism asks of me

The High Holidays will be here soon. They call us to evaluate the choices we’ve made and those we’ll make in the new year. For me, this question, this year, has particular meaning. For nearly three decades I have lived a Jewish life with my wife, family and community. My journey in Judaism has caused me to reflect deeply about what it means not simply to identify as Jewish, but to live Jewishly. 

Of the many choices one could make for 5787, I am choosing responsibility: responsibility to my family, to my faith, to my community, and to the world beyond myself. I feel called to ask not simply what Judaism means to me, but what it asks of me. I want Judaism to be not only something I practice, but also something that informs how I make decisions and how I understand my obligations to others. 

I choose to be more present with my family. I understand more clearly that time is one of our most precious gifts. I want to be deliberate about the attention I give to the people I love, to strengthen relationships, to listen more carefully, and to make sure the people closest to me know how important they are. 

I choose to deepen my Jewish life. My converting was not the beginning of my Jewish journey, but an important affirmation of it. I now have the most important parts of myself in alignment: family, faith and self. In the coming year, I want to continue learning, questioning, and participating in Jewish life with greater purpose.  

I choose to remain engaged in community. Judaism reminds us that we do not live only for ourselves. I will seek meaningful ways to use my knowledge, experience and abilities in service to others. I am exploring what that may look like: helping organizations, mentoring or contributing to the civic life of my community are initial thoughts. The specific form may evolve but the commitment will not. 

Most of all, I want 5787 to be a year in which my values and actions become more closely aligned. The High Holidays ask us to examine the distance between the person we are and the person we hope to become. I do not expect to close that distance but am choosing to work in earnest to shorten it.