Dear TBZ Community,
This Shabbat we begin Sefer Bamidbar, translated as “the Book of Numbers,” or more literally, “the Book of the Wilderness.” It tells the story of the Israelites’ journey through the desert, from slavery toward the promise of a new life.
And on Sunday night, we celebrate Shavuot, the holiday when we receive Torah.
Torah is not given in a city, not in a place of refuge or certainty. Torah is given in the wilderness, in the most uncertain of places, in a space of unknowing, of fear, and of doubt. In the desert.
I don’t know about you, but this image feels so close to home. These days feel like a never-ending path, a journey with the promise of a better future—but one that seems far away, even impossible. We are walking, together, through what feels like a desert of despair.
Since October 7, we’ve marked over 600 days. Fifty-eight hostages remain in Gaza, and their families live with aching uncertainty. In Gaza, families mourn amid widespread destruction and hunger. Too many children have died. This is a humanitarian crisis we cannot ignore. The Torah commands us in Leviticus 19:16: Lo ta’amod al dam re’ekha (Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor). As Jews and as human beings, we must demand the return of the hostages and mourn every innocent life lost. We can pray for the safety of both Israelis and Palestinians.
And here, in our own country, we fear for our democracy. We worry for the most vulnerable – immigrants, the poor, LGBTQ+ communities – and the future of our children. We live in a country that seems to be losing its basic values of dignity, justice, compassion, and the recognition of every human being as sacred.
The Baal Shem Tov, founder of Hasidism, taught:
There will be times when something will come your way
and you will be uncertain whether or not to pursue it.
If you have studied Torah that day, however,
you will be able to determine your course of action from your learning.
For this to occur,
you must sustain your connection to God.
Then, [God] will enable you to understand the connection
between your studies and your life.
— Translation of Tzava’at HaRivash #31 from God in All Moments, by Rabbis Or Rose & Ebn Leader, page 97
The Baal Shem Tov teaches that engaging with Torah can guide our decisions in life, especially in times of uncertainty. But he adds something more: our connection to Torah must be rooted in our relationship with the Divine. It is that relationship, nurtured through study and spiritual practice, that illuminates our path.
Torah is not simply a scroll or a book that we celebrate once a year. Torah is a daily practice, a deepening of our relationship with the Divine presence in our lives. It’s not just intellectual; it’s a call to live by values, to take action in the world. Torah is made real through how we live.
Maybe Torah is given in the wilderness because that’s when we need it most. It reminds us that we do not walk alone. That we are part of a web of relationships – with God, with people, with the world. And that these relationships can sustain us even, or especially, in the wilderness.
Because the desert is not only a place of despair, it is also a place of possibility. Of openness. Of transformation.
Can we find hope in the journey, even when it feels uncertain?
The Israelites wandered for forty years. They knew fear, hunger, doubt, and loss. But they also experienced manna (food), revelation, companionship, and covenant. In a pillar of cloud and fire, they felt God’s presence. Even when the path was unclear, they were not alone. Torah doesn’t remove us from the wilderness, it accompanies us in it.
And in this week’s Torah portion, in the midst of a census, we find this verse:
וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת הָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר יַעַמְדוּ אִתְּכֶם
These are the names of the people who shall stand with you… (Numbers 1:5)
Asher ya’amdu it’chem, those who shall stand with you.
In the wilderness, we do not stand alone. Torah reminds us that we are part of a people, a community, a sacred story. That we are called to stand: with God, with one another, and for what is right.
This week, I’ve felt that truth in many ways. This week has felt like an oasis in the desert, a week of standing together:
On Sunday, two dear TBZ members were married (in their 70s!). A celebration of love, endurance, and beauty. A reminder that joy can flourish in the most surprising ways. Their wedding was filled with laughter, music, and awe.
On Wednesday, we celebrated the end of the year of Beit Rabban, TBZ’s after school learning program. The sanctuary rang with the voices of our children singing, questioning, and learning. Their joy was palpable. Torah came alive in their songs and their smiles.
That same evening, I attended Keshet’s Gala, Making the Extraordinary, Ordinary, honoring our beloved TBZ member Idit Klein for 24 years of visionary leadership. It was a night of hope, of fierce love, of sacred courage. At a time when LGBTQ+ people – and especially trans and nonbinary individuals – face increasing threats, Idit and Keshet remind us that we do not walk this wilderness alone. Torah walks with us when we work for dignity, inclusion, and justice.
When we honor love, when we learn Torah with our children, when we lift up leaders who lead with courage, we create sanctuaries in the wilderness.
And tonight we will gather for TBZ’s Spring Concert and Fundraiser, honoring Jenny Berz and Fiona Epstein, co-chairs of NBARC (the Newton-Brookline Asylum Resettlement Coalition). Through NBARC, TBZ leads a powerful interfaith effort to support asylum seekers from Afghanistan, Haiti, Guatemala, Syria, and Nicaragua. Together we help them build new lives with dignity, offering housing, medical care, childcare, language support, and love.
When we honor Jenny and Fiona, we honor this entire TBZ community. In a time of fear and disconnection, TBZ has become a place of refuge and hope. A reminder that in this vast and painful desert, we do not walk alone.
And tomorrow, I will walk again.
On Friday, I’ll join dozens of clergy for Prayers for Liberty, a 12-mile march from Lexington Green to Boston Common. We will walk in prayer, for democracy, for the dignity of every person. We walk because justice, mercy, and the rule of law are sacred and must be protected.
This year marks the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Prayers for Liberty draws on that spirit, declaring that democracy demands vigilance and voice. At each stop along the walk, clergy will pray for due process, for the protection of the vulnerable, for the renewal of our democracy. We walk because our traditions of faith and freedom compel us to act.
We walk because we are in a wilderness of leadership, a desert where some are forgotten, where laws are twisted, where power overshadows compassion. But even here, Torah walks with us.
Torah reminds us: in the face of fear, we can act with courage. In the face of despair, we can nurture hope. In the wilderness, we can still choose connection, holiness, and justice.
Shavuot is the holiday of receiving Torah anew – not just as memory, but as a living call. In our learning, yes, but also in our walking, our standing, our advocacy, our speaking out. Torah is not a relic. Torah is a practice of love and resistance.
So this Shabbat and this Shavuot, let us receive Torah again, not only in celebration, but in resolve. Let us bring our full selves – our grief and our yearning, our uncertainty and our courage.
Let us remember: we do not walk alone.
Even in the desert, Torah finds us.
And that is where transformation begins.
May this Shabbat bring us peace, strength, and clarity.
May we find the courage to forgive, to heal, and to move forward.
May we know that we do not walk this journey alone, and that God’s presence dwells within each of us.
May God grant blessings and comfort to all of us and our loved ones.
May we discover strength, courage, and patience.
May our hearts remain open to generosity.
May those who are ill find healing.
May all remaining hostages return home soon.
May peace prevail, and may our leaders prioritize life.
May those working for peace be granted the strength and courage to continue their sacred work.
And may we soon witness peace and dignity for all.
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach,
Rav Claudia