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Friday September 14, 2007

Holy week should be a time of mitzvahs

With the High Holy Days under way, we have a simple question to pose: What will you do today to make the world a better place?

It comes with the territory in early Tishrei that as much as we are required to look deeply within, so, too, are we urged to look around and help our communities.

This is the time of year we stock the local food banks. This is the time we buy Israel Bonds. This is the time we give a little something extra to our synagogues.

This is the time we give as good as we get.

One novel idea to combat poverty comes from the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the umbrella organization of America’s Jewish Community Relations Councils. For the days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the JCPA has called on people to try living for a week on a food budget of $21, the national average of weekly food stamp benefits.

It’s a way to develop empathy for the 12.3 percent of Americans living below the poverty line. Let’s not forget a shocking 8 percent to 9 percent of American Jews are among them.

Even if that kind of spartan experiment proves too much, every Jewish family can surely contribute to the food drives launched by so many synagogues this time of year. The San Francisco Food Bank and the Alameda County Community Food Bank are two such enterprises working with the Jewish community to bring in tons of necessary foodstuffs to feed our hungry neighbors.

There’s no excuse not to bring a full grocery bag to your synagogue this week.

Just as important as helping people is the effort to heal our environment. The beauty of the Bay Area has always been a chief reason to live here, but we are not immune to pollution and decay. That’s why Save the Bay this week issued a list of the Bay Area’s 10 trashiest creeks, from Alameda Creek in Hayward to San Rafael Creek.

The organization also sent out a clean-up call, urging local residents to participate in monthly creek restoration events. Go to the Web site, www.savethebay.org, for more information.

The High Holy Days are a time for family, friends and Jewish fellowship. Arguably, our most solemn obligation this time of year is to engage in reflection and soul-searching. Putting in a day picking up trash does not get one out of that responsibility.

This is not an either/or proposition. Each of us can, and must, strive to do both the inner work and the community outreach to maximize our spiritual integrity.

Whether in our sanctuaries at prayer, filling bags with canned goods, or making the Bay Area sparkle just a bit more, it’s time to roll up our sleeves and get to work.

Shana tovah to all.

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