Everything is Broken. We Must Write a New Story

At this time of year in our Jewish calendar, we are in a season of second chances. We are reading Moshe’s retelling of the people’s journey through the desert in Deuteronomy, and we are about to enter into the month of Elul, the month of spiritual preparation for the High Holy Days. It is also the moment when Moshe went back up the mountain to get the second set of tablets – the ultimate story of second chances. We are about to start our own month of reflection and repair – let’s see what we can do.

Water is not only a building block of life, but also of culture. How we receive water shapes our consciousness and has the potential to remind us of the ultimate truth of our existence: we are always, and inevitably, dependent…

Some years, the mourning and reflection of Tisha b’Av can feel performative. This year, it will be deeply personal. Even as we approach the abyss, we must remember the redemptive vision planted deep within our souls.

Rabbi Mark Kraus