Rabbi Aviva's Blog

When we think of the High Holidays, our minds jump right to Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. We think of crisp fall mornings spent at shul, apples dipped in honey to sweeten our new year, and breaking our fasts with bagels and lox after a full day of spiritual contemplation. But, believe it or not, despite being only August, we are well into the fall holiday cycle.

Some Jewish thinkers consider the mournful 17th of Tammuz (the beginning of the siege on Jerusalem), paired with the commemoration of the destruction of the sacred temples on Tisha B’Av, as the “unofficial/official” kick off of the Jewish New Year. Before turning a new page in the cycle of Jewish time with Rosh HaShanah, we must go through the process of a reflective Elul, and before Elul we must go through the season of mourning with the minor holidays of 17th of Tammuz and Tisha B’Av. The start of the new year has already begun, without us even being aware of it!

In our personal and professional lives, our new beginnings often start before we are even aware of it too. The quiet rumblings that serve as a harbinger for a life change occur long before any newness actually happens. The decision to make a change comes after months or years of experience that influence our timing. Another way to think about a new beginning is to see it as the culmination of the discernment and preparation for change. So much effort, energy and learning takes place before the “First Day of your Next Chapter.”

As I reflect on this torah of the process of change, I'm aware that the work I have been doing both as a rabbi and in my own personal life has been a process leading me to this moment of serving Congregation Beth Israel of Media. I am honored and excited to begin my role as Associate Rabbi and Education Director. Although I have just started serving the BI community, the pathway to assuming this important role began long before this summer.

Consciously or unconsciously, all of my previous experiences have led me to BI, of which I am so grateful. I bring a nugget of learning from each of my previous professional, educational, and personal experiences with me as I enter into our beautiful community. Each of these learnings has influenced who I am and how I approach the rabbinate: From my many summers as a counselor, supervisor, and program director at Jewish sleepaway camp, I bring that high energy playfulness that makes camp so magical.

From my years at the University of Pennsylvania Hillel, I bring extensive knowledge of effective engagement techniques and a mastery of creating meaningful immersive experiences. And from Villanova Hillel, I bring a deeper understanding of and pastoral practice to Jewish young people existing in non‐Jewish spaces, in addition to experience navigating fraught social and political tensions with leadership and stakeholders. 

Through my experience crafting and leading Shabbat and High Holiday services from the previous synagogues I’ve served, I’ve learned the power of communal singing and found the balance between my spiritual offerings and group participation.

Teaching adult education programs is an absolute delight of mine ‐ every time I teach I learn something new about myself, my community and Judaism. From my teaching background I bring patience, creativity, and an endless sense of curiosity. It has been a delight to teach Torah and liturgy to all of the Hebrew School and B’nai Mitzvah students over the years, and watching them grow into Jewish adults has been rewarding and soul‐nourishing.

As a student at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, deep kavod (respect) for both Jewish text and the Torah of my peers, particularly of those who think differently than me, is a value I continue to hold.

Most recently I served as a chaplain at a Continuing Care Retirement Community. My time spent with elders softened my soul and taught me humility and love.

And finally, in my personal life, grief has been a defining factor that has taught me empathy, to prioritize joy, and how to be more human.

I have been preparing for this new chapter in my life – to serve the BI community‐ for many years, even if I didn’t always know it! And along with all of the experiences and knowledge I am bringing, I am looking forward to growing and learning even more in my new role. Our fall holiday cycle surprisingly begins with the 17th of Tammuz and Tisha b’Av and concludes with Simchat Torah and dancing with the Torah. That is what I am most looking forward to with the BI community: cultivating a place to express Jewish joy in abundance and celebrating our traditions and Torah together.