/
/
Dear Friends of UTJ,
As we reach the High Holiday season and complete the weekly reading of the Torah, we are inspired by the profound wisdom of former Israeli Chief Rabbi, Abraham Isaac HaKohen Kook.
When a person completed all his tithes over 3 years – giving to the Levi’im (Levites) and the poor of ancient society (the convert, orphan and widow) – he recited a prayer called Viduy ha’Ma’asrot – the Confession of the Tithes.” The phrase is highly unusual. We normally associate Viduy with Yom Kippur, when we “confess” our many sins.
Rabbi Kook explains this paradoxical expression used for the tithes.
שצריך האדם שישמח גם כן לפעמים גם בבטוי שפתיים על מעשה הטוב אשר עשה
Confessing isn’t just for areas of weakness, but also for celebrating the good we have accomplished. For the Jew, giving to support the vulnerable isn’t just obligatory, it is something in which we should take great pride.
In its 35th year of operation, the UTJ – like virtually all nonprofits, as well as businesses and families – has been hit hard by COVID 19. And like the best of us, we have continued to adapt, utilizing Zoom and social media platforms to perpetuate our open-minded approach to Torah that synthesizes traditional rabbinic sources and modern academic scholarship and is taught, in the words of Rabbi Kook, with simcha (joy).
As heirs of the great 20th century Talmudic master Rabbi Saul Lieberman, zt’l, and inspired by the Torah and life experiences of our mentor, Rabbi David Weiss Halivni, shlita, we are excited about our future and the ability to use the newest technologies to reach a broader community.
If you haven’t checked out our rebuilt website, we encourage you to visit www.utj.org. You’ll find it rich with content on the weekly Torah reading, philosophy and responsa on a wide variety of contemporary religious issues. We also encourage you to like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter to keep up with the latest from UTJ.
Thank you for your past generosity, and we hope you can continue to support the UTJ and our mission of אמונה צרופה ויושר דעת – Genuine Faith and Intellectual Honesty. To become a member for 5781, please go to utj.org/join-us. To make any other contribution, please go to utj.org/donate/. You can also mail your membership or general donation to:
Union for Traditional Judaism
82 Nassau Street #313
New York, NY 10038
If you use Amazon, please designate UTJ as your Amazon Smile charity. Also, UTJ is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, so any time you make purchase on Amazon after following a link from the UTJ website, UTJ earns a referral fee.
Wishing everyone a happy and sweet 5781. שנה טובה ומתוקה.
The Union for Traditional Judaism
Rabbi David Novak, President
Rabbi Gerald Sussman, Executive Vice President