Remarks by Sally Scott, Beth Am Board President
at Yom Kippur services, Saturday, October 12, 2024
Five years ago, Beth Am undertook a strategic planning process which helped us clarify what we value as a congregation. Eighteen months ago, as we began to plan the 50th Anniversary, we linked the specific Beth Am values that emerged from our strategic plan to sacred Jewish values. With our Rabbis as guides, we found that Beth Am’s “torah” is expressed through five pillars – core values that undergird and animate our work. Highlighting these pillars makes a statement about the kind of congregation we are today and the future we envision.
As a community, we will explore these pillars in much greater depth over the coming 50th Anniversary year.
קהילה
Kehillah – Sacred Community
While Kehillah means “congregation”, we are using it in the sense of Kehillah Kedosha – sacred community. At Beth Am, we are bound to each other by ties that transcend the mundane, the transactional. Our ties are rooted in a sense of a boundless and abiding connection to Jewish history, faith and people. We have ties to the Beth Am community that we collectively create – through services, life cycle events, Discovery Lab, hiking, eating, arguing, and celebrating.
צדק
Tzedek – Social Justice
Literally, tzedek translates as “justice” in English. Yet we know this translation is too narrow – tzedek is a fundamental value in the Torah that encompasses charity, righteousness, integrity, and fairness. Tzedek Beth Am, our Social Justice group, describes its work as “Pursuing Justice Together”, connecting congregants, neighbors and allies. The work includes service, advocacy, and relational justice – loving our neighbors as ourselves, as we advocate for a more just world.
מקום
Makom – Connection to Place
Makom can mean simply “place” – but it also can mean a place where we feel a sense of belonging, support, and connection. We gather in a synagogue that is over 100 years old, in the Baltimore City neighborhood of Reservoir Hill. Our congregation exists because the founders of Beth Am bucked conventional wisdom and refused to move. We deeply value our connection to the past, present and future of this beautiful building, Reservoir Hill, and Baltimore City.
עמך
Amcha – Celebrating Diversity
“Amcha” literally means everyday people, the folk. More broadly, amcha is a warm, inclusive way of describing Beth Am’s embrace of our diverse members. We welcome Jews of all races, ethnicities, sexual identities, and gender identities, as well as non-Jewish members of interfaith families. Our services, programs, and Circles create different ways to plug into Beth Am – and we’re open to finding new ways to connect!
לימוד
Limud – Learning
When I first started to attend Beth Am, I was staggered by the abundance of limud…Judaism felt like an ocean of learning I was being encouraged to explore. Beth Am’s commitment to lifelong learning adds substance and meaning to everything that we do. We offer formal and informal learning opportunities for Beth Am members of every age. Limud is not something we do to prepare for the rest of life – learning is an integral part of how we live.
