I was raised a Conservative Jew. We were expected to be knowledgeable about Torah, text, and religious observance. “Knowledgeable” implied integrating Judaism into our everyday behavior, our relationships with family and friends, and our interactions with strangers. The values of Torah, reinforced by our rituals and holidays, were taught with the intention that we would “live our Judaism” and that these values would help shape our character, build our conscience and lead us to find our purpose and place in the world.
My earliest recollection of “living our Judaism” came from a story my grandmother told me when I was five years old. During the depression, she welcomed a beggar into her kitchen to share the single egg intended for her hungry family. I understood that my grandmother’s empathy was the essence of tzedakah and of treating others kindly. I was a young teen when my grandfather was dying; I remember my father sneaking his father’s favorite sandwich (non-kosher) into the otherwise very kosher house, so my grandfather could enjoy it one last time. That, to me, was the essence of “honor your father,” of implementing our commandments with compassion.
On a certain walk in Selma, Alabama, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel spoke of implementing Torah by “praying with your feet.” To me, this message, which mirrors the values I learned from my parents’ and grandparents’ actions, is both my compass and a Jewish imperative.
Janice Kamenir-Reznik is a lawyer, community activist and co-founder of Jewish World Watch: A Jewish Response to Genocide. www.jww.org
