During the Monmouth Reform Temple trip to Israel, Gunnar Wainwright receives his bar mitzva certificate from former congregation president Semmes Brightman, right, as Rabbi Jonathan Roos, who officiated at the ceremony in Jerusalem, looks on.
Photos courtesy Monmouth Reform Temple
August 26, 2008
For 22 members of Monmouth Reform Temple in Tinton Falls who journeyed to Israel this summer, the trip included lifecycle events for some participants, and provided a deeply spiritual experience for all.
The excursion, which took place June 25-July 6, was the temple’s first group trip to Israel in more than 20 years.
It also marked the culmination of the congregation’s year-long celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Jewish state, said Rabbi Jonathan Roos, the temple’s religious leader.
And the trip included two very personal highlights. Gunnar Wainwright, son of Brook and Robert Wainwright of Little Silver, became a bar mitzva during a service Roos conducted on July 3 at the southern wall excavation site in Jerusalem.
And on July 4, atop Masada, Roos conducted a Hebrew naming ceremony for Alex Shapiro, 13, the adopted daughter of Lynn Shapiro of Sea Bright.
Atop Masada, under a tallit canopy held aloft by Monmouth Reform Temple trip members, are Lynn Shapiro, her adopted daughter, Alex, and Rabbi Jonathan Roos, who conducted a naming ceremony for Alex.
“We blessed Alex with the name Rachel bat Leah, a name of beauty, strength, and heritage,” said Roos.
For Lynn Shapiro, the naming ceremony had an extra dimension. After Alex stated her continued commitment to the Torah and the Jewish people, Lynn shared her own feelings with her fellow congregants.
“When I brought Alex from a Russian orphanage to the American embassy in Moscow 11 years ago, I didn’t think it could ever get any better,” said Shapiro. “When I brought her to Newark to become a naturalized U.S. citizen, I didn’t think it could get any better. But standing here, now, thanks to all of you, I know it cannot possibility get any better than this.”
As Roos conducted the naming ceremony, he, Alex, and Lynn Shapiro stood beneath a canopy formed by a tallit held aloft by several members of the temple’s group. Among those holding the prayer shawl was Gunnar Wainwright.
‘Strong attachments’
“This was my fifth trip to Israel,” said Roos, “but being there with this group, including Gunnar, Alex, and six other religious-school students, allowed me to see things through their eyes.
“Watching them connect with the people of Israel in the Land of Israel for the first time in their young lives was an extremely special experience.”
The forging of “interpersonal connections” took place throughout the trip, Roos said.
“We traveled through Israel, from the Negev to the Golan, and everywhere we went, the sites and experiences were enhanced by Israelis with whom we formed strong attachments,” he said.
The New Jersey group felt the strong sense of pride that Israelis have in their country’s ancient past and progressive future, Roos said.
“The Israelis are proud of their biblical history, and they’re also proud of their many modern advances in cultural and societal development,” the rabbi said. “They’re on the cutting edge of improvements in the fields of agriculture, science, medical research, and software development, among others.
“They’ve worked against enormous odds and have earned the right to be proud.”
Members of the group were invited to the homes of Reform Jews in Jerusalem for the two Shabbats they spent in Israel.
“We learned a lot about their daily lives,” said Roos. “They opened their hearts and homes to us and had some pretty significant questions for us as well. They asked about the upcoming presidential election in the U.S. and its projected impact on the Israeli people.”
It was during these Shabbat discussions that the travelers learned about a possible exchange that eventually took place on July 16, when the remains of Israeli soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser were returned to Israel in exchange for five Lebanese prisoners and the bodies of 200 Hizbulla militants.
“So many Israelis suspected these two men were dead, but the Israeli media said their families still had hope,” said Roos. “After we got home and the exchange took place, we realized we had traveled very close to the Israeli point of transfer. It was a sad memory, but yet another incident that further linked us to the Israeli people.”
Roos said tentative plans are under way to organize another group trip to Israel in 2010. In the meantime, the 2008 travelers continue to reflect on the journey that, for many, was a spiritual and historical awakening.
“Being in Israel surpassed my expectations,” said former congregation president Semmes Brightman of Shrewsbury. “It brought modern history into focus.”
Lynn Shapiro talked about the profound feelings that surfaced as a result of her visit to the Jewish state.
“I had been to Israel before, without the feelings that emerged on this trip,” she said. “But after the temple trip, I didn’t just feel nostalgic, I actually felt homesick. That’s a very deep connection.”
Participants paid their own way, while an anonymous congregant provided a $250 scholarship to offset the trip-related costs for each of the eight religious-school students who were among the 22 travelers.
--TOP--
Comment: comments@njjewishnews.com
