Voices of WRJ: Vayeilech

by Leslie Brier This weeks parashah is Parashat Vayeilech, from Deuteronomy 31:1-30. Vayeilech translates to “he went.” It recounts the events of Moses last days after he is told that his time is near the end. Leadership will be transferred to Joshua. Moses entreats Joshua to be courageous and be strong. Moses tells Joshua that God will be with him. In the Talmud it says that the time of a ruler cannot infringe on the time of the next ruler. Recently, many sisterhood boards and WRJ District boards have changed leadership. The lesson of the Talmud is important to remember. It is hard for leaders to transfer leadership when they have worked hard to strengthen their sisterhood or district and made their mark. What if the new leaders take the sisterhood or WRJ Dstrict in another direction and don’t share your vision? This is a time to remember to be like Moses who was the paradigm of leadership: have selfless concern coupled with wise guidance. Fortunately, WRJ and its sisterhoods have resources to help with this transition. From past presidents to the WRJ Chai Society to the WRJ Consultants there are opportunities for both the past leaders and new leaders to grow. Vayeilech also implies movement, growth, and advancement. The WRJ Board of Directors met in New York City at the end of May to discuss the constitutional changes and changes to the mission statement recommended by the hardworking and thoughtful women that served on those committees. Over two days we met to discuss how WRJ can grow and advance to meet the needs of all women who identify themselves as women of Reform Judaism. WRJ is at a pivotal time in history where we can address the ever changing landscape of our organization. URJ President Rabbi Rick Jacobs joined us and called the suggested changes “visionary.” In Vayeilech, the mitzvah of hak’hel (gathering) is given. Every seven years during the festival of Sukkot the entire people of Israel are gathered to have the Torah read to them. Fortunately, we have many opportunities to “gather” and need not wait seven years! The next “gathering” will take place at the WRJ Assembly 2015 in Orlando, FL from November 4-8, where you will be able to vote on the recommended changes to the constitution. Do come, dear sisters. Even though we all have our own lives and have diverse backgrounds and opinions, we have in common the bigger picture that draws us together and your wise guidance is needed. Change is both constant (nitzavim, or stand firmly) and fluid (vayeilech, or movement). There will always be change and one can never be sure of the direction of the tide. However, if we each can use the model of Moses's leadership, have selfless concern and wise guidance, we will continue to be a strong and vibrant community. In addition, as leaders both past and present, we will serve Women of Reform Judaism best by embracing the ebb and flow of change. For those of you who have yet to choose a leadership position either locally or nationally: allow me to share this anecdote while attending the WRJ Board meeting. While sharing a cab with other board members we discussed amongst ourselves why we love being on the board. We all agreed that we each had been asked to take tasks or projects that initially we believed were beyond our abilities; though we were nervous and struggled through it, we each felt we were stretched and grew and had the support of a WRJ sister. May we go from strength to strength. Leslie Brier is a WRJ Board of Directors member and a WRJ representative for the United Nations. She is also a WRJ Atlantic District area director and a member of Main Line Reform Sisterhood.