Once again, not memes, but a little hopefulness boost from my local rabbi:
July, 2022
2 Tammuz 5782
Dear Haverim,
As Shabbat approaches, some teachings to help you navigate through the formidable challenges of the current political moment. I hope they inspire you as much as they do me:
“Know that a person needs to cross a very, very narrow bridge - and what is essential is not to be overcome by fear.” (Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, from Likutei Moharan.)
“They must not lose hope but should keep their courage in the certainty that the hopelessness of our struggle did not detract from its dignity and its meaning.” (Vickor Frankl, from Man’s Search for Meaning.)
"Hope, in this deep and powerful sense, is not the same as joy that things are going well, or willingness to invest in enterprises that are obviously headed for early success, but rather an ability to work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed. The more unpromising the situation in which we demonstrate hope, the deeper that hope is. Hope is not the same thing as optimism. It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out.” (Václav Havel, from Disturbing the Peace.)
“I always tell people, for me, hope doesn’t preclude feeling sadness or frustration or anger or any other emotion that makes total sense. Hope isn’t an emotion, you know? Hope is not optimism.” (Mariame Kaba, from Hope is a Discipline )
I would prefer to win, but struggle is about much more than winning. It always has been. And there is nothing revolutionary about fatalism. I suppose the question is, are you antifascist? Are you a revolutionary? Are you a defender of decency and life on Earth? Because no one who is any of those things has ever had the odds on their side." (Kelly Hayes, from Saturday Afternoon thoughts on the Apocalypse.)
And one more for good measure:
“The first rule of an emergency is that you do what it takes to end the emergency and get to safety. You don’t throw up your hands because the task is too hard. You certainly don’t let a gang of unelected, lifetime appointed political operatives — several of whom only have their seats because of trickery and lies — get in your way.” (from Naomi Klein, The Supreme Court’s Shock and Awe Judicial Coup.)
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Brant Rosen
