New beginnings

June Casagrande

As they filed into synagogues Friday night, members of

Newport-Mesa’s Jewish community had a lot on their minds, said Rabbi

Marc Rubenstein of Temple Isaiah. Almost everyone has less in their

pocket than they did one year ago. Almost everyone is harboring some

latent anger toward God about the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the

overall state of the world.

But far more important than asking “What can God do for me,”

Rubenstein said, is asking, “What have I done for God and my

community?

“The question I’m posing is, if the messiah arrived right now, if

you had to pick him up at John Wayne Airport and take him to your

home right now, would you be proud or embarrassed about the state of

your affairs in your life and your family?” Rubenstein said.

The two-day observance of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year that

is also a time of solemn reflection and atonement, began Friday night

with services at Temple Isaiah and other area places of Jewish

worship. As the second Rosh Hashana since the Sept. 11 terrorist

attacks, religious leaders and believers are facing the new year in

what is also a new world.

Rubenstein estimated that about 200 people were expected to attend

Friday’s services -- a 50% increase over recent years.

But even in this changed environment, it is in the enduring

traditions of the faith that believers can find answers. Support for

family, faith, America and Israel should be the hallmarks of this

year’s holiday.

“On the anniversary of this act of destruction, let us defy evil

by reflecting upon our own lives and resolve to improve the world,”

Rabbi Reuben Mintz of the Chabad Jewish Center of Newport Beach

observed. “If we don’t want evil to triumph, we must have great

determination. Let us harness the creative power entrusted to every

single one of us to work in harmony and create a positive power

replacing the power lost by the extinguished lives.”

The Jewish Federation of Orange County in Costa Mesa is taking

this altruistic outlook one step further by making it easier for

worshippers to make contributions to Israel and Sept. 11 victims. And

Temple Bat Yahm and the Chabad Jewish Center of Newport Beach have

full schedules of services throughout the holiday to help worshippers

gain a better focus on their lives and the Jewish year 5763 that

began Friday with the blowing of ram’s horns throughout the world --

the traditional start of the holiday.

“How have you changed your life since Sept. 11? Have you become

more spiritual, or have you become more protective of your own

assets?” Rubenstein asked. “These are the things we need to be

considering.”

* JUNE CASAGRANDE covers Newport Beach and John Wayne Airport.

She may be reached at (949) 574-4232 or by e-mail at

[email protected].