The Jewish people have a complicated relationship with the concept of gratitude. After the exodus from Egypt, we are told that the grumbling and complaining began immediately, and the idea of ‘God took us out of Egypt to have us die in the desert’ was repeatedly heard. And yet, some of our most compelling biblical and liturgical works are filled with expressions of gratitude - no more apparent than in Psalms, where King David wrote the words said in prayer every day ‘Hodu L’Hashem Ki Tov, Ki LeOlam Chasdo’ meaning ‘Give thanks and praise to the Almighty because of his goodness, because his kindness is forever’.

The Pesach story and the liberation from slavery should have been the beginning of our learning curve on gratitude, but it has been a bumpy road. One individual, a man who continues to have a huge impact on world events even more than 150 years after his death, never got the memo. Karl Marx, of Jewish extraction if not persuasion, once wrote ‘Gratitude is a disease of dogs.’ It is clear to me that among the many reasons why the religion of Marxism and socialism (which I have described and explained as a religion in some of my newsletter messages in the past) is dangerous and deficient, is this kind of thinking. It isn’t only the idea of thanking the divine that gets left behind, it’s also the idea that any person needs or deserves the grace of gratitude in the face of their responsibility to advance the power of the proletariat.

But that is not us. That’s not how we roll. We give thanks and praise. And so, for a moment, I’d like to highlight some of the people and organizations that I and we at Federation are grateful for.

Our community is more secure in the face of greater antisemitism and heightened concerns than it has ever been. I’m grateful to our incredible Director of Security, Ethan Erlich, and we are also grateful for the support and partnership of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, their Community Security Initiative, and the financial support of UJA Federation of New York.

I’m grateful for the guidance and financial support of Jewish Federation of North America’s LiveSecure initiative, of which Rockland was the first recipient in the entire Federation system.

I’m grateful for the continuing dedication of all of Rockland’s law enforcement agencies, as well as their colleagues at the state and federal levels, who are tireless in their efforts to keep us safe. And I’m grateful for the partnership of the Jewish organizations which make up our regional security network, the Jewish Security Alliance - UJA New York, ADL, CSS, JCRC and several more federations from the Hudson Valley through most of New Jersey. This partnership is not often talked about, but it is an important part of what keeps us safe.

Finally I want to thank you, our partners and donors, who continue to make our work safeguarding a growing, thriving, secure community a priority. Over 100,000 Jews live in Rockland. Our community’s safety and security is paramount. Thank you - and thank you as well (in advance) to those of you who will read this and decide to make it your priority as well. You can support us HERE .

Shabbat Shalom