March 31, 2019     24 Adar II 5779

Dear Members of the HUC-JIR Community,

As the end of this month approaches, so does my time of my service as your Interim President. It has been in so many ways a tremulous ten months, and it is difficult to capture the host of emotions I feel as Jackie and I say farewell to our community yet again. Obviously, I have not been on this journey alone. So many of you have accompanied us during this year of transition, and we will be eternally grateful for your care and support for us personally, as well as for the College-Institute and its sacred mission of providing leadership for this people Israel.

As I turn now to this liminal moment, I reflect on the figures of our patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. According to our tradition, each of these patriarchs established one of the prayer services that our People observe daily. Abraham created Shaharit (the morning prayer), while Jacob established Ma’a’riv (the evening prayer). It was left to Isaac, according to the Talmud, to found Mincha (the afternoon prayer). As B’rachot 26b states, Isaac prayed the afternoon prayer when he “went out to meditate in the field” (Genesis 26:43) and “poured out his plea before God” (Psalm 102:1).

It is with Isaac and the Mincha he instituted that I identify at this point of passage. Mincha is the shortest of our services. It takes place at the least spectacular time of day. There is no dramatic shift from dark to light, or day to night. It serves simply as a bridge between morning and evening.

How appropriate that Isaac would be the initiator of this prayer of transition. After all, it was his father Abraham who began our People, and we as a People bear the name of Israel, his son. Isaac, like the brief Mincha with which he would be forever associated, possessed a more modest role. He was a single link in a chain of tradition. Isaac was mindful that Abraham preceded him, and he was aware as well that his service made possible the continuity of the tradition his father formed. Most importantly, he felt confidence in Jacob and recognized that his son and those in the generations to follow would successfully carry and bear the mesorah (tradition) of our people.

It is Isaac to whom I have looked as I have attempted to provide leadership for you during these past ten months. The tragic and immeasurable pain caused by the sudden death of our beloved Aaron Panken demanded stillness – quiet and comforting conversations. While it was a time of challenge, it was neither a time for hurried activity nor noisy declarations. This past year was not a moment to plant or to harvest. Rather, these months called upon all of us, like Isaac, “to stand in the field and meditate,” to be present and steadfast for one another as we transitioned from the sunset of one era to the dawn of yet another.

As we conclude this yearlong Mincha and look to the leadership Andrew Rehfeld will provide, the time for standing quietly in the field has now come to an end. Seeds for future plenty were planted by Aaron. Under the leadership Andrew will offer, these seeds will surely flourish. I am sure an abundant harvest awaits our future at the College-Institute through his vision and guidance.

V’yishlach b’rachah v’hatzlachah b’chol ma’a’sei ya’dav – may the Holy One cast blessing and success upon all the worthy deeds of his hands, and may God continue to watch over this Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.

Bivrachah u’v’ahavah – in blessing and love,

Rabbi David Ellenson, Ph.D.
Chancellor Emeritus