Lessons of a Broken Toe
October 12, 2016
In his Yom Kippur sermon, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch reflects on heroism and our quest for meaning.
“If we really look, we will discover that everything is broken,” he says. “We are all infirm. We might look whole from the outside, but we are a collection of broken pieces coarsely glued together.”
“A hero is one who, in the face of all the senseless absurdities and sufferings of life, keeps on keeping on, not giving in to disillusion and despair. Why do I live? What is my purpose? Let life be for a heroic cause. This is why we are here today: to render our lives more meaningful, to gain perspective, a sense of what could be.”
Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch is the senior rabbi at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue. A vibrant Reform congregation on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, Stephen Wise Free Synagogue has served as a catalyst for progressive Jewish thought, support for Israel, and committed social action in the local community and beyond for more than 100 years. Learn more at swfs.org
