There’s been some talk lately about articles that appeared in the Atlanta Jewish Times mentioning the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta and the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.

The articles covered a wide range of topics, including buildings, budgets, overhead, staff, governance, leadership, vision, mergers and more.

What the articles do not address, however, is community building. Understanding, responding, funding and building community is serious business. New ideas are not only welcome; they are also vital to our collective success. New ideas – including many addressed in the articles – are being worked on every day among dedicated volunteers and professional staff of the MJCCA, the Federation, synagogues and every single Jewish organization in town. New ideas are serious business, not frivolous thoughts. 

The world, it seems, has little trouble telling Israel and the Jews what to do.

Each and every minute, day, week, month and year of life is precious:  to be held dear; to be savored.  Every year, Israel takes two of these minutes to bear witness to the emptinees and pain of loss. 

My Dad – Marty Rakitt - passed away on March 5.  He was 92 years old and lived not only a long life, but a full one.  He was one of a kind, yet in many ways, his life was the quintessential reflection of the 20th century American Jewish experience.