Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks

On Friday 27th March, over 200 Jewish students gathered in Kinloss Synagogue for the annual Friday Night Dinner with the Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks.

During the meal the Chief Rabbi spoke to us about the dual threat of apathy and intermarriage on the future of the Jewish community. His words were as prescient and moving as ever. Later on in the evening I had the opportunity to speak, though following the Chief Rabbi is a frightening task.

My blogs so far have focused on the logistical and bureaucratic nature of my job, and not the philosophical. In future, I want to share with you the thoughts that shape how I do my job, starting with my words on Friday night.

"As many of you will know, the Chief Rabbi wrote a book some time ago entitled; Radical Then, Radical Now, which resulted from a meeting with Jewish students. The students had written to a large number of Jewish professionals asking: ‘What does it mean to you to be Jewish?’ Disappointed by the quantity and quality of the answers the Chief Rabbi composed Radical Then, Radical Now, to express to us why being Jewish is so important. Since the writing of the book the Chief Rabbi has remained as committed as ever of Jewish students and his words tonight continue to give us meaning and to inspire us.

"This evening, I want to focus on the Hebrew language which is of particular importance in this week’s parasha. This week, the first word of the parasha, Vayikra, contains a scribal abnormality. The aleph of Vayikra is abnormally small. It is said that this was the result of an argument between G-d and Moses. Moses wished to describe G-d’s revelation to him with humility and asked G-d to omit the aleph from Vayikra. With the aleph removed Vayikra would become Vayikar. As such, rather than being Vayikra, ‘called upon by G-d’ as a result of their special relationship, the revelation would be Vayikar, as if ‘by chance’. To compromise, G-d and Moses agreed that the aleph would not be removed, but become a miniature.

"I can see a parallel between the modesty displayed by Moses here and the modesty of Jewish students on campuses across the UK. Without acknowledgement or reward Jewish students dedicate their time and energy fighting for Israel and strengthening Jewish life on campus. This is so often a thankless task but please know that it does not go unrecognised or unappreciated. Last Sunday, UJS held the first annual Student Awards, aiming to recognise the outstanding contribution of Jewish students on campus. Most of the people here tonight are deserved of an award in their own right and the Jewish community is indebted to you all.

"Let me end by sharing with you a piece of modern Hebrew language. I learnt this week that the root of Kadima, meaning ‘forward’, is kuf, daled, mem or Kodem, meaning ‘at first’. As such, I realised that before we can move on we must at first understand where we have come from and what we have achieved. As my first term as UJS Chair comes to an end I am privileged to look toward a second year, but before I begin to formulate my plans I must reflect on this past year. However, I need your help. Before you return to campus please share with me your thoughts on how UJS and J-Soc have done in order that we can move forward even stronger together.

Shabbat Shalom, "