Long Island's Oldest Reform Congregation
140 Central Avenue - Lawrence, NY 11559
(516) 239-1140

David Woolfe

Welcome back to the new century and new millennium!

Curious, just like that strange sensation on a birthday (gee, I don’t feel any older) the new century and millenium don’t feel any different than the old ones. (Of course, it’s hard to know what a new century is supposed to feel like.) Still, it shouldn’t surprise us that 2000 feels a lot like 1999. We still carry with us all those things of importance that we had with us just a few days ago.

We have our families and our Temple family. We have centuries of Jewish tradition and learning to rely on. We have a language that is thousands of years old (unlike recognizable English which is only three or four hundred years old at best).

Facing this new millennium, it is a wonderful feeling to know that we have such a long and rich past. It is this past — this tradition — that determines what we learn in Religious School. The lessons from our Torah, the beauty of Hebrew, the power of our prayer service, the ethics of our ancestors — these things animate our lessons at the beginning of this millennium.

Our dedication to our community, our commitment to tzedakah, and our love of our synagogue are constants in our lives.

It is thrilling to face a new century and a new millennium. It is comforting to be able to do so with many centuries and millennia of tradition as our foundation and guide.

Happy New Year everyone!