The first time I heard about TCB was in a song called "Respect" sung by Aretha Franklin. An abbreviation popular in the African-American community way back then, the initials stand for "Taking Care of Business," meaning, those things that are central, most important. To take care of business is to focus on those things that are of the highest priority.

That's what I'd like to do with the High Holyday sermons this year: take care of business and try to shed some light on our most central concerns as this New Year begins.

It would be my pleasure to provide a copy of the sermons for anyone who wants them. If you'd like a copy, please contact the Temple office.

Rosh Hashanah Eve -
Taking Care of Business: Minding Our Own Business

So much of the time we are concerned with how other people or forces such as economics and politics affect us. As the New Year begins, perhaps it is time to really take care of business, to mind our own business, to be a bit selfish and take care of some of our own most fundamental needs: the need for celebration, for perspective, and for belonging.
Tonight we will explore the importance of these aspects of our lives and the reasons why we need to concentrate on them.

Rosh Hashanah Morning -
The Business of Ritual: Mindful Ritualism
There are ritual acts that are performed by rote, or without knowledge, or with only a little knowledge and even less understanding. Accurately, if a bit harshly, these sorts of actions may be referred to as "mindless ritualism." Especially for us as Reform Jews, we need the exact opposite if we are to have the benefits of ritual observances at all.
This morning we will address the components we need for a Reform approach to a mindful ritualism: purposes for what we do, reasons and explanations for doing so, and a deep sense of involvement in the process of change and creativity.

Second Morning of Rosh Hashanah -
Staying in Business: Is that Your Final Answer?
If liberal Judaism, Reform Judaism, is to stay in business and provide a reasoned, human-centered alternative to the authoritarian forms of religion we encounter all over the globe, it is long overdue that we embrace our own secularism. Let us be honest about our belief in our ability to make our own religious decisions rather than being bound by an immutable law. Let us be proud and treasure our Reform Judaism as the magnificent accomplishment it is: one of the world's only sources for a human-centered, this-worldly religiosity.

Shabbat Shuvah -
The Business of Evil: Battling the Devil's Demons
We Jews understand the terrible reality of evil, and have certainly suffered from it more than most. Evil exists as a plague upon our planet. We also understand that evil begins not outside of us as some demonic force, but inside of us, when we act out of some of the more primitive instincts that are still part of our human make-up. Our understanding of teshuvah - repentance - is learning the process of acting out of our higher rather than our lower instincts.
These are the ideas we will explore at this Shabbat Shuvah, this special Sabbath of Repentance service for the Sabbath between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

* PLEASE NOTE: All yahrtzeit plaques affixed to the sanctuary wall during the past year will be dedicated at this service.

Yom Kippur Eve -
The Business of Courage: Piercing the Idol's Veil
As the Kol Nidre Prayer teaches us, living in denial is a kind of idolatry. On this most profound of nights, we seek the courage to transcend our desire for denial: courage to smash the false idols through which we hold ourselves in thrall, courage to face our mortality, courage to face the freedom of the unknown, and courage to find the faith we each so sorely need.

Yom Kippur Morning -
The Business of Chesed: The Greatness of Little Kindnesses
If I ever had any doubts - which I didn't - about the incredible power of acts of lovingkindness, my recent cancer surgery and recovery would have dispelled them. Small acts of chesed, as we call them in Hebrew, have effects out of all proportion to the effort it takes to perform them.
This morning we will focus on three of the major steps that need to be taken to perform such deeds of love and kindness: just being there, crossing the line to the other person's side, and taking the time needed to make our world a little bit better.

Yizkor -
The Business of Silence: Keeping It Quiet
Our world is so filled with noise that sometimes we don't realize that we use it as a tool of avoidance. But it is precisely in times of silence that Jewish tradition teaches some of the most profound encounters may take place. It is in the depths of silence that we are able to best meet ourselves, our loved ones, and our God.

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur Family Services
At family services on the afternoon of the first day of Rosh Hashanah and the afternoon of Yom Kippur, I will be telling stories of ethical content appropriate for children up to about age nine or ten.

Yom Kippur Youth Group Service
On Yom Kippur afternoon, just after the morning service, members of our Youth Groups will present a creative service for the High Holydays. The content is on an adult level, and appropriate for children above the age of ten or so. Younger children are of course welcome, though we do urge parents not to let them disrupt the service. Please make it a point to support our young people by being present.

From our house to yours, Marian and I and our whole family wish each and every one of you and all your loved ones, a New Year of health and blessing, peace and prosperity, blessing and love. May this year see a true and lasting peace in the Middle East, and among our people as well.