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I'm Rabbi Mary Zamore.

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My pronouns are
she/her/hers, and I'm

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the Executive Director of
the Women's Rabbinic Network.

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WRN is a partner organization
of the Reform Movement.

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For over 40 years, we've
worked on gender justice

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promoting safety and equity
in the Jewish community.

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The videos and study materials
you're about to view have

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the potential to be a
powerful guide in the process

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of t'shuvah, taking account of
our wrongs and creating a path

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forward to strive to repair
the harms we have caused.

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I am grateful that
Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg

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will be sharing
from her new book,

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On Repentance and Repair--

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Making Amends in an
Unapologetic World.

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Our tradition teaches us that
t'shuvah is work in which we

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can and should engage
whenever it is needed.

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Each of us will
certainly find ways

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to bring these
ancient teachings, so

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relevant for modern living,
into our personal lives.

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Perhaps we will be able to
take ownership of a wrong

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we recently
committed, or perhaps

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we can revisit something
from years ago.

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These teachings may
also give us the voice

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to communicate to
friends or loved ones

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the pain we have suffered
to ask to be heard.

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Most of all, I hope the path
of repentance and repair

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will be open to many whenever
they are ready for them.

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There is also a larger context
for our study of t'shuvah.

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For members of the
Reform Movement,

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whether we belong to
individual congregations

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or have other connections
to our greater movement,

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together we are in a
season of reflection.

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Months ago, the three
major organizations

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of the Reform Movement, the
Union for Reform Judaism,

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Hebrew Union College -
Jewish Institute of Religion,

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the Central Conference
of American Rabbis,

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released separate
reports resulting

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from three independent
legal investigations.

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These reports document
incidents of sexual misconduct,

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abuse, harassment, and
discrimination based

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on gender identity, gender
expression, sexual orientation,

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race, and identity.

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These reports also
document systems, policies,

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and institutional
processes that enable harm.

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As a member of the
Reform Movement,

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I personally want to express
my deep, deep gratitude

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to the victim survivors
who have come forward

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to report to these
investigations

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or are now in conversation
with these organizations.

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My deep thanks.

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Within the Women's
Rabbinic Network,

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there are many who have
been subject to misdeeds

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and discrimination.

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However, the victim
survivors include all variety

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of Jewish professionals,
employees, laypeople, even

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children.

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This is a season
of deep reflection.

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It is a difficult season.

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We can begin to find comfort in
the process of t'shuvah itself.

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There is power and
speaking with transparency.

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There is hope and being
willing to hear and understand

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the harm done even
when it is painful,

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even when we contributed
to that harm,

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whether we understood
that before or not.

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There is hope in
finding a path to repair

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as much as it is possible.

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And I'm grateful that
our tradition gives us

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the opportunity and
tools of repentance.

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Of course, the promise of repair
is being able to move forward,

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to feel seen, heard,
and supported,

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to know that we can make changes
so that no one is harmed again.

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At the end of Yom Kippur,
both the language and music

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of our prayers shift
to a more upbeat tone.

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This shift reflects that our
tradition not only sees great

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value, but also optimism
in the work of t'shuvah.

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Thank you for joining us in this
journey of study, reflection,

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and action.

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Hello.

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I'm Rabbi Jill Maderer
from Congregation Rodeph

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Shalom in Philadelphia.

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And I am grateful to be here
in conversation with the Reform

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Movement and with Rabbi Danya
Ruttenberg about her newest

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book, On Repentance and Repair--

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Making Amends in an
Unapologetic World.

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Rabbi Ruttenberg, your book
lays out so much brokenness

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in this world, in our
lives, in our relationships,

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and yet at the same time,
through Jewish wisdom,

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it really provides a
path into hope and repair

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and possibility.

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Can you to start us off?

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Can you give us a
definition of t'shuvah?

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T'shuvah is a Hebrew
word that is often

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translated as "repentance,"
but it actually really

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means "returning."

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Like you, in Hebrew, might
buy a bus ticket that's haloch

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v'shuv.

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A going there and a coming back.

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That we're coming back to where
we were meant to be all along.

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T'shuvah is also an
answer to a question.

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So it's a way of coming
back to finding the answers

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to the person that we wanted to
be, to living in our integrity,

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to living in connection
with other people,

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to living in connection
with the divine,

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to living in harmony with
our integrity and our values.

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So if the work of t'shuvah is
really the work of the person

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who has done wrong, who has
committed a transgression

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or harmed someone else,
how is it that in the work

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of t'shuvah, we are
centering the victim

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and the victim's needs?

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So the work of naming and owning
the harm that we have caused,

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if it's really just about
us, if it's about me,

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me, me, I've done wrong,
I'm so bad, it's all me,

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and we're not really looking
at the person who was hurt,

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and really getting what we
did, and caring for them,

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and really trying to figure
out how we have impacted them,

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and how we can try
to - best we can

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- repair the hole in the
cosmos that we have created

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and to attend to their needs
and to become the kind of people

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who don't do this thing
ever again to anyone else,

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then we're not doing
the work of repentance.

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We're doing a sort of
an egocentric exercise.

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And so if our repentance work
does not at all times take

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the victim, the person
who has been impacted's

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needs and care and concern into
account first and foremost,

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then something's missing.

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Now there's the victim who's
been directly impacted,

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but then there may
be indirect impact

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or some kind of witnessing.

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So what are the
layers of impact?

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I mean, it's contextual, right?

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If there's something
that happens

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inside a marriage and the only
two people who are impacted

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are the two people inside
that marriage, that's

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one kind of harm and
one kind of repair work

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that's going to be involved.

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But so often in our
world, harm isn't just

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- you know the sort
of simple equation.

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Right, there's the
person who caused harm,

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there is a person
who is affected.

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There are witnesses
to the harm who

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may be receiving cues about
what's OK and what's not OK.

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There may be witnesses to the
harm who are harmed indirectly

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because they are now put on
notice, that suddenly this

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is not a safe space
for them either.

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Right, and this is not
a safe culture for them.

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And their own concerns will
not be believed or cared for.

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There may be people whose own
past traumas are triggered.

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And a culture of what
is safe and not safe,

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it may be created.

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And if we're thinking
about institutional trust,

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there may be people whose
sense of safety and belief

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in an institution
may be impacted

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by the nature of the harm.

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If we're thinking about a
cultural or national level,

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it has the potential to shape
entire systems of power,

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and who has power and how
that power is wielded.

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Now we're using
the term "victim,"

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and I've also seen
the term "survivor"

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or "impacted individual"
or "targeted individual."

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How are you
approaching your terms?

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It's complicated,
and there is not

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one right magical
answer that's going

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to address every situation.

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I tend to use "victim"
as an umbrella term

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because there are so many
different kinds of situations

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and so many different
types of harm.

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Forgetting to pick
you up at the airport

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and stepping on your foot
are some kinds of harm,

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and systemic racism and sexual
abuse are other kinds of harm.

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And it's hard to describe
them all in one word, right?

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Some people choose
to use this word

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"survivor" to describe
their experience of coming

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through trauma.

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And the decision to use that
word is often very personal,

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and for some people,
it denotes a process

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of getting through healing.

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And that's really powerful.

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And of course, if that
is the correct word

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to describe your
experience, then

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absolutely you should use it.

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And I try not to
be presumptuous.

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And so I tend to use
"victim" as a more umbrella

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term to describe someone who
has been impacted or injured

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by harm.

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And we all do harm.

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We're human beings,
we are imperfect.

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And so we are blessed
in our Jewish lives

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that we have this
guidance from Maimonides

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and from our tradition.

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Can you tell us, how
does Maimonides guide us?

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When I read the
Laws of Repentance,

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I see five distinct steps
that really take someone

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through a process
of repentance work.

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OK, what are the five steps?

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So, we've got confession, right.

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Own the harm fully
that you have caused.

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Then we have starting to change.

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Begin to do the work to
become the different person

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and the kind of person
who doesn't do that thing.

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Amends.

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What do you need to do to repair
the situation that you caused?

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Then apology, and we'll
talk in a moment about why

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apology is so late in the game.

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And then the fifth
and final step

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is, when you have the chance
to make that same injurious

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choice, you do
something different.

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You make different choices.

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You naturally and organically,
through all the work

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of repentance and repair,
have become the kind of person

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who chooses in a different way.

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Many of our communities,
our institutions,

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are finally coming
face-to-face with brokenness,

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with wrongdoing, sometimes
even tragic wrongdoing,

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coming from within their
systems and within our systems.

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Can you, can you speak to
how these steps of personal

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t'shuvah can be brought to
the work we are and need to be

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engaged in in our institutions?

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I have found [they] work
on the personal level,

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in the deeply, deeply most
intimate personal level

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of our lives.

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They work on the institutional
level, the broader

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social level, on
a national level.

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And when we hold
them up, they can

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be a mirror that
illuminates what's

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missing in our processes.

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When we say, wow,
there's some real work

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that's happening here,
let's see where we are.

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And then you say, OK,
this confession happened,

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what does it look like?

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Has it done everything
it needs to do?

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Are victims feeling cared for?

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What about starting to change?

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What has changed, what hasn't?

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Are we clear that the
person is beginning

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to do the work in a way that
won't cause the harm again?

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That systems are changing.

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What amends have happened,
what amends haven't happened?

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Are the people who--

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person or people harmed
getting what they need?

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What apologies have
and haven't happened?

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Are the people who are harmed,
the person that were harmed,

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are they feeling appeased?

248
00:15:20,460 --> 00:15:22,020
And if not, why not?

249
00:15:22,020 --> 00:15:26,290
And what needs to
happen to get there?

250
00:15:26,290 --> 00:15:29,380
And most critically,
what needs to happen

251
00:15:29,380 --> 00:15:33,220
to make sure that this is
never going to happen again?

252
00:15:33,220 --> 00:15:36,850
And what needs to happen so
that everything that happened,

253
00:15:36,850 --> 00:15:40,930
steps 1, 2, 3, and
4 were so profound

254
00:15:40,930 --> 00:15:43,690
that when we get to
step 5, it's obvious.

255
00:15:43,690 --> 00:15:46,490
Right, naturally, step 5
should not be a choice.

256
00:15:46,490 --> 00:15:50,200
Step 5 should be a natural
and organic outcome

257
00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:52,420
of steps 1, 2, 3, and 4.

258
00:15:52,420 --> 00:15:54,580
By the time you get to
step 5, it's like, well,

259
00:15:54,580 --> 00:15:58,810
so clearly I am so
different and so transformed

260
00:15:58,810 --> 00:16:01,090
by all of the other
things I've been

261
00:16:01,090 --> 00:16:06,331
doing that there's no way I
could possibly be over there

262
00:16:06,331 --> 00:16:09,940
- you know - doing the things--

263
00:16:09,940 --> 00:16:12,760
those things that I did
before, those horrible things.

264
00:16:12,760 --> 00:16:14,335
I think so often
in our institutions

265
00:16:14,335 --> 00:16:19,470
that the more our
institutions of trust

266
00:16:19,470 --> 00:16:24,120
can show up and act like
institutions of trust

267
00:16:24,120 --> 00:16:30,060
when things go wrong, instead
of offering what psychologist

268
00:16:30,060 --> 00:16:34,595
Jennifer Freyd calls
institutional betrayal, right,

269
00:16:34,595 --> 00:16:36,750
which is like another
layer of trauma,

270
00:16:36,750 --> 00:16:40,340
another injury on top of
the original injury, when

271
00:16:40,340 --> 00:16:45,560
I love and feel connected
to a place that is my home

272
00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:50,510
and it doesn't live up to my
expectations when I'm harmed,

273
00:16:50,510 --> 00:16:52,520
then it's another
layer of trauma.

274
00:16:52,520 --> 00:16:57,320
And when it shows up and is
there for me when I need it,

275
00:16:57,320 --> 00:17:01,460
even if it's not 70
sqajillion dollars,

276
00:17:01,460 --> 00:17:03,920
if they just show up and
say, you have needs now

277
00:17:03,920 --> 00:17:07,250
and I see you, I
think it just-- it

278
00:17:07,250 --> 00:17:12,739
does so much for people's sense
of humanity and being seen.

279
00:17:12,739 --> 00:17:18,380
Our institutions
have deep work to do.

280
00:17:18,380 --> 00:17:24,880
What do you describe as
institutional courage?

281
00:17:24,880 --> 00:17:26,890
So this is also--
that's also a phrase

282
00:17:26,890 --> 00:17:33,070
from the work of Dr. Jennifer
Freyd who is tremendous.

283
00:17:33,070 --> 00:17:37,660
Institutional courage is
not, as she says, a binary.

284
00:17:37,660 --> 00:17:40,090
Right, that they're not
institutions that are brave

285
00:17:40,090 --> 00:17:42,610
and institutions
that are not brave.

286
00:17:42,610 --> 00:17:44,140
It is a journey.

287
00:17:44,140 --> 00:17:50,380
And every institution needs
to find their way step-by-step

288
00:17:50,380 --> 00:17:53,020
and to do the thing
that is scary,

289
00:17:53,020 --> 00:17:55,570
but that meets the needs of
the people that were harmed.

290
00:17:55,570 --> 00:17:58,930
That is the thing
that feels vulnerable,

291
00:17:58,930 --> 00:18:05,530
but that attends to the needs of
the people who have trusted it.

292
00:18:05,530 --> 00:18:07,270
And then to walk the
next step, and what

293
00:18:07,270 --> 00:18:08,605
is the next step after that?

294
00:18:08,605 --> 00:18:11,150


295
00:18:11,150 --> 00:18:14,320
OK, it was great that we did
this, but we can't stop here.

296
00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:16,660
What is the next
thing after this

297
00:18:16,660 --> 00:18:19,930
that we can do to
be bigger and braver

298
00:18:19,930 --> 00:18:23,020
and to better model
our Jewish values

299
00:18:23,020 --> 00:18:29,410
and to better be an example
of what caring for our people

300
00:18:29,410 --> 00:18:32,350
really can be?

301
00:18:32,350 --> 00:18:37,490
And that every time an
institution takes that step

302
00:18:37,490 --> 00:18:41,480
it shows every other
institution what's possible,

303
00:18:41,480 --> 00:18:44,900
and it offers more healing
and more light into the world,

304
00:18:44,900 --> 00:18:49,470
and it cares better for
the people who need it to.

305
00:18:49,470 --> 00:18:51,300
Let's begin with the first step.

306
00:18:51,300 --> 00:18:54,990
How would you
describe confession?

307
00:18:54,990 --> 00:18:59,790
Confession is about owning
the harm that you have caused

308
00:18:59,790 --> 00:19:01,740
and owning it fully.

309
00:19:01,740 --> 00:19:05,550
It's about no hedging,
no qualifications, no,

310
00:19:05,550 --> 00:19:07,920
"but I really
intended really well"

311
00:19:07,920 --> 00:19:11,160
and "I was just trying
to be a good person."

312
00:19:11,160 --> 00:19:14,820
It requires-- even before
you do the confession

313
00:19:14,820 --> 00:19:17,730
step, a little bit of
that cheshbon hanefesh,

314
00:19:17,730 --> 00:19:20,730
accounting of the
soul to really cross

315
00:19:20,730 --> 00:19:24,750
that bridge between
the story of yourself

316
00:19:24,750 --> 00:19:28,650
as the hero and the good guy
who's always doing right,

317
00:19:28,650 --> 00:19:36,140
and having to face you
didn't do the right thing.

318
00:19:36,140 --> 00:19:41,770
No matter what it is, you have
to just name it, own it fully.

319
00:19:41,770 --> 00:19:46,120
And definitely
has to be at least

320
00:19:46,120 --> 00:19:51,130
to the person or people that
witnessed and experienced

321
00:19:51,130 --> 00:19:52,240
the harm.

322
00:19:52,240 --> 00:19:54,910
If you say something
racist in a staff meeting,

323
00:19:54,910 --> 00:19:57,550
then all of the people
present in that staff meeting

324
00:19:57,550 --> 00:19:59,350
have to hear your confession.

325
00:19:59,350 --> 00:20:01,900
Whether you put it
on the team Slack,

326
00:20:01,900 --> 00:20:05,440
whether you name it in the
staff meeting next week,

327
00:20:05,440 --> 00:20:07,690
whether you catch yourself
in the moment and say,

328
00:20:07,690 --> 00:20:09,970
"Oop, I just heard what
came out of my mouth

329
00:20:09,970 --> 00:20:16,030
and that wasn't right," and then
correct yourself and own it.

330
00:20:16,030 --> 00:20:19,330
Whatever it is, you
have to confess fully.

331
00:20:19,330 --> 00:20:24,280
And it's praiseworthy, even,
to do it in a more public way.

332
00:20:24,280 --> 00:20:27,430
To tell more people
that this is what

333
00:20:27,430 --> 00:20:30,820
happened as a way
of asking for help,

334
00:20:30,820 --> 00:20:32,830
as a way of accountability.

335
00:20:32,830 --> 00:20:35,560
As a way of saying, "I'm
going on a repentance journey

336
00:20:35,560 --> 00:20:39,580
and I want to change, and
I'm inviting all of you

337
00:20:39,580 --> 00:20:43,100
to help me because I
can't do it alone."

338
00:20:43,100 --> 00:20:46,480
What is the potential
impact for the victim

339
00:20:46,480 --> 00:20:50,190
to hear this confession?

340
00:20:50,190 --> 00:20:53,970
So this is really
part of why I think

341
00:20:53,970 --> 00:20:56,970
that all of the
steps of repentance

342
00:20:56,970 --> 00:20:59,760
are deeply
victim-centric even if we

343
00:20:59,760 --> 00:21:03,730
don't see the victim named
in each of the steps.

344
00:21:03,730 --> 00:21:07,510
So for example, in
the confession step,

345
00:21:07,510 --> 00:21:10,090
suddenly there's an
end to the gaslighting.

346
00:21:10,090 --> 00:21:13,960
There is suddenly an
end to any question

347
00:21:13,960 --> 00:21:16,750
about where culpability lies.

348
00:21:16,750 --> 00:21:20,080
The victim can stop questioning
themselves, "Did this really

349
00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:20,710
happen?

350
00:21:20,710 --> 00:21:22,750
Was it really that bad?

351
00:21:22,750 --> 00:21:25,240
Am I making this up?"

352
00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:27,850
A victim who's clear on
what happened but maybe

353
00:21:27,850 --> 00:21:31,210
isn't believed by
everybody in the community

354
00:21:31,210 --> 00:21:34,040
has that validation
and vindication.

355
00:21:34,040 --> 00:21:34,540
"See?

356
00:21:34,540 --> 00:21:36,700
Look, they're owning it."

357
00:21:36,700 --> 00:21:40,060
Everybody around now is
clear on what happened

358
00:21:40,060 --> 00:21:43,210
and that victim can
get the full support

359
00:21:43,210 --> 00:21:46,960
that they have deserved
all this time from everyone

360
00:21:46,960 --> 00:21:48,220
in the community.

361
00:21:48,220 --> 00:21:50,860


362
00:21:50,860 --> 00:21:53,400
And that's something that
ideally is negotiated

363
00:21:53,400 --> 00:21:55,380
with the person who was harmed.

364
00:21:55,380 --> 00:21:57,330
You don't make
amends at the person,

365
00:21:57,330 --> 00:22:00,360
you make them to the
person and with the person.

366
00:22:00,360 --> 00:22:03,840
And what would feel
like the correct amends

367
00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:06,690
to one individual
may feel different

368
00:22:06,690 --> 00:22:11,220
than a totally different
individual who has experienced

369
00:22:11,220 --> 00:22:12,400
the same kind of injury.

370
00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:14,760
So restitution can
be financial, it

371
00:22:14,760 --> 00:22:16,650
doesn't need to be financial.

372
00:22:16,650 --> 00:22:18,330
It can be direct
with the victim,

373
00:22:18,330 --> 00:22:21,870
but also indirect with a
community or with a cause.

374
00:22:21,870 --> 00:22:23,340
Right.

375
00:22:23,340 --> 00:22:26,190
Once I've moved
through and I've really

376
00:22:26,190 --> 00:22:29,880
started to work these
steps, I've confessed,

377
00:22:29,880 --> 00:22:34,930
I've started to change, I've
made amends, at this point,

378
00:22:34,930 --> 00:22:38,880
when can I expect to return
to the way things were?

379
00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:42,180
When can I go back to my
position, my job, my status,

380
00:22:42,180 --> 00:22:44,220
my honor, my relationship?

381
00:22:44,220 --> 00:22:47,520
Part of the amends
process is accepting

382
00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:49,980
that actions have consequences.

383
00:22:49,980 --> 00:22:53,620
Things are different
than they were before.

384
00:22:53,620 --> 00:22:54,810
It's just a fact.

385
00:22:54,810 --> 00:22:56,280
The person who was
injured doesn't

386
00:22:56,280 --> 00:23:00,300
get to automagically go back
in time and neither do you.

387
00:23:00,300 --> 00:23:06,780
And the really critical piece of
this work that a lot of people

388
00:23:06,780 --> 00:23:11,070
struggle with is that you don't
get to just punch the buttons

389
00:23:11,070 --> 00:23:14,317
and say, now everything
is better, so I'm back.

390
00:23:14,317 --> 00:23:15,600
Right?

391
00:23:15,600 --> 00:23:18,570
And it may be that if
you are doing this work

392
00:23:18,570 --> 00:23:23,670
in a deep and sincere way,
that people will see naturally

393
00:23:23,670 --> 00:23:28,620
and organically that
you are on their team.

394
00:23:28,620 --> 00:23:32,670
The person who was not
invited to game night

395
00:23:32,670 --> 00:23:34,530
might be invited
back to game night

396
00:23:34,530 --> 00:23:38,610
as a result of their
very sincere actions,

397
00:23:38,610 --> 00:23:40,920
but somebody who is
coming into that space

398
00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:45,600
with the entitlement, "OK, give
me my status back, of course

399
00:23:45,600 --> 00:23:46,830
I am--

400
00:23:46,830 --> 00:23:49,440
I have earned it because I
have checked those boxes,"

401
00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:51,930
is somebody who does
not understand the harm

402
00:23:51,930 --> 00:23:53,680
that they caused.

403
00:23:53,680 --> 00:23:59,410
Moving to the fourth step
of t'shuvah, how would you

404
00:23:59,410 --> 00:24:05,470
describe apology, which is
remarkably late in the game?

405
00:24:05,470 --> 00:24:08,400
And there's a reason
why apology is so late.

406
00:24:08,400 --> 00:24:11,500
So you have already done--

407
00:24:11,500 --> 00:24:13,670
this is the end of the process.

408
00:24:13,670 --> 00:24:16,630
You've already done
basically just about as much

409
00:24:16,630 --> 00:24:21,640
as you can to try to sew
up that hole in the cosmos

410
00:24:21,640 --> 00:24:24,190
that you yourself created.

411
00:24:24,190 --> 00:24:27,130
You have owned
what you have done.

412
00:24:27,130 --> 00:24:29,890
You're beginning
to and continuing

413
00:24:29,890 --> 00:24:33,490
to try to change and
grow and transform.

414
00:24:33,490 --> 00:24:38,110
You have done what you can
to repair in whatever way

415
00:24:38,110 --> 00:24:39,070
that you can.

416
00:24:39,070 --> 00:24:41,470
And by now, hopefully
you've gotten it.

417
00:24:41,470 --> 00:24:43,030
You've gotten the
memo, you've gotten

418
00:24:43,030 --> 00:24:47,200
that there's another
human being that you hurt.

419
00:24:47,200 --> 00:24:52,920
And so hopefully by
now, it matters to you.

420
00:24:52,920 --> 00:24:55,410
You see that there's
another person there.

421
00:24:55,410 --> 00:24:59,430
And the apology is not
about checking a box

422
00:24:59,430 --> 00:25:02,320
and getting off the hook.

423
00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:05,400
It is about communicating
to another person

424
00:25:05,400 --> 00:25:08,640
that you are sorry
that you hurt them.

425
00:25:08,640 --> 00:25:12,900
And Maimonides uses very
victim-centric language

426
00:25:12,900 --> 00:25:13,610
in the apology.

427
00:25:13,610 --> 00:25:15,977
He talks about need
to appease them.

428
00:25:15,977 --> 00:25:17,685
It's like l'fayes otam
[to appease them].

429
00:25:17,685 --> 00:25:21,180
It's about-- it's not
about saying certain words,

430
00:25:21,180 --> 00:25:25,560
it's about what would be the
thing that would appease--

431
00:25:25,560 --> 00:25:27,210
care for this person?

432
00:25:27,210 --> 00:25:30,360
And so it's got to be
from this open flowing

433
00:25:30,360 --> 00:25:33,630
heart that sees the
other person and wants

434
00:25:33,630 --> 00:25:37,690
to have them feel better.

435
00:25:37,690 --> 00:25:44,710
What happens in the case of
the apology encounter that

436
00:25:44,710 --> 00:25:48,070
would cause further
harm to the victim?

437
00:25:48,070 --> 00:25:53,160
What happens if that apology
is actually unwelcome?

438
00:25:53,160 --> 00:25:57,150
So it's difficult and
it's a complex dance

439
00:25:57,150 --> 00:26:01,300
because we know that
we need to apologize,

440
00:26:01,300 --> 00:26:06,670
and in a victim centric
model, again, it's

441
00:26:06,670 --> 00:26:09,280
not about a cathartic
experience for the perpetrator.

442
00:26:09,280 --> 00:26:12,880
I've heard so many examples
of somebody being ambushed

443
00:26:12,880 --> 00:26:15,310
at the last minute or called
in the middle of the night,

444
00:26:15,310 --> 00:26:18,760
and it's like, the experience
of the person who is harmed

445
00:26:18,760 --> 00:26:22,300
is not on the harm-doer's mind.

446
00:26:22,300 --> 00:26:26,220
And that's not healing.

447
00:26:26,220 --> 00:26:27,820
That's not repair.

448
00:26:27,820 --> 00:26:31,800
And so we need to
step way, way back

449
00:26:31,800 --> 00:26:35,010
and have the humility to
know that sometimes we

450
00:26:35,010 --> 00:26:36,930
don't get our
cathartic experience

451
00:26:36,930 --> 00:26:39,450
and that living
with that has to be

452
00:26:39,450 --> 00:26:42,700
one of the consequences
of our actions.

453
00:26:42,700 --> 00:26:45,110
And that's just
part of the work.

454
00:26:45,110 --> 00:26:48,590
My rabbi, Rabbi Alan
Lew, zichrono livrachah,

455
00:26:48,590 --> 00:26:50,390
may his memory for
a blessing, used

456
00:26:50,390 --> 00:26:56,120
to say, how could the person get
to exactly the same situation?

457
00:26:56,120 --> 00:26:58,790
And then he would answer in
his kind of Brooklyn accent,

458
00:26:58,790 --> 00:27:01,970
like, if you don't do the
work, you will find yourself

459
00:27:01,970 --> 00:27:04,400
in exactly the same situation.

460
00:27:04,400 --> 00:27:08,330
That our unresolved
anger that we

461
00:27:08,330 --> 00:27:10,760
don't address, that
we don't deal with

462
00:27:10,760 --> 00:27:14,630
will insert itself somehow.

463
00:27:14,630 --> 00:27:17,780
Maybe not in that
exact situation

464
00:27:17,780 --> 00:27:20,750
with that same
person, but our anger

465
00:27:20,750 --> 00:27:24,890
will blow up in some
place somewhere.

466
00:27:24,890 --> 00:27:30,620
Our unaddressed
fear of commitment

467
00:27:30,620 --> 00:27:34,190
will explode in another
relationship somewhere

468
00:27:34,190 --> 00:27:37,190
along the way somehow, somehow.

469
00:27:37,190 --> 00:27:41,930
Our-- whatever issues that are
playing out in the workplace

470
00:27:41,930 --> 00:27:44,150
will somehow go through.

471
00:27:44,150 --> 00:27:46,220
Like our internalized
white supremacy

472
00:27:46,220 --> 00:27:49,430
will somehow manifest
in another way.

473
00:27:49,430 --> 00:27:53,090
The systems and structures
in our HR department

474
00:27:53,090 --> 00:27:57,290
that manage to effectively
bury this complaint

475
00:27:57,290 --> 00:28:00,620
are going to find a way
to harm someone else if we

476
00:28:00,620 --> 00:28:02,700
don't address the systems.

477
00:28:02,700 --> 00:28:07,610
So when we don't do
the work, we continue

478
00:28:07,610 --> 00:28:10,670
to find ways to
manifest the harm.

479
00:28:10,670 --> 00:28:14,660
And it may look different, but
the patterns are undeniable.

480
00:28:14,660 --> 00:28:18,320
We go from first contact
to the Trail of Tears

481
00:28:18,320 --> 00:28:23,870
to Wounded Knee to the
Dakota Access Pipeline.

482
00:28:23,870 --> 00:28:30,050
We go from slavery to lynching
to redlining, Jim Crow,

483
00:28:30,050 --> 00:28:33,530
to mass incarceration
and voter suppression.

484
00:28:33,530 --> 00:28:37,850
It doesn't have to look
exactly the same for it

485
00:28:37,850 --> 00:28:40,440
to be the same harm.

486
00:28:40,440 --> 00:28:42,650
And when we don't
do the work, we

487
00:28:42,650 --> 00:28:44,960
will find ourselves back there.

488
00:28:44,960 --> 00:28:46,970
When we think
about institutions,

489
00:28:46,970 --> 00:28:51,590
when we think about nations,
the work of confession,

490
00:28:51,590 --> 00:28:56,290
the work of starting to
change requires rethinking

491
00:28:56,290 --> 00:28:58,720
some of how things have been.

492
00:28:58,720 --> 00:29:05,210
And that is scary and
that is threatening,

493
00:29:05,210 --> 00:29:11,260
and it doesn't always
require that suddenly we

494
00:29:11,260 --> 00:29:14,350
are dismantling everything
that has ever existed

495
00:29:14,350 --> 00:29:16,990
and creating something
new from the ground-up.

496
00:29:16,990 --> 00:29:21,760
It sometimes just requires
shaping new systems

497
00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:27,370
and creating better,
more whole systems.

498
00:29:27,370 --> 00:29:30,280
And it's a vulnerability.

499
00:29:30,280 --> 00:29:32,770
It opens us to vulnerability.

500
00:29:32,770 --> 00:29:34,450
When we make
ourselves vulnerable

501
00:29:34,450 --> 00:29:36,370
and own the harm
that we have caused,

502
00:29:36,370 --> 00:29:39,160
we can create new
futures for ourselves

503
00:29:39,160 --> 00:29:41,950
and for everyone who is hurt.

504
00:29:41,950 --> 00:29:46,090
And for institutions and for
organizations and nations

505
00:29:46,090 --> 00:29:50,050
and individuals, it's scary,
but it offers a new path

506
00:29:50,050 --> 00:29:51,550
of wholeness for everybody.

507
00:29:51,550 --> 00:29:54,690


508
00:29:54,690 --> 00:29:57,270
Wider American culture
is very individualistic

509
00:29:57,270 --> 00:30:00,010
and very everybody look
out for themselves.

510
00:30:00,010 --> 00:30:04,020
And so when harm happens,
we don't as a wider American

511
00:30:04,020 --> 00:30:07,290
culture have the
tools to figure out

512
00:30:07,290 --> 00:30:11,130
how to hold
harm-doers accountable

513
00:30:11,130 --> 00:30:15,480
or to give people who are
hurt the tools to make sense

514
00:30:15,480 --> 00:30:16,770
of that.

515
00:30:16,770 --> 00:30:19,770
It's this very kind of like
let go, just let go of it

516
00:30:19,770 --> 00:30:24,000
is a survival
mechanism that people

517
00:30:24,000 --> 00:30:30,310
use because they don't have a
lot of other coping mechanisms.

518
00:30:30,310 --> 00:30:33,630
We live in the kind of culture
that where people in power

519
00:30:33,630 --> 00:30:39,930
don't have a lot of incentive to
do t'shuvah work because it is

520
00:30:39,930 --> 00:30:44,940
often financially in their
best interests not to.

521
00:30:44,940 --> 00:30:48,180
And that often when
we see change happen,

522
00:30:48,180 --> 00:30:50,760
it's because it is in their
financial best interest

523
00:30:50,760 --> 00:30:53,310
to change the name
of the racist mascot.

524
00:30:53,310 --> 00:30:56,670
There are all of these cultural
factors that are in play,

525
00:30:56,670 --> 00:30:59,370
and we live in a culture
that really, really

526
00:30:59,370 --> 00:31:01,950
loves forgiveness
and really loves

527
00:31:01,950 --> 00:31:04,110
to pressure the
victim into forgiving

528
00:31:04,110 --> 00:31:07,350
and that assumes that at the
moment the victim has forgiven,

529
00:31:07,350 --> 00:31:10,860
then everything is fine
and back to how it was

530
00:31:10,860 --> 00:31:13,350
and nobody is holding the
harm-doer accountable.

531
00:31:13,350 --> 00:31:15,150
Yeah, I'm just grateful
that Maimonides

532
00:31:15,150 --> 00:31:16,740
has given us this gift.

533
00:31:16,740 --> 00:31:21,240
The person doing t'shuvah can
do all of their t'shuvah work,

534
00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:22,700
can do--

535
00:31:22,700 --> 00:31:26,790
complete master of t'shuvah,
can get right with themselves,

536
00:31:26,790 --> 00:31:31,050
can get right with God, can go
to do all of the things that

537
00:31:31,050 --> 00:31:34,890
they need to do and be ready
to go apologize to God at Yom

538
00:31:34,890 --> 00:31:38,790
Kippur and all of that
stuff even if they are never

539
00:31:38,790 --> 00:31:40,060
forgiven.

540
00:31:40,060 --> 00:31:43,770
So this notion that the
victim has to forgive them

541
00:31:43,770 --> 00:31:48,540
so that they can finish their
repentance work is false.

542
00:31:48,540 --> 00:31:52,213
If the person coming to
you isn't really doing

543
00:31:52,213 --> 00:31:54,630
the repentance work, if it
seems like they're checking off

544
00:31:54,630 --> 00:31:57,780
the boxes, they're
like apologizing,

545
00:31:57,780 --> 00:31:59,550
but they really haven't
owned what they're

546
00:31:59,550 --> 00:32:05,280
doing, if somebody's saying you
should forgive but they haven't

547
00:32:05,280 --> 00:32:07,320
even begun the repentance
work, none of that,

548
00:32:07,320 --> 00:32:10,500
then there's definitely
no obligation to forgive.

549
00:32:10,500 --> 00:32:13,210
That's also part of it.

550
00:32:13,210 --> 00:32:18,930
And if someone is doing the
real, honest, thoughtful, clear

551
00:32:18,930 --> 00:32:22,020
work of repentance, if
they are owning fully

552
00:32:22,020 --> 00:32:26,730
what they did, if they are
trying to change really

553
00:32:26,730 --> 00:32:31,590
meaningfully, if they are
attempting to do real amends,

554
00:32:31,590 --> 00:32:33,450
if they are coming
to you and doing

555
00:32:33,450 --> 00:32:37,620
everything they can to
appease you, to pacify you,

556
00:32:37,620 --> 00:32:41,743
to care for you in
a loving apology--

557
00:32:41,743 --> 00:32:43,410
And if the apology
doesn't land, they're

558
00:32:43,410 --> 00:32:46,560
coming back and bringing
an accountability team,

559
00:32:46,560 --> 00:32:49,890
as Maimonides suggests,
so that they can make sure

560
00:32:49,890 --> 00:32:52,590
that that apology is
landing or so that they

561
00:32:52,590 --> 00:32:55,750
can have some help
making sure that you're

562
00:32:55,750 --> 00:32:59,800
cared for in that negotiation or
whatever, right, if somebody is

563
00:32:59,800 --> 00:33:04,240
really, really, really coming
to you with an open-hearted way

564
00:33:04,240 --> 00:33:06,370
and you're still having
trouble forgiving them,

565
00:33:06,370 --> 00:33:08,650
maybe you need to
check yourself.

566
00:33:08,650 --> 00:33:14,290
Are you stuck in a victim mode?

567
00:33:14,290 --> 00:33:17,870
Is it benefiting you
to lord this over them?

568
00:33:17,870 --> 00:33:22,270
Are you being
unnecessarily petty?

569
00:33:22,270 --> 00:33:25,090
What's going-- like
it check yourself

570
00:33:25,090 --> 00:33:29,710
to see what's going on that you
can't find a way to, again, not

571
00:33:29,710 --> 00:33:34,135
find that warm, fuzzy place,
but to just close the accounts.

572
00:33:34,135 --> 00:33:37,250


573
00:33:37,250 --> 00:33:42,380
You've raised this caution
around never pressuring

574
00:33:42,380 --> 00:33:47,210
the victim to forgive,
which, I think,

575
00:33:47,210 --> 00:33:52,400
points to a potential problem,
which is that we don't always

576
00:33:52,400 --> 00:33:56,960
have, between the
perpetrator and the victim,

577
00:33:56,960 --> 00:33:59,510
a balance of power.

578
00:33:59,510 --> 00:34:04,550
Can you speak to potential
power differentials in this work

579
00:34:04,550 --> 00:34:07,860
of t'shuvah, and in
particular, forgiveness?

580
00:34:07,860 --> 00:34:11,909
So often what happens
is that harm is caused

581
00:34:11,909 --> 00:34:13,440
with an imbalance of power.

582
00:34:13,440 --> 00:34:17,730
Someone who has more power
in a situation causes harm.

583
00:34:17,730 --> 00:34:20,550
And then there is
pressure on the victim

584
00:34:20,550 --> 00:34:24,449
to forgive which is
often read in our culture

585
00:34:24,449 --> 00:34:29,719
as a way of allowing
the situation to end.

586
00:34:29,719 --> 00:34:30,600
Then we're done.

587
00:34:30,600 --> 00:34:33,880
The victim has forgiven, no more
accountability work is needed.

588
00:34:33,880 --> 00:34:38,489
We don't need to have
any more systemic change

589
00:34:38,489 --> 00:34:41,820
or we don't need the perpetrator
to do any more inner work

590
00:34:41,820 --> 00:34:44,864
or come to a situation and
make different choices.

591
00:34:44,864 --> 00:34:47,370


592
00:34:47,370 --> 00:34:52,050
And it becomes a way
of very often trying

593
00:34:52,050 --> 00:34:55,590
to reinscribe the
original power situation.

594
00:34:55,590 --> 00:35:00,510
Rabbi Ruttenberg, what, when
you look into this broken world,

595
00:35:00,510 --> 00:35:02,415
what brings you hope?

596
00:35:02,415 --> 00:35:05,510


597
00:35:05,510 --> 00:35:09,260
The fact that more people are
having these conversations.

598
00:35:09,260 --> 00:35:12,020
The fact that more people are
taking this work seriously.

599
00:35:12,020 --> 00:35:16,940
The fact that more and
more people are saying it's

600
00:35:16,940 --> 00:35:22,100
not enough to leave
things as they are.

601
00:35:22,100 --> 00:35:27,830
We need more healing,
more repair, more care.

602
00:35:27,830 --> 00:35:31,310
And these are hard times.

603
00:35:31,310 --> 00:35:35,210
These are really hard
times in so many ways.

604
00:35:35,210 --> 00:35:37,640
But I believe in us.

605
00:35:37,640 --> 00:35:42,200
And I have seen so many
individuals and communities

606
00:35:42,200 --> 00:35:44,670
showing up when it matters.

607
00:35:44,670 --> 00:35:51,390
And I know that we can
together come together and care

608
00:35:51,390 --> 00:35:54,120
for one another and
create a future that

609
00:35:54,120 --> 00:35:57,765
is so much more whole than
the past we have left behind.

610
00:35:57,765 --> 00:36:00,720


611
00:36:00,720 --> 00:36:05,010
As we approach
the Days of Awe, I

612
00:36:05,010 --> 00:36:08,940
find hope in the path of
repair that you illuminate

613
00:36:08,940 --> 00:36:12,780
and in the approach
that you teach,

614
00:36:12,780 --> 00:36:16,290
which is the path is
not insurmountable,

615
00:36:16,290 --> 00:36:19,050
the work is not infinite.

616
00:36:19,050 --> 00:36:24,570
Our job is to start where
we can, go as far as we can,

617
00:36:24,570 --> 00:36:29,460
and do our best in this work of
t'shuvah, to do our best in all

618
00:36:29,460 --> 00:36:33,960
the areas we have
power to bring repair.

619
00:36:33,960 --> 00:36:36,300
Thank you for your teachings.

620
00:36:36,300 --> 00:36:37,335
Thank you.

621
00:36:37,335 --> 00:36:38,085
Thank you so much.

622
00:36:38,085 --> 00:36:38,940
L'shanah tovah.

623
00:36:38,940 --> 00:36:41,583
Shanah tovah.

624
00:36:41,583 --> 00:36:45,511
[MUSIC - SHIRONA, "KI EILECHA"]

625
00:36:45,511 --> 00:37:04,169


626
00:37:04,169 --> 00:37:18,618
Anim z'mirot v'shirim e'erog,
ki eleicha nafshi ta'arog.

627
00:37:18,618 --> 00:37:22,840


628
00:37:22,840 --> 00:37:35,760
Ki eleicha, ki eleicha, ki
eleicha, nafshi ta'arog.

629
00:37:35,760 --> 00:37:40,500


630
00:37:40,500 --> 00:37:53,086
Nafshi chomdah b'tzeil yadecha,
lada'at kol raz sodecha.

631
00:37:53,086 --> 00:37:58,016


632
00:37:58,016 --> 00:38:10,810
Ki eleicha, ki eleicha, ki
eleicha, nafshi ta'arog.

633
00:38:10,810 --> 00:38:13,396


634
00:38:13,396 --> 00:38:26,120
Ki eleicha, ki eleicha, ki
eleicha, nafshi ta'arog.

635
00:38:26,120 --> 00:38:30,668


636
00:38:30,668 --> 00:38:48,440
Midei dabri bichvodecha, homeh
libi el dodecha, homeh libi,

637
00:38:48,440 --> 00:38:51,082
homeh libi.

638
00:38:51,082 --> 00:38:54,290


639
00:38:54,290 --> 00:39:05,663
Al kein adaber b'cha
nichbadot, v'shimcha achabed

640
00:39:05,663 --> 00:39:10,642
b'shirei y'didot.

641
00:39:10,642 --> 00:39:27,318
Ki eleicha, ki eleicha, ki
eleicha, nafshi ta'arog.

642
00:39:27,318 --> 00:39:40,712
Ki eleicha, ki eleicha, ki
eleicha, nafshi ta'arog.

643
00:39:40,712 --> 00:40:02,340


644
00:40:02,340 --> 00:40:05,660
Thank you for joining us to
learn more about institutional

645
00:40:05,660 --> 00:40:07,640
t'shuvah or repentance.

646
00:40:07,640 --> 00:40:11,660
In this past year, all three
of our Reform organizations

647
00:40:11,660 --> 00:40:14,450
have been deeply
focused on ethics.

648
00:40:14,450 --> 00:40:17,930
Even as our organizations are
each involved in our own work

649
00:40:17,930 --> 00:40:21,380
of t'shuvah and repair, which
is still ongoing and will be

650
00:40:21,380 --> 00:40:24,470
uniquely different
for each organization,

651
00:40:24,470 --> 00:40:27,110
we wanted to share an
opportunity for all of us

652
00:40:27,110 --> 00:40:31,470
across the Reform Movement
to learn and grow together.

653
00:40:31,470 --> 00:40:34,770
T'shuvah, meaning
"repentance," but also

654
00:40:34,770 --> 00:40:40,410
"return" and "realignment,"
is a powerful Jewish idea.

655
00:40:40,410 --> 00:40:43,410
In this season of
repentance and renewal,

656
00:40:43,410 --> 00:40:47,100
we are so grateful that Rabbi
Danya Ruttenberg has agreed

657
00:40:47,100 --> 00:40:50,880
to be our teacher and guide
as we seek to learn more

658
00:40:50,880 --> 00:40:54,360
and broaden our
understanding of t'shuvah.

659
00:40:54,360 --> 00:40:58,710
This study opportunity is not
itself an act of t'shuvah, per

660
00:40:58,710 --> 00:40:59,910
se.

661
00:40:59,910 --> 00:41:03,210
As the CCAR has heard
from and continues

662
00:41:03,210 --> 00:41:07,480
to listen to and learn
from the pain of survivors,

663
00:41:07,480 --> 00:41:10,380
we have been shaping
our individual process

664
00:41:10,380 --> 00:41:13,800
of repentance, repair,
and rebuilding.

665
00:41:13,800 --> 00:41:15,990
We are so grateful
for those who have

666
00:41:15,990 --> 00:41:18,180
shared their story with us.

667
00:41:18,180 --> 00:41:21,150
This work of repentance
and realignment

668
00:41:21,150 --> 00:41:25,140
will be unfolding over the
weeks, months, and years

669
00:41:25,140 --> 00:41:29,970
to come as the CCAR acknowledges
the failings of the past,

670
00:41:29,970 --> 00:41:33,210
recognizes the pain
of those impacted,

671
00:41:33,210 --> 00:41:37,290
seeks forgiveness, and
continues to revise our ethics

672
00:41:37,290 --> 00:41:39,670
code and system.

673
00:41:39,670 --> 00:41:43,510
As all of this crucial work
goes on in our Reform Movement,

674
00:41:43,510 --> 00:41:45,670
this learning
experience is a chance

675
00:41:45,670 --> 00:41:47,650
to expand our
collective knowledge

676
00:41:47,650 --> 00:41:50,950
about repentance that is so
central to the Jewish belief

677
00:41:50,950 --> 00:41:52,120
system.

678
00:41:52,120 --> 00:41:56,380
Our High Holiday liturgy teaches
that the gates of t'shuvah are

679
00:41:56,380 --> 00:41:58,190
always open.

680
00:41:58,190 --> 00:42:00,580
We take this teaching seriously.

681
00:42:00,580 --> 00:42:05,050
Our work of t'shuvah is
ongoing and multifaceted.

682
00:42:05,050 --> 00:42:08,770
As we strive to learn more
about t'shuvah and explore all

683
00:42:08,770 --> 00:42:12,580
the ways to seek forgiveness
and create true and meaningful

684
00:42:12,580 --> 00:42:16,600
repair for the future, may we
be able to engage with a whole

685
00:42:16,600 --> 00:42:20,500
heart in the process of
t'shuvah, and may we continue

686
00:42:20,500 --> 00:42:24,700
to bring ourselves ever
closer to God, to each other,

687
00:42:24,700 --> 00:42:27,990
and to a more perfect world.

688
00:42:27,990 --> 00:42:32,070
At this season especially, our
Jewish tradition instructs us

689
00:42:32,070 --> 00:42:34,890
to make time for
cheshbon hanefesh,

690
00:42:34,890 --> 00:42:37,710
to take stock of our lives,
recalling the times we

691
00:42:37,710 --> 00:42:41,520
succeeded, but especially
when we fell short,

692
00:42:41,520 --> 00:42:44,520
which leads us to the
deep work of t'shuvah.

693
00:42:44,520 --> 00:42:49,080
T'shuvah or repentance requires
that we take a number of steps

694
00:42:49,080 --> 00:42:51,750
to address the harm
we have caused.

695
00:42:51,750 --> 00:42:53,700
Not only are individuals
required to do

696
00:42:53,700 --> 00:42:58,980
t'shuvah, institutions
also bear this obligation.

697
00:42:58,980 --> 00:43:03,060
In this past year, the URJ
and our partner institutions

698
00:43:03,060 --> 00:43:05,550
have each conducted
and shared reports

699
00:43:05,550 --> 00:43:09,540
of in-depth independent
ethics investigations.

700
00:43:09,540 --> 00:43:13,740
This was a critical first step
on a longer journey towards

701
00:43:13,740 --> 00:43:15,900
institutional t'shuvah.

702
00:43:15,900 --> 00:43:20,130
T'shuvah also requires
naming and owning the harm.

703
00:43:20,130 --> 00:43:23,610
To that end, the URJ
takes responsibility

704
00:43:23,610 --> 00:43:27,330
for the sexual misconduct,
harassment, and abuse

705
00:43:27,330 --> 00:43:30,960
that took place on our watch.

706
00:43:30,960 --> 00:43:34,200
Our work towards t'shuvah
is survivor-centered

707
00:43:34,200 --> 00:43:36,150
and trauma-informed.

708
00:43:36,150 --> 00:43:39,810
It includes saying loudly and
clearly to survivors, victims,

709
00:43:39,810 --> 00:43:44,010
and to all those affected,
al chet shechatanu.

710
00:43:44,010 --> 00:43:46,650
For the sins that
we have committed

711
00:43:46,650 --> 00:43:49,260
and for our failure to
protect all those who

712
00:43:49,260 --> 00:43:52,980
were harmed, on behalf of
myself and URJ leadership,

713
00:43:52,980 --> 00:43:56,330
we are deeply sorry.

714
00:43:56,330 --> 00:43:59,480
We take responsibility for
the harms that occurred,

715
00:43:59,480 --> 00:44:02,600
we are committed individually
and institutionally to repair

716
00:44:02,600 --> 00:44:07,260
when possible, and to
do better in the future.

717
00:44:07,260 --> 00:44:08,780
Thank you to everyone
who has helped

718
00:44:08,780 --> 00:44:11,090
bring us closer
to the redemption

719
00:44:11,090 --> 00:44:13,490
and repair that
we seek, including

720
00:44:13,490 --> 00:44:17,210
those who shared painful
stories and experiences.

721
00:44:17,210 --> 00:44:21,170
The Days of Awe do not
wipe the slate clean,

722
00:44:21,170 --> 00:44:26,060
but rather, summon us to walk
the path of repair and healing.

723
00:44:26,060 --> 00:44:31,890
In the new year 5783, may
we walk this path together.

724
00:44:31,890 --> 00:44:35,580
Hebrew Union College - Jewish
Institute of Religion is proud

725
00:44:35,580 --> 00:44:39,900
to partner with the URJ and
the CCAR in bringing you this

726
00:44:39,900 --> 00:44:45,390
important discussion with
Rabbi Ruttenberg on t'shuvah.

727
00:44:45,390 --> 00:44:48,990
The religious ideal of t'shuvah
is limited traditionally

728
00:44:48,990 --> 00:44:50,370
to the individual.

729
00:44:50,370 --> 00:44:54,840
Its application to
institutions like HUC

730
00:44:54,840 --> 00:44:57,690
illustrates how a Reform
approach to our tradition

731
00:44:57,690 --> 00:45:02,970
can bring Jewish meaning to
the ethical challenges we face.

732
00:45:02,970 --> 00:45:06,390
All acts of t'shuvah must
begin with a keen sensitivity

733
00:45:06,390 --> 00:45:09,540
to those who have been harmed,
prioritizing their need

734
00:45:09,540 --> 00:45:11,310
for healing.

735
00:45:11,310 --> 00:45:15,120
But a complete returning
of us involves not only

736
00:45:15,120 --> 00:45:17,790
making amends to those
whom we have harmed,

737
00:45:17,790 --> 00:45:22,560
but also a commitment
to changing ourselves.

738
00:45:22,560 --> 00:45:26,550
As Rabbi Ruttenberg explains,
step 2 of Maimonides' five

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steps of t'shuvah is
to make that change.

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That process will
involve many actions,

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actions that HUC is
actively pursuing

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to ensure that abuses of
power will never occur again.

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Today's program draws on
HUC's specific mission

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as an institution of
higher education that

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emphasizes learning
and understanding,

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the activity of the intellect.

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Like much of the
t'shuvah process,

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learning requires an openness to
confronting ideas that make us

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uncomfortable, unsettled, ideas
that go beyond simply those we

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want to hear.

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Moral education always
engages the mind, the heart,

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and the soul.

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We must have good reasons
for the beliefs that we hold,

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and we will feel discomfort
when our presumptions are

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called into question.

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Opening ourselves
to that discomfort

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is thus the first step
to full resolution.

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And it is the only
way to begin to effect

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lasting eternal change,
whether the individual

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or of an institution.

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As Maimonides taught,
moral behavior

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emerges when as
rational caring beings,

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we conscientiously
adopt habits that

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resonate with us emotionally,
reinforcing ethical action.

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00:46:45,180 --> 00:46:48,690
The same Jewish wisdom applies
to building morally decent

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institutions where
sustainable practices are

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essential to ensuring
justice within our halls.

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Learning is just
one of many actions

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we are taking at HUC to
return to our best selves.

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The program is one step
among other survivor-centered

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approaches on the path to
t'shuvah and systemic change.

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00:47:11,340 --> 00:47:14,160
I thank you for joining
us as we turn and turn

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again as a movement
and a Jewish people.

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00:47:17,850 --> 00:47:21,870
May the new year ahead be filled
for you with joy and happiness,

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00:47:21,870 --> 00:47:25,740
for your families, and built
on a stronger foundation for us

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00:47:25,740 --> 00:47:27,290
all.

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00:47:27,290 --> 00:47:39,000