For the past several years, really ever since COVID, our communal agenda has been shaped in large part by external crises. There’s no shame in this. Federation, supported by a passionate Jewish community, is well suited to crisis response. We have the local and global infrastructure to reach people and deploy help, a core part of our role.

Through a pandemic, wars, antisemitic attacks, the devastation of October 7, economic uncertainty, and political and social upheaval, we, as a community, have been there to help the Jewish people and those in need locally and around the world.

Across our community and in conversation with others from around the country, I hear how eager people are to reclaim a sense of agency over the Jewish future. To not only fend off the destructive forces of the day, but to build something great. This isn’t to say that we should abandon our work to be there for the Jewish people and Israel in times of crisis, not at all. Without question, we will need to remain diligent in responding to a dysregulated world. But we can be serious about our dreams too.

As Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks used to say, “Jewish faith is written in the future tense.” We are in close contact with our past, but we are also a people of possibility. We would be doing the Jewish story a disservice if we did not make the most of the opportunities in front of us to strengthen Jewish identity, pride, joy, and connection. This is the spirit that defines our community, and one we will continue to harness in our work ahead.

Already, we are working to grow and scale the things we know have significant impact. Shabbat dinners (as I wrote about last week), Jewish summer camp, youth groups, Jewish day schools, Jewish learning, and immersive Jewish experiences, including trips to Israel and local retreats, have tremendous effects on someone’s identity. How can we expand these offerings and make them more accessible to more people? How can we be a home for people with diverse opinions? How do we use our resources and relationships to maximum effect for people across all age groups?

It feels strange in this time of absurd and heartbreaking headlines to be talking about agency. But it’s precisely in this moment when things feel most out of our control that we are called to wrestle it back. Like so many times throughout Jewish history, we can define for ourselves who we are and where we are going. Between our collective responsibility and capacity to strengthen Jewish life, and Federation’s relationships, resources, and talent for convening, the future is ours for the shaping.