“What are your thoughts, wishes and aspirations for the future of the Jewish community of Toronto?”
Rav Baruch Frydman-Kohl: Having grown up in poverty, I am sensitive to its presence in the Toronto Jewish community. The children who go to school hungry in the morning. The Holocaust survivors who count their pennies when shopping. The former Russian Jews who came to Canada for freedom but lack food. The woman who places kiddush crumbs into her purse after Shabbat services. The families who depend on kosher food packages for their Shabbat tables and spring deliveries to make Pesah. The single mom trying to hold onto a low-paying job and care for her child. The alcohol and chemical dependent individuals seeking to stay clean, but without work. The mentally ill who wander in and out of treatment facilities. The homeless Jews we feed at Out of the Cold. The hungry Jews who draw upon our food banks. The unemployed father struggling to take care of his family. The unseen Jews who live in the cracks and crevices of our city.
"As individuals and a community, our first obligation is to see the faces of the poor, to recognize the image of God in their visage."
Nearly thirteen percent of Toronto Jews live in poverty, mirroring statistics throughout Canada. These poor Jews are often unrecognized by the general public who believe that “all Jews are rich” and often unnoticed by Jews who imagine that government cares for the displaced and downtrodden. As individuals and a community, our first obligation is to see the faces of the poor, to recognize the image of God in their visage. The ethical challenge then confronts us: what will we do? What can we ask of ourselves? of UJA Federation and its agencies? of Jewish Family and Child? Mazon? Jewish schools and JCCs? We can do better. When your kin falls, do not turn away: uphold her. When you reap your harvest, leave a portion for the stranger, the orphan, and the widow. Then the Eternal will bless you.
Rav Baruch Frydman-Kohl
Anne and Max Tanenbaum Senior Rabbi, Beth Tzedec Congregation
President, Toronto Board of Rabbis
UJA Federation of Greater Toronto is currently undergoing a strategic planning process. By taking a few minutes of your time you will have the opportunity to express your opinion about where you think UJA’s funding priorities should lie and what the core issues are that we need to be focusing upon over the coming years. Most importantly you will be participating in a community wide effort to work together to take responsibility for shaping our collective future. Visit the survey page.
Rabbi Rav Baruch Frydman-Kohl
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Over 400 people have taken the survey so far. We need your insights and opinions to guide and shape the Federation – and Jewish Toronto for years to come.
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