That blue and white box is still a vivid image in my memory. I’m sure it is in yours, too. That blue and white box, a “pushke,” in Yiddish, symbolized a community-wide effort to engage everyone in Israel’s well-being, strength, and continuity. It had a Jewish star on the front and familiar blue stripes of the Israeli flag around the edges. We received it from the synagogue, and it sat on the kitchen counter at home as a constant reminder of our hope for Israel. The box was metal then. If it exists at all now, it’s probably BPA-free plastic or recycled cardboard. As long as it has a slot on the top, it still works to collect money for Israel.  

This is a perfect time to model Jewish support at home for Israel. Every Shabbat, before the blessings over the candles, wine and challah are recited, everybody in the family should put a few dollars in a blue and white box they make for themselves. As a family, each week or month the dollars can be counted and the funds can be sent directly to a Jewish organization in Israel. There are also new ways to collect dollars for Israel. In this age of debit cards, Venmo, and Zelle, even children with electronic “piggy banks” can donate to the family’s account that’s set aside for Israel. It’s a small gesture, but it multiplies in ways that help children understand that they can be selfless and helpful even at their ages. Being small doesn’t have to mean powerless, and being young doesn’t have to mean naïve. For children, it’s the best lesson, because it transforms fear into action and gives them tools to make a difference when they thought they had none. For parents, it’s a built-in lesson that makes it simple to empower their children with tangible tasks and real outcomes. Perhaps an old-fashioned chart or an excel spreadsheet can keep track of donations and financial giving goals.

Congregation Beth Israel has recommendations and www.HoustonJewish.org, Houston’s Jewish Federation, will be collecting throughout the months ahead to support Israel.

This meaningful mitzvah answers another question that’s confounding many people in our community. Despite friendships between faith communities that are intact, what do we do about friendships and bridges that have been built over years between Jews, Christians, and Muslims, and are failing now? I have heard from Christian faith leaders, but my outreach efforts to Muslim leaders were not returned. And members of the Jewish community have told me that some of their Christian and Muslim friends have stepped back from them, too. It hurts deeply. What to do?

We begin at home with the mitzvah to give to Israel. From there we build concentric circles of friends, sometimes new and sometimes familiar, who share our hopes. When the war ends, Israel will rebuild, Palestinians will rebuild under new leadership in Gaza, and we will rebuild, too. It’s a process that begins with what we’ve built in the past, but we can’t take for granted. With hope as a starting place, we we’ll rely on what we know about ourselves. We are “Rodfei Shalom,” we are pursuers of peace. With peace as our banner, we can support Israel from home and rebuild bridges with our neighbors. Let’s begin with our blue and white box, or Venmo account, and participate in building the future, together.

L’Shalom,