The Adams Street Shul

Written by Rabbi Norbert Weinberg We have just had the opportunity to perform the mitzvah of machatzit hashekel. It commemorates the time that a census was taken through the counting of half a shekel, which each man had to donate. The question can well be asked why this unit of currency had to be divided in half. Would it not have been easier and even more logical if every man simply donated a shekel?

The classical response to this question is that the lesson to be learned is that no man is complete in and of himself. It is only when all the units of currency are collected and come together, that a large and meaningful unit is completed.

This lesson cannot have greater meaning than for our own shul. There may be an advantage in the fact that we are a comparatively small community. The members all get a chance to interact with each other and it almost becomes a large family.

Nevertheless, this situation presents a huge challenge. The minyan is never assured. Each person becomes extremely important because an individual absence could be the cause for a minyan not to take place. This is not only a pity, but could cause a mourner to be deprived of the opportunity of saying Kaddish.

I therefore hope that the message of the half shekel will find a strong echo in the heart of each and every one of our congregants. Unless the eight o'clock time on Sunday morning seriously conflicts with one's schedule, it would be so helpful if the congregant joins our minyan. I would look upon this as a double mitzvah.

The same holds true of Friday evening. I know how Shabbat creeps up on us before we know it. Nevertheless, it is so important that we schedule and budget our time so that we can be in the synagogue even a few minutes before the mincha starting time.

Which brings me to the last point. We do not have the luxury of sixty or a hundred people at each service. I continue to impress on all of us that we should leave our homes for services at such a time that we arrive five to ten minutes before the services begin. In a small shul such as ours, this is a necessity.

So let that be our lesson of the half shekel. Each and every one of us is important and crucial. We are an important part of the whole. By taking this seriously and making a concerted effort to do our share, we will continue to grow our shul community.