The Security Team

Last Friday night, a young man that I had never seen before came to our synagogue for services.  Our security guard Chris and I made eye contact.  Chris asked him a few questions and then watched as I approached the young man.  I also asked him some questions about his Jewish life and how he ended up at our synagogue.  

While we both kept an eye on him, Chris and I both felt that he was being honest with us.  It appeared that he was genuinely looking for a Jewish experience on a Friday night.  I felt a little bad about giving him the “third degree,” but he didn’t seem too upset.  I think he was happy to tell his story.

Of course, I had no idea that at about the same time, a man would attend services at Central Synagogue in New York City, disrupt the service, hit a woman and headbutt a security guard.  I did not hear about the Central Synagogue incident until Saturday evening after Shabbat was over.

Unfortunately, this is the reality of synagogue life – of JEWISH life – in the year 2026.  

We’ve spent a lot of money on the physical security of our building, and I believe that it is money well spent.  I think we all feel better about spending time in our building and sending our kids to our building as a result of the security upgrades.  However, we can’t forget the important role that we all play in security.  We all need to be a part of the security team.  

Now, to be clear, I am NOT suggesting that everyone should learn how to subdue an attacker or should bring weapons to services.  However, when we see something that seems off, we need to alert our security guards to help them do their jobs.  We all need to keep our eyes out for people who seem nervous or out of place.  That’s how we keep our community sacred and safe – something our people have had to do for a very long time.

In this week’s portion, Ki Tetze, we read: “Since Adonai your God moves about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you, let your camp be holy (Deut. 23:15).”

In just a few weeks, our community will be coming together for the High Holidays.  While I look forward to everyone being a part of the worship and celebration team, I hope that everyone also steps up to be part of the security team.  That way, our “camp” will truly be holy AND safe.