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Personal Statement
Rabbi Micah Ellenson
The Path to Success through Judaism
What does it mean to see the world through Jewish lenses? Growing up in Los Angeles my
friends were either USC or UCLA fans. No one was both, except for me. The problem was that I
grew up right between the two universities and it only felt natural to root for both. I did not
know what to call it at the time, but in retrospect, I had a lot of hometown pride. They were
both my hometown schools and I always wanted both to succeed. As I grew up, I realized that
people do not look at the world this way. I pride myself on being unique and looking at things
from a different perspective. This to me is what it means to see the world through Jewish
lenses. It means to look at the same things everyone else does and to see them slightly
differently. This is what made God choose Abraham to be the father of the Jewish people. It
was his ability to see things differently. That is what the story of Abraham smashing the idols is
about. It is about a young person knowing who they are and thus empowering them to see the
world differently without fear or shame from the rest of the world.
When I coached basketball at Milken Community High school, I knew that these players were
not going to go play professional basketball. So what was it they were going to learn by playing
sports? They were going to learn to build a strong emotional foundation based on character.
They were going to learn how to be great people in the world. Put another way, being the best
players they could be was contingent on them being the best people they could be.
Whether we are affluent and privileged or poor and struggling, good character is good
character. What we do, and how we do it, reflects who we are. This was the message I wanted
my players, and by extension, all of my students, young and old, to learn, from both playing
sports and being Jewish.
Being a Jewish athlete or student for me was not primarily about teaching the student what to
know, but rather how to think. To instill in them key traits that would help them in all aspects
of their life, not just on the court of in the classroom.
My core traits are the paths that lead to success and spiritual fulfillment. These traits are to
pursue wisdom, cultivate community, empower the individual, taking responsibility and thereby
creating a meaningful life. Happiness and self-satisfaction from Judaism’s perspective comes
from creating meaningful moments. Meaningful moments are a combination of being wise,
feeling empowered, responsibility and having a community. Following is the vision statement
for Jewish living and learning I developed with while at Temple DeHirsch Sinai. This vision is the
result of my many years of teaching, coaching, and being a Jewish professional. Judaism is a
deep religion but to me it is not complex. To access Judaism one merely needs to know which
paths to walk. These are my paths.
Specifically, my vision is:
Acquiring Wisdom
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom” (Proverbs 4:7)
This is how we explore what it means to be Jewish and how to be in the world. The key to both
is to overlay knowledge (Da’at) with wisdom (Chochma). We want our learners to approach
their daily lives by making wise choices through the prism of Jewish learning and values. We
achieve our goal of helping people to acquire wisdom by inspiring learners to ask good
questions, and not merely to pursue simple answers.
Empowering the Individual
“Study is not the primary thing but action.” (Pirkei Avot 1:17)
Learning in the synagogue or classroom must be realized in action and changed behavior in the
outside world. TDHS education commits itself to teaching for the sake of personal
empowerment. Empowerment occurs when we create programs that meet the needs and
cultivate the aspirations of youth and adults at all ages and stages of life. By creating an
environment where our learners craft Jewish journeys of meaning and relevance, we hope to
ensure self-realized individuals. We want members to craft a path for themselves through a
variety of programs, and to become lifelong learners who integrate Tikkun Olam (Social Action),
community-building and worship with acquired Jewish wisdom.
Cultivating Community
“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls
down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up”.
(Ecclesiates 4:9-10)
It is through acquiring wisdom and empowering the individual that TDHS aims to create a
Kehilah Kedosha (a sacred community) for our congregants. We seek to foster connections
amongst our fellow congregants (Bein Adam le’Havero) and between congregants, Temple and
God (Bein adam le’Makom). Rather than taking a one-size-fits –all approach to education, we
strive to develop responses that are appropriate to the broad diversity of our community.
Taking on Responsibility
“A person’s entire spiritual foundation rests on his or her development as a nosei b’ol. “lifting up
the yoke with one’s friend.” (Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe)
One of the spiritual cornerstones of human existence is to refine our sensitivity and actions to
take responsibility for others. Learning responsibility starts with taking responsibility for
ourselves and ends with eagerly and willingly taking care of others. When we are able to help
others shoulder the load we are able to see how we are a part of a larger whole. In order to be
a blessing in the world and ease the pain of others, we must learn to help shoulder the burden
of others.
Rabbi Micah Ellenson
Personal Statement
Making Life Meaningful
“Praised are you Adonai who distinguishes between mundane and holy” (Havdalah blessing)
Judaism teaches that God divides the world into two elements: chol (mundane) and kodesh
(holy). However, it is not just God who makes things holy. We have the power to make our
lives holy, to make our lives meaningful. We accomplish this Jewish manner through the
acquisition of knowledge, empowerment of the individual, taking on responsibility and
cultivation of community.
For me Judaism is not about the what or the when, but rather the how. How do we make wise
decisions? How do we pursue justice? How do we take responsibility for ourselves and for the
world? Judaism is a religion that values doing. That is what a Mitzvah is, an action that makes
the person and the world a holier place. By asking the question how, Judaism forces us to make
the world and ourselves what we can and deeply want to be. Our character is built from our
actions, our actions are guided by our values, and our values are shaped through our spiritual
foundation and identity. When I can help grow in a player or student or congregant a strong
spiritual foundation of wisdom, community, responsibility and empowerment, then when they
win it will be the lessons of the victory that will endure with meaning. And when they lose they
will be able to more easily get up and brush themselves off, knowing they have the spiritual
fortitude to do so.
Rabbi Micah Ellenson
Personal Statement