Nu, What's Happening with the New Shul?

Answer

Thank you so much for reaching out and asking. The support that you and so many like you have given us during this very long building project has kept us going. We embarked on this journey for the community, and it is the community that has made it possible. To all those who have asked about progress (or deliberately refrained from asking), thank you.

I honestly do not know why we have been held up for so long. It is a little bit beyond explanation. Yes, we do have a considerable debt, but thanks to a very patient builder that is not delaying us now.

The delay is due to a series of minute regulatory issues that we have had to rectify, in order to comply with one statute or another. This has been going on for months.

The fire certifier, who had previously approved our plans, said we needed more sprinklers. So we added more sprinklers. Then he said we needed even more, so we added even more. The accessibility consultant, who had already seen the plans, said the hallway was too narrow, and the ramp too steep. So we widened the hallway and adjusted the ramp.

It is now down to one last technical issue that is almost comical.

Over a year ago, as we were about to install our electricity box on the footpath, suddenly the council proclaimed that it can’t go there. But the electricity company insisted that it had to go there. They were ready to fight it out in court. We didn’t want to be stuck in between two titans in a protracted legal battle, so we agreed to have the electricity box installed on our property. Everyone was happy.

Now, a year later, the certifier has said that he thinks the electricity box is in the wrong place.

You have to laugh.

We hope to have this sorted out within a week or so. But you have to wonder, what is going on? Here we have a beautiful, safe, functioning and complete building, sitting empty due to a bunch of bureaucrats all tripping over their own red tape.

We are trying to open a community centre, a home for holiness, a place for people to connect, grow, make friends and create memories. It is surely a good thing. And yet, strange forces are coming up against us, preventing us from making it happen. There must be an explanation.

We can choose one of several responses.

We could blame others. It would be easy to say that we are victims. Maybe there is an antisemitic plot to prevent our shul from opening. Perhaps there is a big conspiracy, a secret pact between council, the electricity provider and the certifier to invent problems and perpetually bounce us from one to the other.

I don't think so.

The other explanation is, these things just happen. What can you do? Bureaucracy, red tape, regulations on top of regulations, these are first world problems we have to live with.

True, but I think there's more to it than that. We are Jews, and we believe that things happen for a reason.

This has been a trying time for us, with many moments of frustration and disappointment. We can only get through such times by following the advice of our wise sages. Jewish wisdom teaches that when things aren’t going to plan, it is an opportunity to reflect. Particularly, it is a time to work on three areas:

1. Trust . Trust that I am in good hands, that the world is not ownerless, and life is not random. What is happening is exactly what is supposed to happen. I am not in control, G-d is. My fate is not determined by a certifier, but rather by G-d. That means no matter what is going on, I can be calm and accepting.

2. Positivity . I cannot allow the vicissitudes of life to dampen my spirits. I can’t face anything when I am feeling down and annoyed. Life is good, there’s so much to be thankful for, and even the challenges are an invitation to reach higher and deeper. When tougher times come along, don’t check out, check in.

3. Introspection . Sometimes a blockage standing in my way is due to unresolved issues in my personal life. Is there anyone I need to apologise to? Have I hurt someone, even unintentionally, and need to make amends? Making peace with others is the greatest way to clear the spiritual pipelines.

So how can you help?

Strengthen your trust in G-d.

Maintain a positive outlook and joyous demeanour.

Believe with absolute faith that any situation can change, from one extreme to another, in the blink of an eye.

And let’s make peace.

If we have wronged you in any way, please forgive us. If there is something we need to apologise for, please let us know.

It was during this time of year, almost two thousand years ago, that the Holy Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed. Ever since, we have all been working on a mammoth building project, to rebuild the Temple. We achieve this by making a sanctuary in our lives and our homes, by doing good deeds and performing mitzvos. But more than anything else, the Temple is built by us making peace with each other.

A woman called me a few weeks ago, to say that I had inadvertently embarrassed her two years ago. She shared this with me, knowing I was completely unaware that it happened, out of concern that her grudge against me may be the blockage holding up the shul opening. I don’t know if she’s right, but one thing I do know. We made peace, and another stone was added to the Temple.

Who knows? Maybe your next mitzvah is the last one we've all been waiting for.