Who is Judge Alvin Hellerstein? | Behind the Bima #24

Good evening, everybody. I'm Rabbi Efrem Goldberg, joined with my dear colleagues and friends, Rabbi Philip Moskowitz and Rabbi Josh Brodi. It's Wednesday night, 9:00 p.m., and we are here to take you behind the Bima. How come every Wednesday night there's a pause and I'm unsure whether you know that that's the cue for your line? It basically That's every conversation we ever have. That's pretty much true. This is season 2, episode 1, which I think represents overall our 24th episode. And we At first we called it Coffee Talk. It wasn't called Behind the Bima when we first started. So, you know, Rabbi Brodi, you get a pass for the first few episodes, but I think for the last 15 or so, every week I I wait in that pause and I I don't know if it's clear to you that that's when you're supposed to come in. That's usually the time that I'm also trying to share it on Facebook, so it's always like a multitasking there. I got you. Well, did you figure it out? Did you get it done this time? Oh, no, I can't No, I can't find it. There we go. Now you can. You ready? Check now. Check now. There you go. We've got listeners that are already starting to text. First of all, welcome back everybody. It's Wednesday night, 9:00 p.m. We're so grateful and glad to be spending time together with you, our beloved friends, audience, and listeners from around the globe. As always, we welcome and we invite your questions, your comments, suggestions of topics for us to discuss, what you want to hear more about, questions for any of us in particular. We are open books. We are behind the Bima. So, whether you're watching on Facebook behind or you're watching on YouTube or you're listening to the podcast after the fact, you can always be in touch with us. We love to hear your comments, questions, and thoughts. So, welcome back. This is our first episode of the new year. This is a brand new year, Rosh Hashanah. We are in now 5781, Tavshin Pei Aleph, and uh it's exciting. First episode of the new year. What What was that, Brodi? Rabbi Brodi, what was that? Season 2. Oh, season 2. This is big. It's a new It's a release. We've even brought back for a second season. There was some discussion online. Somebody asked, "Have you been renewed? Is there season two?" And the truth is, I I'm not going to lie, our agents did get a little bit good luck, there was some discussion, there was some questions with YouTube, with Facebook, with some of our sponsors. Um the our lawyers representing us, they were asking a big number, and they were able to work it out and get it done, and we are back. We are back for season two. part of the issue was whether or not they're going to put me back in the show. That's been part of the issue I was on the list. I was on the list. That's correct. That's correct. But in all seriousness, we are making double the salary we made in the first season. Two times zero is zero. That's not to say our sponsors are not generous, they are, and we appreciate it, but every penny of it it goes to the Boca Raton synagogue and to produce the show. And we always invite and welcome your sponsorships. So, if you'd like to sponsor a future episode, we are happy to feature your product or to promote your service. Um either way, we're grateful for your generosity, so let us know if you'd like to. Um l'chaim to everyone in the new year. Toche l'shana u'b'rich chosel of the new year. Ring in filled with brochos. Someone threw me off in shul on on Rosh Hashanah, and they said, "Hey Rabbi, happy new year." I was like, "New year? That's January 1st." I was thrown off, and I was like, "Toche, you know, Rosh Hashanah is new year." We don't think about we say k'siva v'chasima tova, or you have the tongue twister. One of You know, in the rabbinic life, should we go behind the bima for a moment? In rabbinic life, there are moments on the Jewish calendar, we've talked about the absolute panic of having to know what night of sfira it is every night. So, one of my rabbinic panic moments is the l'shana tova tikaseivu v'sechaseimu. L'shana tova u'metuka l'shana tova. And then there's that awkwardness. Do you just say like v'chein l'eimar? Do you say to you as well? And if you have a long line, it's it's really hard. But I miss the Hebrew text grammar. You got to get the grammar right to to do it to the whole community at the end of announcements at night. Then each person lines up, they're so nice, they're so kind to come up. We love interacting with each person. And like you just said, do you just kind of say g'yontif, or do you go through that whole formula? The people listening have no idea what we're talking about. This is the least problems that they have and it should be the least problem. It is the least problem that we have. But, those are the moments of panic. Anyway, it's a new year. I mean, also is it is it Leshana Tova or Shana Tova? There's a whole group of people that's Shana Tova, Shana Tova and there's a whole group of people that they sign Leshana Tova. I don't I don't understand Leshana Tova. Interesting, interesting. I think it can go either way. I think Shana Tova, Shana Tova U'Metuka, Shana Tova U'Metuka. There's a whole lot of ways you can go with this. then and then there's Yantif. You have to know who to say good Yantif to, who to say Hag Sameach to. Like, there's a whole science to that that I don't think people appreciate it. Right, good Shabbos, Shabbat Shalom. You have to know what that person is looking for and then you got to give it to them in the greeting. You know, it's interesting you say that because you don't have to know that, but we try to know that. Meaning, if you don't care about people and you want them to live on your terms, then you offer your greeting and you don't really care what their greeting is. But, if you want to show your diversity and that you care and connect with people of all kinds of backgrounds, then you try to anticipate. You know, when when we when we rotate the minyanim and we speak in different minyanim, we'll deliver a similar themed drasha. But, when we deliver it to the Sefardim, we speak in Sefardit. When we deliver it in the Shtiebel minyan, maybe we'll throw in like the three Yiddish words that we know all together collectively combined. And when we speak in the Ashkenazim and and so on. So, yeah, you don't have to, but it's a nice way to There's nothing inauthentic about that. We're authentically trying to show that we we care about connecting with people where they are and on their level. So. But, I missed my favorite text from you this year. My favorite text, you didn't send it to me. I was disappointed. Rosh Hashanah ended. What text should I have gotten? It's in the books. Oh, it's in the books. Absolutely. I sent it to my wife. Yeah, my whole family makes fun of me. But, yeah, Rosh Hashanah 2020, Rosh Hashanah 5781 in the books. These These are like mile markers. Rabbi Moscowitz, you train for a marathon. You are a runner. I never did, but I can imagine you pass certain mile markers and they represent progress towards that finish line and each mile marker that you haven't ripped something, pulled something, collapsed, killed over, you're it's worth celebrating. So, you know, to me I after the first day Rosh Hashanah I said to my wife and family, they already know me, said first day Rosh Hashanah in the books. Motzei Rosh Hashanah in the books. Looking forward to saying Shabbat Shuva in the books. So, yeah, that definitely is a is a phrase and a text I usually send. I'll tell you, I was in the gym this past week and I you know, everyone knows that for the Jews it's Rosh Hashanah, so everyone was wishing, you know, happy New Year. You said happy New Year and everyone was that's not Jewish was like they really want in on this New Year. Like you just get that feeling that there's an excitement that people really want to just start fresh now. Right. So. That's amazing. I I agree, it's a New Year. More than ever we want to turn the from the page. Yeah. Turn the page, New Year, fresh start, new beginning, blank slate. Unfortunately, it's still a similar reality, but we can have a new attitude towards it and and hopefully it'll become a new reality soon. What are What are some takeaways you guys had from Rosh Hashanah? Obviously, an enormous amount of work went into it. Um, what were some thoughts? You know, obviously it was a very different year. Um, so in addition to the regular Rosh Hashanah perspectives, what what was a little bit different this year that you came away with? I'll tell you, I I was thinking tonight and I reserve the right to use this in some other form in the next couple days or weeks. Um, but I was thinking tonight because I went to speak in daven at one of the developments near the shul where there were several uh seniors who live there not yet comfortable coming back to shul. So, outside distanced with masks I spoke to them and as I looked at them I realized that um, it's this week's parsha Shalach Lecha Zakeini V'Yom Mulach. Davening wasn't the same without the foundation of our seniors. You know, they are the rock, they're the foundation, they have the history, they've lived rich lives, they've overcome adversity and their absence made us incomplete. And I'd say a lot of young moms, in other words, the segments or demographics of the community who contribute to the tapestry of our diversity and make us whole, they're not being there, despite the fact that we had hundreds and hundreds and I think it was a over a dozen services across the campus, indoor, outdoor, all kinds of levels. But still, the demographics who weren't there rendered us incomplete. And there were some older people, they felt confident, they were there. But as a whole, as a unit, that group wasn't. And I hope I I don't know stay up to watch behind the Bema. I'm not sure they're watching right now. But I hope they know and I I think it's important for us to get across to them that they were missed. And they weren't just missed as a form of pity or sympathy from us to them. They were missed in a way that we feel incomplete. We were robbed. We didn't When you daven and you look at at at people in their 90s, Holocaust survivors, I don't want to mention names cuz I don't want to leave others out. But you look at some of the icons of our community, some of the heroes of our community. And when you think about their life story and when you say in the son of other parts of davening or you see they're they're making their way through all the t'fillah, it lifts everybody. And their not being there was was a big hole for me this year. Yizkor on Yom Kippur. Yeah, cuz I'm I'm dreading it. Crazy. I'm so used to having Mr. Judowitz up there. You're usually at a different minyan. I usually do Yizkor in the in the main sanctuary on Yom Kippur. And I'm going to miss Mr. Judowitz there. I mean, there's something really powerful about his doing Yizkor. And I'll throw in another population that you didn't mention. That's kids. You know, on one hand, the campus was quiet and there weren't there wasn't a lot of noise flowing through the hallways. On the other hand, you miss that a little bit. Right? You miss that that sense of a little bit of vibrancy that the kids bring to the campus, that they're sometimes coming in and out, saying hi to their parents, that they're going over and they're shaking some of the elderly people's hands. So, you miss that also, you know? It definitely takes away from the community when certain demographics aren't there, for sure. No question about it. And it was an eerie quiet. I commented to you afterwards, we normally have to hire guards and and we have people who are very helpful to us in the hallway and making sure that kids aren't running back and forth. There's not a lot of noise that is produced and it was an eerie quiet this year. Um it was it was a benefit in some ways. It didn't disturb or disrupt the davening. In other ways, it was a really eerie quiet. Uh we're very excited about our guest tonight. And uh I'm going to bring him aboard and I guess I'll I'll introduce him while he's uh while he's on board. So um it is a great honor and privilege to welcome Judge Alvin Hellerstein. Judge, thank you so much for being with us tonight. I'm joined by my colleagues Rabbi Moscowitz and Rabbi Brody and we couldn't be more excited to have you on board tonight. I see that I'm overdressed. You're you're not overdressed. I'm wearing a tie. Rabbi Moscowitz, you could feel free to take your jacket off. We were kind of hoping you'd wear your robe, but I don't And I was going to wear my robe, but they told me know. Is there Is there a law? Is there a rule about wearing the robe when off the bench? Yes, it it's said it's too big too bulky to carry around. That's an excellent rule. That's an excellent rule. So many people know Judge Hellerstein. He's well known around the world, but I want to remind everybody about his illustrious background and and how um incredibly um privileged we are to have him on tonight. Uh Judge Hellerstein is a senior United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District, which is a federal uh judge position. He's presided over several high-profile cases including the 9/11 cases of which I know there was tremendous uh justice served, but sympathy to to victims family of victims. Maybe we'll have a chance to talk about that. Judge Hellerstein attended the Bronx High School Science. He got a bachelor's from Columbia. Uh his law degree from Columbia, editor of the Columbia Law Review. Um served in the United States Army. We're so grateful Judge for your for your service. Um served as a litigation in the litigation department as a lawyer. Was a partner at Stroock Stroock & Lavan and uh was pre- president and chairman of the Board of Jewish Education. And as we said today, serves as a federal judge in New York nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1998 and has a senior status uh since 2011. But, I would say that the position of his greatest distinction is he is the grandfather of my nieces and nephews. Judge Elstein is my sister's father-in-law, and we love Judge Al. And a great-grandfather. And a great-grandfather of my great-niece. Absolutely, she definitely deserves deserves a mention. So, it's really an illustrious background, and Judge, you're incredibly accomplished in your life by any definition, but particularly as a observant Jew who you did not allow your commitment to to Torah, to Judaism, to Jewish values in any way to hold you back from the position you attained. And And I think that makes it even even more special. And maybe we could start with that. If I can ask you, how is it different today to be an Orthodox Jew as a lawyer, in your case as a prominent judge, than it was when you began your career? When you first started out in law school, and and when you began to when you clerked, and and when you served as a lawyer, what was it like to be a Jew in those arenas versus uh today? As a Jewish boy coming to interview law firms, uh you met up with very strong discrimination. Some of it overt, most of it implied. Um even joining a Jewish firm uh caused you to um uh uh lose status. You got less pay. Uh Jewish firms worked on Saturday. Uh they could they paid their employees on Saturday. And um I joined a Jewish firm. Uh it was then I was becoming Orthodox as a matter of process. I wasn't yet uh fully observant. But, I told um the partners who interviewed me that I would not work on Shabbat except in emergencies. And they had a firm meeting meeting. Um they decided to take me. I was the first Orthodox boy employed uh by a gentile or a Jewish firm in New York City. I was pleased to say that after me that there were others. And some credit me with having broken the precedent. When I became a judge, it didn't make any difference if I was Orthodox or not. It made no difference if I was religious or not. My capabilities as a lawyer were measured as well as my character and other characteristics. But there was no discrimination. There is no discrimination that I could see. I have Catholic colleagues, Protestant colleagues, and secular colleagues. All kinds of colleagues. We are one court. That's wonderful. And have How does Judaism or how does your commitment to Torah and those Jewish values of which I've learned so much from you and we had had wonderful conversations through the years. How does that influence your being a judge? You've You have people who come before you and their destiny lies in your hands. Whether it's the the judgment or the sentencing that you're going to offer and the impact on them and by extension their families and beyond. It's an enormous amount of power. And when you're trying to decide what's just, what's ethical, and of course your your job is not to create the law, rewrite the law, but to apply the law. How would you say your commitment to Judaism and Jewish values I believe that in your chambers you have the pasuk tzedek tzedek tirdof "Justice, justice shall you pursue." And I know that that that's something that you think about often. How would you say your Jewish values influence your your being a judge? I've often wondered from I don't know. I wrote an article about it in the Touro Law Review. And um I can't say that I would decide a case any differently than for example my colleague John Cuttle who went to Regis High School and is a a practicing Catholic. Um more than anybody else, uh I don't know. I think that maybe that Judaism has played a role in a being passionate about justice and equal protection. Uh most pronounced, I guess, in sentencing. Uh I feel and I have uh various reminders about it that I'm sentencing a person uh a person created by God the same way I was. Perhaps I had more advantages in life. Uh perhaps I took more advantages of the opportunities than he did. Uh but he is a person who did a bad thing or several bad things. And I stress that I'm punishing him not as a bad person cuz he's not but for the bad things he does. Now, whether this results in a milder punishment, a severer punishment, or makes no difference in punishment, I can't tell. It's very hard to uh equate what one judge considers a just punishment from what another judge considers a just punishment. Um I just feel that it's my obligation to listen, to be compassionate, but then to apply uh the law as I understand it, through the sentencing guidelines, and my own judgments. It's impossible to say what role my Jewishness or my Orthodoxy has um in doing that. And I think it does. There's a famous quote from um Judge Justice Cardozo uh where he talks about the stream of experience that every person, every judge has. And how it must influence everything he does without his ability to be conscious of it or to articulate what difference it would make. It's a fascinating question which I've not been able to answer. Yeah, we we wouldn't ask you to weigh in on this, obviously, but that's part of the discussion now about the uh potential nominees for the Supreme Court vacancy is in some cases their religious backgrounds, in other cases, but how much their life experiences and their other convictions impact their ability to apply the law, which is which is fascinating. Religious Religious aspects should play no role. There was no uh um no role for religion in our uh officers and judges in the state. Law is blind in that sense. It should not make any difference to if I'm a Catholic practicing or Protestant or atheist or anything else. It's it's the way you can have patience and understanding and listening ability on the bench and apply the law and a sense of justice. Right. Before Before I hand it over to my Moscowitz, did did you um had you ever met uh Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg? Do you have any reflections on what her loss means? The loss is great. She's a an exemplar of what a judge should be. Uh I met Ruth when I was discharged from the army. And I paid a a visit to the judge I had been a clerk for. Uh I had been Palmieri. Uh Ruth was then her law clerk. Uh his law clerk. Um and I heard him say many times the best he had. Um a very tractable woman. Um a very hard-working woman. Uh, very precise about what she did. Um, and uh, she went on to extraordinary successes. I was not a a friend, but uh, I wrote to her from time to time and when I was uh, inducted as a judge, there was a ceremony in the Supreme Court. Um, well, my wife and I attended and uh, Justice Ginsburg Ginsburg made herself our host. Took us around her courtroom, took us around uh, her chambers. Um, and a gracious, very gracious person. Hm. It's a great loss. We're going to Judge Alito, thank you so much for being on. Um, you know, as a rabbi, we're asked very often to write letters, character letters, on behalf of people who are appearing before a judge. Um, and often times we're asked to describe the person's commitment to community and their contributions and their volunteer efforts and what a wonderful person that they are. How does that factor into your decision making? You know, you were talking about how you try to view the person as a human being in front of you. Um, a person who may have made bad decisions, but who was created in the image of God. Uh, what do these character letters mean to you? How do they factor into the decision process? Are rabbis wasting their time by writing these letters? Um, do they have an impact on you? How do those types of letters um, affect your decision making? Um, I receive letters from many people with um, with many sentences. Uh, the fact that a a person has family and friends and has good things about him, uh, factors into the punishment. It doesn't uh, cancel a bad act, but it factors into the punishment. Um, it's it's unfortunate some people don't have families. They don't have any structure to their lives. No one loves them. And he or she loves no one. They're alone. Alone to suffer the indignity of their crimes. And it's pitiful. But other people come with family and friends. Some who travel great distances and sacrifice themselves. And I get many letters written handwritten letters from children, from nieces and nephews, from friends, from clergy. I read them all. And um my colleagues the same. And um I can't tell you in any quantifiable way what consideration I give to such letters. But you should not be dissuaded from writing it. Um you should focus on what you know of the person personally. What that person means to you and to the community. And what that person does. Uh other people will write about the person in other capacities. But you should focus on what you know and how that person relates to you, is himself, herself, family, children, anything else. That's important. Um though I can't quantify how important it is. Your honor. Uh first of all, it's an honor to have you here. Um just uh wondering, you know, I know you were very involved in in the case with the Chabad, with the Sefer Torah. And um I'm just wondering, is there ever a time You said that that being a You didn't say being a Jew, but you said religion doesn't play any factor in in in in the decisions in the courtroom. But sometimes it might be such a case where you know, the impact is going to create a real chillul Hashem, no matter what. And it's your decision you have you have to make a make make a judgment call and I'm just wondering if there's any pressure that's put on you from community leaders rabbis do they call in and say listen if you decide this way it's going to be bad for the Jewish community and how do you deal with that? Well I just sentenced people who were part of the Jewish community. Um and I know that since it's on the same community that rabbis have been asked to call me and alike and if I had the good sense not to I wouldn't take the call. I wouldn't take the call. Um and it's a great mistake because it will count to the detriment of the person who instigated the call. Um It's a lonely job to sentence people. Um I may give my law clerks discrete tasks to research this or that question. But it's my decision. And I'm alone in that decision. My clerk schedules them for Fridays. Friday mornings and I have all of Shabbos to think about what I did. I never think I get it right. I feel I was too severe I was too lenient. I was too compassionate I got caught up in the arguments and so on. I never ever have had the feeling that my punishment was just and measured. Um and that's good. I think a judge should um be disconcerted disconcerted by what he does. I'm taking away the liberty of somebody. Whether for 30 days or 30 years. That's awesome. And and um um it weighs heavily. I know it weighs heavily on on most of my colleagues and all of us consider it the most difficult part of the job. That's what that's what really makes you so special, Judge Holwell. And you've dealt with just to piggyback that question, you've um you've been the judge who's adjudicated over some really high-profile cases as we mentioned earlier, 9/11 and um very different, obviously, but Harvey Weinstein, Michael Cohen, uh the case of the Hope poster with President Obama. Um and that got it's a lot of media coverage when they do. There've been some celebrities, some uh social media influencers who's who've come before you and had very sweet quotes afterwards about having appeared before you. We won't mention them, but um does one. Paris Hilton appeared before me. She had some lingerie brand that was knocked off. Um and she came to court one time and uh there was a mention on page six of the post that I love that judge. He's so old. That was her quote. That was her quote, exactly. As a a ringing endorsement. Um does does the spotlight on you, you know, the the awesomeness of the 9/11 cases, which I know took a very long time and and I imagine the way you described what weighs on you about um taking away liberty in this case, trying to offer comfort and solace and and compensation to families of of victims, um how does that impact you? The fact that the spotlight is shining and the media's covering and the articles will come out and the court of public opinion will have a lot to say about what you conclude. You know, we try to all have judgment in life and and you much more um acutely that's not influenced or bribed or biased by things around us. How how do you try to close yourself off from the bigger picture or the media spotlight or the court of public opinion to really to really do what you think ultimately is right, is just and and correct? You should cut yourself off. You should be aware of of public opinion. Um, and um, Mhm. newspapers, uh, other media play a great role. We We write largely for ourselves in courts of appeals. But, the media writes for the people. And the media plays a very important role in mediating what informing the public about what we do, which is extremely important. Um, I can't say that I don't enjoy publicity. One of my colleagues put it very well. It's like Scotch. The first drink is extraordinarily good, and then it deteriorates after that. So, we shouldn't get used to, um, uh, the public display of of what we do. The But, the newspapers are valuable. During the 9/11, uh, litigation, at one time, I had about 14,000 cases related to various aspects of 9/11. Um, the newspapers are very valuable in bringing me information that was important. Uh, for example, one lawyer represented thousands of people, not in the class, separately, but thousands of people. Uh, that lawyer had problems with some of the clients and did things that some of the clients found found improper or to their dislike. And, um, a particular reporter brought it to my attention. And when it was, uh, important, I called a conference. I gave her credit. And I used it as a way of bringing up the conduct and examining whether it was proper conduct or improper conduct. I learned a lot from the newspapers. Uh, I encourage reporters to call me. One Boston Globe reporter called me up at home on a Sunday. And I responded, this is I asked him, how do you know how to reach me? Uh, I haven't been listed for years." And he said, "Took me about 5 minutes to find out." So, I concluded that not listing um makes it difficult for my friends, but the enemies know right away. Exactly. I talked to reporters. I always limit myself to what's on the record. I don't give them other explanations. But, the record can be very complicated. Agreed. And I feel it's part of my job, but this is controversial. Most judges feel differently. It's part of my job to help them understand. They have a limited amount of time. They're not schooled. Um and they uh they need help. But, I'll just tell them what's in the public record and where they can find it. Um And anybody can find that. Um they have always honored my request not to be quoted. And no one has abused that. Uh the most um active critic of me in the 9/11 litigation was a reporter from the New York Post. And I spoke with her a lot. And at the end of the case, I I I had a con- conversation with her and I thanked her for uh never breaching the confidences of of our conversation. Um and she said, "You know, I have to do that. Cuz I if I once breach, you'll never talk to me again." Right. So, the the reporter is finding value in my conversation. And I'm finding value in the other conversation. Now, the other aspect um of um of the public There's several aspects. Part of the sentencing uh considerations are Um one factor is respect by the public. So, what I do must it inform the public respect. If I treat a defendant too leniently or discriminate because of race or background or anything improper I could be called on that. And and I'm aware of that. Um I'm aware that the respect of the public by the public, the need for deterrence uh the punishment appropriate for the particular defendant. All of these considerations are in the statute and they don't harmonize. And I have to pick with them, but public respect is one important aspect. At the beginning of the 9/11 cases I I um when I saw that they were starting to build I had asked myself how I was going to manage them. How I was going to handle them. And and um there's a lot of abuse in these mass tort cases. There's a lot of criticism of lawyers. They're they're asking too much, they're making too much, what they do is unreliable. You've heard it all. And I I I took a vow that whatever I would do I would examine how I would think the public would react. And it was important that people have respect for the law and the process of the law. And so I made it a point to explain everything to write for an educated layperson and for the newspaper reporter. And the newspapers treated me well, they were part of the process, they gave information. Uh there were a lot of people had to make up their minds whether to join a settlement or not. The newspapers helped. Uh so the answer is that the public the public and the public respect are extremely important. Mhm. Do you have a favorite ruling? Obviously, without diverging detail details, but is there a creative ruling or a favorite ruling or an unusual case or something that stands out? Two. Maybe three. Um one was a case where a um in a um a person who was here without credentials. We would call them an illegal alien, but the person who was here without credentials was caught up in an um in a in a coast-to-coast narcotics conspiracy. And I believe that he wasn't informed, didn't know, and uh and wasn't told. And so um I refused to take his plea of guilty and told him that I didn't think he was guilty. I told his lawyer to um work with the government to see if the government could understand that. I moved to dismiss the case. I was about to free him when I learned that the uh customs enforcement immigration customs enforcement had what is called a detainer on him. So, the moment he steps out of jail, he's locked up with immigration. So, I kept him in jail. I got him a a pro bono lawyer. He's got his status um adjusted because his wife was a citizen and his 16-year-old daughter was a star student. Uh and he became a naturalized citizen and then I released him from jail. Mhm. And um he wanted to kiss my hand and of course that's inappropriate. And I told him about the uh the sign I have in my office that said that said it's your oath. I told him that one minute there are many reasons that are given for the repetition, but the one I favored is that we don't know where justice is. We have to pursue it. We have to look for it. And and when an opportunity is given to have justice in the courtroom, justice in the eyes of the defense counsel, justice in the eyes of the prosecutor, justice in the eyes of the judge and in the public, we have to thank him for giving us this opportunity. That's one case I remember. Mhm, interesting. Another one um there was a home being made for uh uh people who had disability, mental disability. So, people grew up with them. They were first put in in some kind of a separate process to nurture them when they were children, when their parents were young. But the the parents became old and they couldn't take care of their children. And the children remained in these institutions of of various kinds. It's a bad word, but um various homes. Um it's desirable to get them into the community. So, the organization, the particular organization, was able to find adjoining cooperators in a building and buy them to put them together. That the um people in the cooperative were aghast. They did not want these mentally disabled people in the building. And I told them that if we are lucky enough not to have a disabled child of our own, then our cousins had them, our friends had them, had them. And I said they're we and we are they. I shamed them into rescinding their opposition and making a settlement and I provided uh that the organization would always have a supervisor on hand and limit the number of people to four. And it worked out. Wow. That's fantastic. So, those those two cases, there are a couple of others like that, but it's it's the little case. It's the case where you can directly do something that enriches someone's lives like that you can you must love. That's beautiful. We have time for one more question, Rabbi Moscowitz. One more. Well, um first of all, Judge, I want to thank you profoundly again for joining us um this evening and um I guess, you know, my question is that we're right before um the the Yom HaDin, we're right before Judgment Day. We're going to come before the Judge of judges and um I want to know if you have any advice for uh as someone who sits and people come before you all the time, what is some advice that you have for everyone else who are coming before the Judge of judges on Yom Kippur? Um what works for you and what do you recommend for everybody else to have a successful Judgment Day? Well, who is to tell the great Judge how to govern my life? We pray um who shall live, who who shall die. I can't make any suggestions. You're a much better um place than I am to make those suggestions. Um but I do feel that I have to account for what I do. Part of my accountability is to the Court of Appeals. Where I can be reversed, and I often am. Another is my account to the individuals involved directly in the process. And third, I have to account to God. I um My purpose in life is to be as good a judge as I can be. And uh I have to ask the strength and wisdom in performing that job. It's sufficiently awesome to go um dominate my life as well as loving my children, my family, um the a friend I have, and and others. And that's part of it, too. So, we we're enriched in fulfilling what we do. It They're our accomplishments. And we're enriched by those we love and who loved us. And we have to pray that we will have the opportunity of for another year to further that enrichment. That's awesome. It is It is indeed, and Judge, you are awesome, and thank you so much for spending your evening with us. We're happy that you're well and feeling well, and uh I couldn't be more proud that my nieces and nephews and great niece have your DNA and your genetic material. That bodes well for them and for their future. And uh we love you. We love having you as family, and we loved having you on our show. We wish you a good mar tov. You should have a healthy year and a happy year and a good year. You should be able to travel to Israel to see your family there and enjoy your family here in in America. And I hope to see you soon and continue to learn from you. Thank you so so much for being with us tonight. want to say that I have two cousins who are great fans of yours, live in the in the community, and who tell me all the time but how how wonderful you are in your shiurim and your rabbinic activities. And I know myself how hard you work. And and how you love your congregants and how much they love you. It's a colleague of yours. Thank you. I appreciate it. Thank you, Judge. Take care. Thank you so much. Yeah, the two fans are sitting right here. I didn't know you're his cousins. Judge Hellerstein is a um you know, he he's youthful, so you wouldn't know, but he's not a young man, and he easily could be retired, and he has this senior status, which has some advantages to it and some seniority to it. Uh but he's so passionate, so so passionate about what he does, and um it's really inspiring and and beautiful. Um for those who haven't seen, you can Google it. There's a great New York Times article that came out about Judge Hellerstein, who had a weekly regular tennis game with some other prominent uh leaders that are familiar. We didn't get to this. So much more to talk about. Next time we can uh we can talk to him. But Rabbi uh Michael or Mickey Schmiddman, um and uh there were other tennis partners as well. There's a New York Times Rabbi Lookstein, Rabbi Haskel Lookstein, and Jonah Kupietsky. They had a regular tennis game in Manhattan, and that was a little uh the fun side or softer side of the judge and and what he does. But I've learned a lot from him, and we still learn from him, and there's a lot more to talk about. But you know, one of our one of our listeners posted in in the chat um to ask what exactly is the role of sentencing. Is it punitive? Is it rehabilitative? Um what is the goal in sentencing? Is it a deterrent? So, please God, we have to have the judge back again. He should be well, and we'll we'll have him back, and we can ask him the whole other other round of questions. I want to know how many the whole time what was going through my head is the mission of Pirkei Avot, "Have a masumin b'din." You should be judicious in in the way you approach things, in the way you speak, in the way you approach justice. And uh talk about someone who's so calculated, so well thought out, so aware of the various components. I'll just say, I don't know how your sister managed that first Pesach in that house, but uh Nerve-racking, trust me, nerve-racking. He's uh very brilliant, very brave, very intimidating. I'll just share this great comment someone posted. Beautiful program, the mensch on the bench. I love it. Mensch on the bench. That is Judge Hellerstein. He is the mensch on the bench, and he is a good You ever call him to like if you get a like a speeding ticket, get out of it? It is so good to have um I have not I have not done so. I thank god I haven't needed to. I've not I've not yet needed to call on that favor. I hope to always know Judge Hellerstein in the familial capacity and in no other. I have I have called on him for his wisdom and his good judgment and he has offered it generously. He's been he's been wonderful. So, there's a lot to learn. I mean, the truth is it is an awesome responsibility if you think about it. I I know that when I've testified in court on behalf of others and and you look up at that judge and you realize like you know, did they get a good night's sleep last night? What side of the bed did they wake up on? Did they have a fight with their spouse or children? Because all that's going to influence it shouldn't, but they're about to determine someone's fate. Lock them up, let them go, what the fine is, what the it's it's enormous enormous We all have judgment in life and we're all supposed to use good judgment, but that's judgment that really has an enormous impact. No, what struck me was his usage of the word of awesome. Right? We use awesome Oh, it was awesome. You know, did you see the game tonight? It was awesome. No, no. He meant it in that this is an an extraordinarily awesome responsibility in the way that awesome really was meant to be used um and just the way he used it when he said that word it's an awesome. That's what you know, that that's why I asked the That's what Yom Kippur is. Yom Kippur is awesome. Right? Yom Kippur is an awesome experience and it's an awe inspiring experience coming before a judge and having you know, that that experience. So, that word when he said it resonated with me. That's a great point you're making. There are words in our English language which we've diluted and destroyed because we abuse them in so many contexts, right? So, awesome means nothing anymore. It's awesome. You're awesome. That's a song's awesome. Things awesome. So, the word awesome or days of awe don't mean anything anymore. What are other words you think in the English language which have been used and abused that they no longer mean anything? It's a mitzvah. You did Go do it What it's such a mitzvah. Like your kid does any little thing, it's what a mitzvah. Yeah, you think it's been abused and it's diluted? Yeah, I don't I I think we use that word a million times a day. It's not It's not really classically a mitzvah, but it's you know. Go do it. It's a If we brought one of my kids on right now, they would tell you that I say all the time, I used to do it more often, but I think the word love has been abused and it longer no longer has the meaning. So, when my children will be like, "I love that song. I love that cereal. I love that whatever." I say, "You love it or you like it? You like the cereal, you love me." And I always say to them, and I think this in my mind, "If you use that same word to describe your favorite food or your favorite song or your favorite vacation or your favorite whatever, that's the only word you have to describe the deepest, most profound way you feel for me. So, you sure you want to use it on a food or a song or something else because there's no other word or should we reserve that word for when we really mean it and say, 'I really like' or 'I adore' or 'I think about' or 'I'm obsessed with' cuz kids like to use that word obsessed. I'm obsessed. Right. We're obsessed. I awesomely love you. That's good. I awesomely love you. I awesomely love you. I want to bring up a comment from one of our big fans and we're fans of his, Hanan Auerbach. I hope season 2 is as sweet as one. So, please, feel free in the chat, whether on YouTube or Facebook. If you're listening to the podcast later, rate and review. Make sure you take a moment to rate and review, but also be in touch with us and let us know your thoughts, other questions, comments, thoughts. Um Gabe Ohayon, our dear friend Gabe Ohayon, says, "Perfect guest have on air of Yom Kippur to hear from a judge about judgment and justice on air of Yom Kippur." Thanks, Gabe. That is a great comment as well. Please feel free to bring up topics in the comments that you'd like to hear from us. What topics do you have, gentlemen? So, I saw an article this week that uh that I wanted to ask your opinion on. And the article's titled New York town of Swastika to keep its name. That there's a town in upstate New York in the Adirondack Adirondack town located 50 miles from the Canadian border. It voted unanimously this week to retain its name called Swastika. The four-member board, which has authority over it, voted unanimously after 5 minutes of discussion. Now, the person who brought this before the board was a cyclist from New York City who happened to be cycling in Upstate New York this summer, and he came across a sign for the town. He was bothered by it. He said, in a quote, "I think it should be obvious that the town should update its name and should pick a name that's not so offensive to so many Americans and so emblematic of intolerance, hate, and tyranny." Now, it took the board 5 minutes to unanimously reject that, and they said as follows. They said, "The word swastika doesn't mean anything. It means to prosper. Has nothing to do with Germany and Hitler." And he said in response, "I didn't expect a quick and unanimous vote." You should give everyone that blessing from the beam of this week. Does that bother you? Does Does the fact that they retained a name, Swastika, in New York bother you? Of course it bothers me. It's absurd. And the truth is, if that word predated its usage or being usurped by the Nazis, then they are innocent for the town using that name beforehand. But now that we know what it means, we have other words, which I am too afraid and sensitive that I would not use right now, which if a town was named that, but now it has other connotations and implications, we would never If we're tearing down statues, I'm pretty sure we could change the name of a town which became the symbol of the most heinous crime in all of human history, the atrocity that wiped out 6 million, a genocide. The swastika is, and I'm going to use the word literally, even though that's one of those words that's been abused and used. Here you go, Sannic. It has literally the swastika is literally the symbol of genocide against Jews. It is the symbol. It's a symbol. When it's appeared in fashion, the world went crazy. When it was appeared on purpose, accidentally, in other contexts, we went crazy. Of course it should be removed. The statues are being torn down, it should be removed. conversations and double standard. There's a clear why whether it's the Jewish community tolerates this and we just shrug our shoulders and say it's another example, but there are other communities in America right now that would not tolerate a town named in such a hurtful hurtful way. Yeah. It's interesting. I wonder if there's any Jews there. Imagine if there's like even one Jew and a Chabad starts up and he's the rabbi of Swastika. But I don't probably no there, but I remember when there was a couple who named their baby Adolf Hitler. But they were only found guilty after they were part of a neo-Nazi group. And it was it was difficult for them to name their child Adolf Hitler. It was exactly 10 years ago. It was August 2010. They named all their children Nazi-inspired names including one was named Adolf Hitler and they only lost custody after domestic violence put the children at risk and abuse. I think the story is interesting though that the children themselves, how do you grow up with that name? I mean what what trajectory of path does that set you on when you go to school and your name is Adolf Hitler? Right. How do you write on your mail? I live in Swastika. I live in Hey mom, I moved to Swastika. and I live in Swastika. We're making a joke of it but but in all seriousness, you know, I read this article and I it just showed how sometimes it's what you've been saying for weeks, the double standard. And I also think it's a little bit of the Jewish community just shrugs their shoulders at this and doesn't stand up for things that are offensive to us. It's worth it. We should get involved. We should stand up and say something. I'll tell you though on a on a feel-good story, if you want a little bit of a feel-good story, I read a 96-year-old woman who bowled a 300. 96, she's going to be 97 on November 30th. Her name is Sarah Lyons. I don't know if she's related to any Lyons that we know and she bowled a just a couple months before her 97th birthday. And when she was asked the secret to staying young that at 97 she could bowl a 300, her answer was family. She has a ramp? Yeah. I don't know. Did the bumpers go up or down? I don't know. The story did not mention whether the bumpers were up or down, but she bowled a 300 at 97 years old. It's impressive. how how heavy do you think the ball was? Yeah. No, it's like in New England they do candlepin bowling, which is like a very small ball. Have you guys ever bowled that way? Yeah, they have in New England. It's small ball. in New York we're real men. What are you talking about? First of all, you just insulted a quarter of the country, but in New England they have something called candlepin bowling, which is a very small ball. It's about the size of my palm. And the pins are very narrow. They're very narrow pins. And it's a totally different system. Exactly. I never heard of it. I never heard of it, but when when you're 97 we'll let you use it. Anyway, feel good stories. Let's go from a feel good story to a controversial one. We both read an article last week we wanted to bring up this week. Controversial, I'm not going to mention the author's name. He's a rabbi, not not a large community rabbi, but he wrote an article and the title of the article is those who want to read it can look it up. Big Shuls are dying as intimate prayer groups rise. No holds barred, the democratization of synagogue life. This is a rabbi who loves debates and for a lot of reasons I I don't want to debate him, but I would debate him on this one. I feel tremendously passionate about this. I couldn't disagree with him more vehemently, more vociferously. I couldn't disagree with him more about his about his conclusion. I don't think big community synagogues are dying or need to die. I think there are circumstances that limit our operations right now, but I would tell you if anything the Rosh Hashanah at the Boca Raton synagogue is evidence that his article is wrong. Right. It's wrong. I'll even go a step further. I'll say that coronavirus showed that his that his hypothesis is wrong. And the fact is is if anything that coronavirus showed me, it was just how important community is. I mean, think about what would have been missing in our community without having that sense of unity, community, that big shul concept where everyone was looking out for each other. Think about all the chesed, the meals that were arranged, the taking care of each other. All that was kind of like centered around the shul and spread forth from there. You would have been You would have been lost without that, right? If you lived in a community with a shtiebel on every street corner, it's a very different experience. And if anything, it's not just Rosh Hashanah, I think it's coronavirus which shows that when you have community, it represents so much more than just classes and sermons. It represents a philosophy. It represents a mindset. And I think that the world is craving that mindset now more than ever. Correct. I agree. In fact, I'll read to you from his article. He writes, "There's so much to be said about intimate prayer services. They're warm. They're more information-based than sermon-based. People get to know each other and it feels like family. My experience is communities that are shtiebelized and you have a lot of small minyanim everywhere, it's not necessarily feels like family. I think people feel lost. People feel invisible. I think actually when you have a community that is diverse, when you have a large campus and everyone feels like a family, we're going through things together, we celebrate together, we mourn together, we value together, we stand up for the same things together, we advocate together, we work together to create a sense of family and a sense of community. We had a new member event a few weeks ago and uh of course socially distanced with masks. We were all very careful. Um something incredible happened. Two young couples who were sitting more than 6 ft apart from one another, but we go around, same hokey thing every year. Everyone says their name, where they moved from, and then we have some, you know, what's your favorite what's your favorite restaurant in the world, right? Some some funny feel-good thing. So, a couple spoke one after each other and then one of them said, and I will not embarrass the community that they moved from, but they said, "Do know that we lived a block away in another community for 10 years and we didn't meet until we came to Boca Raton. So, yeah, you could have if you don't have community, if you have the stabilization, if every block is another minion, if everyone makes Shabbos for themselves, and I'm not knocking it, there are things that are beautiful about it, and and for some people it works that way, but I don't think that community's dying. I think that we need to reinforce and re-educate and re-up more than ever the notion of belonging, belonging to community. Just like this country is being so divided and fragmented, it's a team sport, everyone's dug in, special interest groups. Whatever happened to patriotism, nationalism, caring, peoplehood. So, community similarly, you know, it's not I make Yom Tov in my backyard in my way for my people, my convenience, my comfort. What happened to being part of community? What happened to connection of community? What happened to value of community? What happened to community transcending individualism? What happened to um community being able to being so much bigger than the sum of its parts? It's community that lets you feel consequential, not invisible. It lets you feel you're part of a bigger family that cares and that matters. It's community that at least you have an impact uh and ultimately in a world in which people are feeling lonelier than ever, community is I think what makes people belong. And if if shuls are struggling to be a community, then that's on the shul and the shul leadership. Not to be a shul, but to be a shul community. There's a fundamental difference. We always say, our goal is not for people to be members of the Boca Raton Synagogue, our goal is for people to be members of the Boca Raton Synagogue community. And that is a fundamental difference. And I think it's up to shuls to to do that. One of my children right now is texting like crazy that we should show the community video we just put out about how we got through Corona. And if we weren't a podcast also, I would show, but on the podcast you won't be able to see the video. Um we'll put it on. We'll put it online. We'll we'll send it out. it online. We'll put it up online. We'll put it in the comments on YouTube and on Facebook for this episode. And people should see the community video that was produced featuring the Boca Raton Synagogue community over Corona and what we did for for another and how we endured this with one another. and we're still going through it together right now. Um we're still experiencing it. So Alibi has a question one of our listeners are we Brody? Can you read his question? Yeah, am I awake? I'm awake. I'm listening to what you guys are talking about. I'm now I will say hold on. I will say I I did come from a smaller community. Right? In other words, I grew up in Boston where it was one show predominantly. I was in Holliswood, New York where it was really one show um and it was much smaller. And there is something nice and you and I talk about this all the time. There's something a little sometimes nice about a smaller community. Not a smaller show but a smaller community where it has more of that like cheers feeling where everyone knows your name and if you're not there on a Shabbos the rabbi is going to call you up right afterwards and say, "Hey, you know, we only had 11 people in the minion not 12. Missed you." Um and certain of those are not accessible to us. We're not able to do that because the size of our community but that doesn't take away from the underlying effect and um benefit of a community versus a show. That's what you're talking What you're describing is very different. There's a fundamental difference between a small community or relatively small community and a big community made up of a million small shows. Correct. Correct. I just wanted to make that differentiation. I would also point out that we work hard here to balance community with individual. And there's no one should think that this is like some, you know, totalitarian government where you have to suppress your own individual individuality to because of the the needs of the of the many. Right. We work really hard. Yeah, the I grew up in No, I'm saying in in normal circumstances we have eight minyanim on Shabbos morning. Each one catered to a different population. So we try to embrace your individuality but bring it into the community. We we don't want you to give up that individuality. We want you to bring your own flavor and what you represent and put it into our community. So I know you have a phone call by the way from Rosh Hashanah but anyway, um We'll talk We'll talk about that offline. Only cuz you were I'm just joking myself. How good did that feel? My neighbor and my dear friend. Uh but yeah, we we off we obviously feel very passionate about community. And community doesn't mean everyone has to conform. Right? We have many many many many minyanim, Ashkenazim and Sephardim and older and younger and left-wing and right-wing and fully observant and people who are baalei teshuvah and people who are not yet observant whatsoever. We can all still be a community and operate and live together in one place, and I think that's our mission and our goal. The more splintered, the more divided, the more dug in, the more team sport, it does not serve the Jewish people. It's not in terms of the Jewish problem, and it doesn't serve on the bigger problem. Uh I'll tell you what's what's interesting is I saw another article that was another angle of a similar phenomenon. Everybody's trying to extrapolate from COVID what that means for the future of of Jewish community in shuls. So, the one article that we just spoke about was uh big shuls are dying as intimate prayer groups rise. This was another op-ed. COVID has not created a shul davening problem, it has revealed one. Rabbi Pesach Sommer, very interesting uh person, uh posts a lot on Facebook, is a rebbe who lives in Psak, very very interesting uh individual, causes me to think often. So, he wrote an article saying that COVID's not created the problem, it's revealed one. The fact that people, this could be a little controversial, but it's his point, not mine. The fact that people have been so slow to come back to shul, and they say, "Look, shul doesn't do it for me." Even though they can, it's not that there's a problem in shul, but what are all the aspects of shul that are missing right now? They're very important ones. Socializing, connection, community, kiddush. But the davening, which is the central part of shul, the core part, talking to God, connecting with God, feeling in the presence of God, being in a sanctuary which is filled with sanctity, which is the core reason we're there. The complimentary reasons are to see friends, connecting community, base kenesses. Those are very very important. Kiddush, simcha, very very important. But the core reason is to daven. And what COVID has done is it's reduced shul down to its core. And so it's also filtered out who's coming for the core and who's coming for the compliments. And that's okay, but it's an interesting discussion to have. Thoughts? That That is an interesting discussion. I've heard that from people. I've heard that from people told me directly. They said, you know, Rabbi, um if if all I can do is walk into shul, daven, and walk out, and I can't say hi to people, and I can't have that social outlet and that connection, shul for me is about connection. It's the only time of the week that I get together with the guys, and we make a lechaim together, and we have some herring together, then uh then what's the point of coming? Um and um I I agree with them 100%. It's revealed a lot about how you relate to to shul and shul life. And that's why I think a lot of guys like the neighborhood minyanim, because there there's no one telling you you can't talk to one another. If anything, you are davening, but you do get to say hello. In fact, when I was walking out of shul this past Rosh Hashanah, I was walking out with one of the with a member from from the shul, and the guard, like we just walked out together. Like we weren't talking, and then we were just saying, you know, hello, literally hello, and the guard said, "You can't talk. You guys got to You know, disperse." We weren't talk We was like, "Hello, good shabbos, good yontif." You know. Right. It is a very dry, cold, sterile environment. That's very hard. And And the rabbis were also equally pained by that. You don't think we love seeing you? You don't think we love hugging you? We don't love connecting to you? We're equally pained by that. My suggestion is not this is a good thing. Oh, we got rid of all the other stuff. Now it's just davening. It's not a good thing at all. We are as desperate and longing for that to return as you are. But this is a real litmus test. This is a real mirror holding up to us to asking why fundamentally why do I go to shul? Not do I enjoy the other parts also, but fundamentally why do I go to shul? And if I'm not going cuz the other parts aren't there, then maybe I need to work on or think about my connection to Hashem, my wanting to feel in his presence, do I talk to him? I know you could talk to Hashem at home, too, but very, very interesting conversations. I will tell you and I and I said this on Rosh Hashanah, and just to bring it full circle, it was really nice to hear the campus full again on Rosh Hashanah. And even though it wasn't perfect, and as you said, there were so many people that we missed and so many people that weren't there, it would it felt really good to be walking room to room and to crisscross the campus, you know, speaking and wishing people good yontif. It felt really really good to see people in a way that you and I haven't experienced since Purim. And it just it brought tears to my eyes, it choked me up, and it it made me it was a really good feeling. And there were a lot of people that said to me, you know, like this is the first time back in shul. I'm just curious to see what happens after yontif is all over, you know, Sukkot is done. The following Shabbos are people going to come back again? Is I hope now that if if they see that we've set it up in what we hope and believe and if tested to be a safe environment, hopefully they will come. Rabbi Brody, we have 1 minute left. There's always so much more to talk about, but you ran a beautiful event over Rosh Hashanah. You're going to do it again on Yom Kippur. You're We Boca Raton Synagogue, our movement, we have a dedicated outreach rabbi, one of few shuls. I'm going to speak about actually Motzei Shabbos in the Shabbos Shuva drasha. Milton Friedman, the great economist, said, "If you want to know what people care about, go check where they spend their money. Check where their budget Yeah, they can spend more money, by the way. It's okay. We we have a dedicated outreach rabbi because we value and we care about outreach. Tell us about the service the outreach service that you ran. It was much smaller this year, and thank God you had a chance to come in and and give some divrei Torah, but unfortunately because of COVID, you know, people are staying away. Normally we would have 450, we had about 50. And I hope I really really hope that next year we can just kind of pick that up again. We know where they are, we have all their emails, we've been in touch, they program throughout the year, but it's really really hard when you look at a room and it's just it's a fraction of what it could be. There was a very very prominent non-Jewish woman who joined looking for some spirituality, and and Judaism is not supposed to just inform the Jews, Judaism is supposed to shape and mold the world. So, I don't know Rosh Hashanah it's unusual when people come, but I think we can be proud when a a non-Jewish person says, "You know what? I want Judaism to inspire and inform me." It's obviously delicate, complicated when and how, but we can feel good that that's where they turn to for spirituality and strength in a time like this. Can I just say You you just piqued a lot of people's interest, by the way. Yeah, I know. A very It was a very prominent Very prominent. The most prominent, probably. A Boca Raton prominent personality, but we can't Maybe she'll come on behind the beam at one point. She'd be great. I guess I want to say you know, last week we spoke about like what we want to see this year, you know, and I mentioned that I want to raise a lot of money. I have a big project We're all working on a project. I got to tell you, there's one guy that reached out to you and then you forwarded me the email. I've already spoken to this guy like 10 times today. We spoke for an hour. Wow. Forwarded emails. He already got me two books. I'm telling you, he's like I said I want to raise a million. He says, "A million? I'm disappointed. What about 5 million? Let's go for 5." I love it. I love it. This guy really I He's made I can't say his name. He's actually works for another charity, but I don't want to What's a story that surprised you, Rabbi Goldberg? Tell Leave people with an inspirational story, something that you've experienced over the last couple weeks that is moved you, inspired you, act of giving, an act of kindness, an act of something someone said. a setup. I I didn't tell you to set me up for this, but this is a great way to go out. And um we still have a few people listening, so it's always good to have you on. If you're listening on the podcast, rate and review. I'll I'll tell you a story, although this punchline I haven't even been able to tell the person yet, but um I I don't think they're watching, so I'm not worried about that. They're They're much I'm I'm whatever, but I'll tell you a story that blew me away today. It blew me away. You know, we've had a couple, just two, and not connected to the shul, but younger people in the community who tested positive. Doesn't impact the shul, no outbreak, no spread, nothing for us to warn. Nobody should panic. Um but um in one of those cases, there's a friend who um had to quarantine because they were exposed to somebody who was positive, 17-year-old young man. And he uh began his quarantine, he took a test, and he was negative. And his biggest concern was, "Can I go to shul on Yom Kippur?" So, I was talking to the parents, the parents I spoke to our task force, and even though several days of the quarantine have gone by, um and he tested negative, the task force said 14-day quarantine. I'm sorry, just we can't bend these rules. We can't take any risk. So, the father said to me, "Can you call him? Can you tell him? It'll mean more coming from the rabbi. You have to explain to him why he needs to stay home this year." So, I called the boy this afternoon, 17-year-old boy. Now, I I want you to put yourself in his shoes for a minute. Yom Kippur's coming up, 25-hour fast, endless davening, davening in a mask. And the rabbi calls him and says, "You get the day off. I got news for you. Daven, then lie on the couch, read a book, Sports Illustrated, learn a safer. You got the day off. You're going to be home. No mask, comfort of your home, air conditioning, not your fault, nothing you can do. You've got the day off." So, the 17-year-old boy didn't say to me, "I understand, Rabbi. Thank you." with like a smirk and a smile because he's got the day off. He's got a pass this year. It actually reminded me of like the story of Pesach Sheini and L'man Yigara. 17-year-old normal boy in our community, likes sports, learning, great family, amazing young man. Says to me, "Rabbi, please, begging you. Monday will be day eight. What if I take another test Friday? What can I do so I can come to shul on Yom Kippur?" And I'll tell you, I'm even, you know, moved almost to tears right now. I was blown away. 17 years old, he didn't say, "I'll take the out. I'll stay home. I get a pass. The rabbi gave me the pass." He said, "It's not fair to me. What can I do? I'll do anything." I went back to the task force. Task force said, "Even though it'll be day eight, day nine, even though I'll take a second test, which is the rules are inflexible. We can't play with them. It's a 14-day quarantine. There's nothing we can do. And I've got to tell him that." But I am absolutely in awe, in awe, by how badly he wants to be in shul on Yom Kippur, with that mask, with the discomfort, with the everything. You know, every day I learn from others. I posted on on social media. Maybe this is what you were trying to set me up for, but the story of the of the note. I opened my mailbox and in my door in shul, and there was an envelope, unmarked, had my name. It was not signed by anybody and it said, "Please distribute this to people who need help for Yom Tov." This is before Rosh Hashanah and it was five $100 gift cards to kosher supermarkets in our area. Those are the heroes. Those are the unsung heroes. Don't sign their name. Stuck at the highest level. Just help other people. This 17-year-old boy who nobody will know the extraordinary gesture of his begging and pleading with the rabbi, "Please find a way so I can come to shul." This This is the best part of the rabbinate. The best part. There's a lot about planning on getting which is the worst part of the rabbinate. Maybe you want to reference a friend of yours later. But there's a lot of challenges this time of year and a lot of people who disappoint and it hurts. It's personal. It's emotional. Even when they don't mean it to be. But this is the best part of the rabbinate. Seeing the best in people. The extraordinary in people. The hope in people. The faith of people. It is the best part of the rabbinate. I love it. It moves me. It inspires me. And even though I didn't prompt you to ask that question, thank you for asking it. Don't call me. You won't be in all by the way. Yeah, I'm not calling you. Don't worry. Don't worry. You won't be in all. No, I did a similar thing today and that's that's honestly what inspired the question was you know someone someone texting me last night and they they they know we have a specific fund in the shul and they were asking about the fund and you know whether it was getting low on funds and they wanted to make a sizable donation to it and they don't want recognition for it. They don't want their name in lights for anything and and and I agree with you. It's those types of stories that you and I the three of us are privileged to hear which which give us hope in humanity. I know that sounds so trite but it really is. It's good people who aren't looking for the limelight. They're not looking for a post on social media. They're just doing the right thing because it's the right thing and they want to make the world a little bit of a better place and you and I get to be on the sidelines watching for that and I that's the best part of our job far and away. Absolutely. Gentlemen, rabbis, season 2 episode 1 In the books. In the books. We are an hour and 9 minutes in. We went 9 minutes over. Maybe for season 2 we should go up to an hour and a half. What do you think? Add more time. There's always more to talk about. I'm just joking. Everyone can exhale, breathe, relax. We're We're all good. But, I want to thank you for being with us. A very special thank you to Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who is a family friend and and inspiration. We thank him for joining us. We want to wish all of our listeners, whether you're watching on YouTube or Facebook, whether you're listening to our podcast, please take a moment to rate and review. Our past sponsors and our future sponsors, please help support the BRS family and the BRS movement. All the money goes to BRS. The money's not for us. It helps advance uh what you heard about a little bit about tonight, about community. But, we want to thank you and we want to wish all of you a good year of health, happiness, health, and wealth. Shalom, peace, and health. It should be a good year for all of us. May God answer all of our requests for the good. Until next time, stay happy, Amen. stay healthy, and stay holy. Awesome.