Heritage is Not Something Abstract

Shabbat Shalom-

As we welcome the month of May, we also welcome Jewish American Heritage Month, a time to celebrate not only the extraordinary contributions Jews have made to this country, but the deeply personal stories that brought each of our families to America in the first place.

This year feels especially meaningful. As the Jewish Federation of St. Louis celebrates 125 years of Jewish community building, America approaches its 250th anniversary. Two anniversaries. Two stories. Deeply intertwined.

It would be easy and appropriate to spend this message listing the remarkable ways the Jewish community has helped shape this nation. From Jewish service members who fought to defend American freedom, to entrepreneurs and labor leaders who helped build industries and workers’ rights; from artists, scholars, scientists, and physicians whose innovations transformed society, to jurists, educators, and civic leaders who strengthened democracy itself. Jews pioneered breakthroughs in medicine, business, and technology, helped build Hollywood, marched in the Civil Rights Movement, and continue to serve at every level of American life.

And yet, Jewish American Heritage Month is also about something more personal.

When I think about heritage, I do not first think about famous names in history books. Instead, I think about being the descendant of homesteaders, of World War I and World War II veterans, of peddlers, grocers, and tailors. My Jewish American family tree is filled with ordinary people who carried extraordinary resilience. People who escaped persecution arrived with little, worked tirelessly, built families and communities, and believed that their children and grandchildren could live lives of greater opportunity and greater dignity.

That heritage lives in small moments almost every day. Every time I open my grandmother’s sewing kit to help Nora with a project. Every time I look at the wedding picture of my great-great aunt and uncle (who was the first telegraph operator for the Union Pacific in Glenrock, Wyoming). Every time our family debates how to pick the perfect watermelon or why our matzah balls swim instead of sink.

These may seem like small things, but they are the threads that bind generations together. Heritage is not only found in history books or museums. It lives in stories, recipes, habits, photographs, sayings, and traditions passed with care from one generation to the next.

And each of us carries our own version of that story. Stories of immigration and sacrifice. Stories of faith carried across oceans. Stories of starting over. Stories of survival. Stories of courage. Stories of creating a community.

This month, I hope we celebrate our personal histories with pride. Tell the stories around the Shabbat table. Share the old photographs. Ask questions of parents and grandparents while we still can. Because heritage is not something abstract. It lives in memory, in tradition, and in the values we pass forward.

But as Jews, we are also taught that we are not only custodians of the past; we are architects of the future.

The question Jewish American Heritage Month should also ask of us is this: What heritage are we creating right now for future generations?

One day, our descendants will tell stories about us. About how we responded to rising antisemitism. About whether we strengthened Jewish life or allowed it to weaken. About whether we stood up for one another and for the values that make both Jewish life and American democracy flourish. About whether we showed up, gave back, built community, protected one another, and shaped a better future.

The Torah reminds us repeatedly to “remember” not simply as an act of nostalgia, but as an act of responsibility. We remember where we came from so that we understand what we owe to one another and to those who will come after us.

That responsibility now belongs to us.

As we celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month, may we honor where we came from while remaining deeply committed to where we are going. May we continue building a Jewish community and an America worthy of the generations that will come after us.

Because one day, we too will be the ancestors who helped shape this chapter of the Jewish American experience.