By Rabbi Shmuel Kay, Special to JTNews
It came as a complete surprise an invitation from the President of the United States to attend his Hanukkah party at the White House on December 9. As a friend quipped, I am not exactly a recognized national Jewish leader. Washington State and Seattle were not Bush Country in the last election, and while Seattle Hebrew Academy was a beneficiary of the Presidents Faith-Based Initiative, the election is over. I was not about to ponder the motivations of the White House or to decline this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, however. Then, to my further surprise (and delight), I was informed that I had also been selected to participate in a small, private meeting with the President in the West Wing.
I am not a political person. I am a Jewish educator, and my comments here may reflect that innocence. I dont even watch The West Wing, though I now know that it has a sizable following among families who attend SHA. So, with these qualifications I would like to share my observations and impressions.
Inside the real West Wing, the pictures and furniture evoked a sense of history. I was about to experience democracy in action. There were 17 seats around the Cabinet table, and 16 were given to Jewish leaders, some leaders of whom have national or international reputations. Some I suspect did not vote for the President.
We were drawn from across the country and from all denominations, including pulpit rabbis and organizational leaders. I was one of two people from the West Coast, the other being the rabbi of the Stephen Wise Reform Congregation in Los Angeles. I was the only day school leader in the room.
I quickly realized that everyone in our meeting would have an opportunity to share their thoughts. We spoke face to face with the President. There were no intermediaries. He listened with a great sense of humility, but also with candor. President Bushs personality opened the door for people to talk with him, and he was eager to listen and discuss our issues.
The man I met and watched for two hours George W. Bush was humble, thoughtful, careful with his words and sometimes self-deprecating in his humor. In my non-political mind, he is a person with deep feelings. He spoke of his vision for this country, for Israel and for the rest of the world.
He told us that he believes in democracy and said that no one described his feelings better than Natan Sharansky in The Case for Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror. He was proud of the support the U.S. has given and continues to give to Israel. And, he spoke in some depth about his hopes to end the Middle East conflict and establish a real, lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
He said he supported Prime Minister Sharons plan to withdraw from Gaza. It was clear from his own words that President Bush is a man of deep personal faith who believes in a universal God.
I was one of a few people given an extra opportunity to speak to the President. When it was my turn, I handed him a specially designed box of letters from the children at SHA and thanked him for personally helping us get financial assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
I told him that because of his assistance, SHA students were now learning once again in our fully restored building. I explained that our goal is to provide the best general studies and Judaic education we can. I wished I had more time to tell him about our approach to education, but I was careful not to take time away from others. Also, at the request of the Orthodox Union and as the only person in the room who runs a school, I encouraged the President to continue to support tuition tax credits for parents who send their children to private schools.
My mention of FEMA sparked a fascinating moment where the President was directly challenged about how he balances the dictates of the First Amendment with his Faith-Based Initiative. He was careful to explain that programs need to be designed to maintain the separation of church and state, while at the same time to not discriminate against a social service organization which may appear to have a religious base.
One of the amazing experiences that comes from visiting the White House is how ones mind works. With half my mind I listened carefully to the President and with the other half I tried to make things tangible. For example, this discussion made me remember that we had invited the President to our Nov. 7 Rededication. Suddenly, I wondered what I would have said to him if he had attended.
I knew that my conversation with President Bush would not have been about the fine points of Constitutional law. Rather, I would have focused his attention on how we try to teach the whole child. We want our children to be aware of and learn to deal with social situations, emotions as well as Judaics, and general studies. I would have pointed out that our refurbished building has a new science lab and a new computer lab. It has a restored library, which I think Mrs. Bush would love.
After the President left our West Wing meeting, someone realized that it was time to daven Mincha, the afternoon service. There we were, Conservative, Orthodox and Reform Jews, praying in the Cabinet Room of the White House. We were led by Rabbi Herman Neuberger, a Holocaust survivor, of Ner Israel Yeshiva in Baltimore. As we prayed, tears ran down his cheeks. I cannot imagine the thoughts a survivor from the Holocaust would have at a moment like this. For me, it was an extraordinary statement about the place of Jews in modern America.
Later that day, still amazed at the honor of having spent two hours in a meeting with the President of the United States, my wife Debbie and I returned to the White House for the Hanukkah Party. We waited in the long receiving line for our introduction and then to make our way into the party. As Debbie and I were announced to the President he joked, You dont need to introduce us, I know Rabbi Kay.
Though I still do not know why we were invited to attend the White House Hanukkah party or why I was one of 16 people to meet with the President, I left with a feeling that what we are doing at Seattle Hebrew Academy is making a difference for the families who attend our school and for the positive image that the President of the United States has of Jewish Day School education in our great nation.
Rabbi Shmuel Kay is the Head of School at Seattle Hebrew Academy.