Dear Friends:

"Hope is as a sun shining upon the life of Man." M. L. Lillienblum

Hope. The cornerstone of Judaism. Even our national anthem bears its name. For millennia, through persecutions indescribable in their horror, the Jewish people has never lost hope. Each day, we hope and we pray for the coming of the mashiach. Every generation toils for the betterment of the next, always anticipating and striving for a better life, a brighter day.

We cling to our hope, and not without good reason! For, countless times through the ages, we have been delivered. Our darkness has turned to light, our sorrow to rejoicing. Whether defeating Haman's evil plot, conquering the Syrian Greeks in Maccabean times, or returning to reclaim our homeland, the State of Israel, we Jews have not been foolish to hold fast to our hope.

Today in a United States facing the clean slate of a new century, a new millennium, our people prosper and thrive in freedom, dignity and equal opportunity. Today, in an Israel making progress toward peace, both within and beyond its borders, hope is being renewed.

And today, right here at home, the Synagogue Council of Massachusetts, spurred on by the continuing hope for a stronger, more vibrant, unified Jewish community, works tirelessly toward its goals.

Hoping to feed the hungry, we established Project Ezra and helped create Family Table . . and the hungry are being fed.

Hoping to bring young, unaffiliated Jews back to the synagogue, we created the NASHIRA Shabbat Friday Evening Program . . . and they are coming back!

Hoping to bring the beauty of Torah to as many Jews as possible, we created study programs such as LIMUD and KOLOT: the Women's Dialogue Group and supported communal initiatives such as ME-AH . . . and adults of all ages are being transformed by their exposure to serious Jewish learning.

Hoping to foster Jewish unity, we created the Unity Mission and the weekend Shabbaton . . . and our community has become a national model of inter-movement cooperation, dialogue and respect.

Won't you join the hundreds of individuals and couples who affirm their hope for the future by supporting the indispensable work of the Synagogue Council of Massachusetts? Please donate as generously as you are able to our Annual Campaign.

Every contribution, large or small, is greatly appreciated. But I also want you to know that a minimum gift of $180 per year, for three years, will enable you to join the Synagogue Council's Amoodim Society, a special fellowship of friends of this very special organization. By sending your much-needed gift to The Synagogue Council of Massachusetts, 1320 Centre Street, Newton, MA 02459, you will share in the holy task of uniting our people in love and understanding.

Sincerely,

Alan Teperow , Executive Director