Hello!

For many, if the term “shalom” is recognizable, it is known as a Jewish greeting, similar to saying “aloha” when in Hawaii.

Which it is.

Sometimes, it is understood as a term one says when leaving a friend or situation, an alternative for “goodbye.”

Which it is.

Others may rightly assert that it means “peace.”

Which, again, it does.

It means all of that and all of that means so much more, but let me start with “hello” and “peace.”

Being a still-new member of the Alpena community, let me provide a bit of my background/credentials for writing.

I have spent the majority of my adult life teaching English/literature/communications for the University of Michigan-Flint and Kettering University in Flint.

My time living in Alpena started in 2022. However, Alpena was not new to me. My mom was from Alpena, so I spent holidays visiting and so wishing I did live in Alpena.

When the chance arose, I took the leap to live my childhood dream, to live in a place of peace, and move to Alpena. Every day, I am thankful for making the move from Flint into this community.

In addition to having family and roots, I was always fascinated with what a rich tapestry Alpena has in not only Michigan history, but, indeed, Jewish history.

Temple Beth-El in Alpena is a historical building dating back to 1875, and is recognized as one of the oldest temples in the state of Michigan. When Julius Myers instituted Alpena’s Hebrew Benevolent Society, by 1887, there were an estimated some 45 Jewish adults residing in Alpena.

The history of Jewish community is certainly fascinating, but even more astonishing is that the temple still holds services — as do so many various religions — openly and peacefully — in one small town. In our current time of division, finding a place of wholeness (another definition of the word “shalom”) is truly a gift.

To be fair, one could say that, just because we have a community that doesn’t NOT allow groups from various religious practices — which is not true in all communities — that does not mean that all groups work “as a whole” or in unity, which is an important distinction to make. Also, to be fair, there is a guard at Temple Beth-El during services, which does not exactly shout “peace” or “wholeness.”

Instead, unfortunately, the need for a security presence speaks more to our time than to our community. It would be naive to not be aware of the growing antisemitism in America and the world, so taking precautions is, sadly, needed at many temples across the United States, and we are no exception.

As many of us are searching for places where we feel at “peace,” or places to make us feel “whole,” Alpena is offering outreach opportunities beyond what many are providing.

One such group actually meeting to discuss avenues to reach out to the public to bring about peace in our community is the Alpena Peace Community.

On Oct. 27, the Alpena Peace Community, along with Temple-Beth El and Grace Lutheran Church, hosted a peace event that featured a conversation between Pastor Tom Orth and Rabbi Howard Morrison.

The two-hour-long event consisted of two presentations and a short question-and-answer period. The theme of Part I was titled, “Jewish and Christian Overviews,” and Part II was organized around the theme of “Challenges in Contemporary Times.”

I was able to attend the event and found it gave me hope.

Attendance by more people than I expected (I’d estimate at least 40) on a Sunday evening in October was my first spark of hope.

To fully realize that folks of all ages and religious backgrounds took precious time out of their too-scheduled lives to come hear how we can work for peace, that was the second spark.

Sparks alone are not always enough, which is where the speakers enter into the equation. Both the pastor and the rabbi spoke with passion and honesty on a variety of topics, ranging from the then-upcoming election to the controversial — therefore often avoided — issues of abortion and the current war taking place in the Middle East.

And they did not agree.

They took time to acknowledge one another’s position AND took just as much time to explain that, just because they have differences, they are still friends. They made clear that there is more that unites us than ever divides us.

They are examples of two people who agree on so many levels and respect each other as individuals enough that they not only listen but do so with an open mind and heart.

I’d argue that doing the work of having the hard conversations is a foundation of finding peace and wholeness, and the pastor, the rabbi and all those who attended are, indeed, doing the work for peace.

Lastly, another interpretation of the word “wholeness” is “a state of being that is active and can be brought about by working to repair what is broken.”

That being said, I’d argue that Alpena is a community that is doing that work, and, for that, I am grateful.

Shalom.

Monika Ehrlich is a new resident to Alpena, but with extensive family ties to the area. She is currently working for Alpena Community College and is an avid reader, writer and photographer.