In his book “Ceremony & Celebration: Introduction to the Holidays,” Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks writes that “those who fully enter the spirit of Rosh Hashanah emerge into the new year charged, energized, focused, renewed, knowing that to be a Jew is to live life in the presence of God, to sanctify life for the sake of God, and to enhance the lives of others—for where we bring blessings into other lives, there God lives.”

So much good has happened to the Jewish people in 5778; we hope and pray that its momentum carries forward to 5779. In December, we saw the Trump administration recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Last May, the president fulfilled a campaign promise where previous chief executives failed in moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, coinciding with Israel’s 70th anniversary as an independent state. Even now, we wait to hear details on a Middle East peace plan, the audacity of which we have been warned about.

As we stand on the sidelines these historic moments, we are aware that many of our readers have made headlines themselves this year. Many in our readership have also contributed news articles, important opinion pieces, divrei Torah and letters to the editor and made other valuable contributions to our newspaper. With each communication from our rabbis and our community members, we celebrate understanding and appreciating more about our world from the perspective of a healthy, growing, broad-minded Jewish community.

In the new year, with Hashem’s help, we hope to continue to tell the story of our Jewish community in all its vibrancy.

We know that it takes a great Jewish community to make a great Jewish newspaper. We want to thank you for making us part of your lives, for contributing to our energy and growth, for reading our publication, giving us feedback and patronizing our advertisers. We thank our summer interns (past and future) for being our biggest advocates at our local schools and universities, and for teaching us there is always, always, more to learn. Every summer, you teach us more than you can imagine. And for the blessing of learning and growth, we thank you.

As Rabbi Sacks wrote, “for where we bring blessings into other lives, there God lives.”

We wish every one of our readers, contributors and partners a meaningful, joyful Yamim Noraim. May 5779 be a great year for us, our families and for the Jewish people here, in Israel and around the world. K’tiva V’chatima Tova!