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'Twas the Night Before PurimMarch 2003From the Desk of Rabbi FreelundA few years ago, around the time of my thirtieth birthday, I encountered a little problem. What would normally be a day for a major celebration turned out to be something less. I was still student at the time, and serving a small congregation in northern Michigan. My thirtieth birthday was spent in airplanes, rental cars and airport lobbies, getting me home after my family had fallen asleep. I remember feeling a little cheated at the time, but I got over it quickly. More than a year later, it occurred to me that the solution to such a situation was obvious: why not use the Jewish date? It seems that our experience of the Jewish calendar has all too often been relegated to a secondary date to be corroborated against the "real calendar" when it comes time to make plans. Is this all we can manage with our ancient system of marking the days? It seems that aside from setting the dates for our holidays, the primary use most of us have for the Jewish calendar is in marking Yahrzeits and gravestones for our loved ones. What an association to have with Jewish time! It would be so much nicer if we could put some positive happenings from our own lives and mark them Jewishly. How many of us know the Jewish date of our wedding anniversary? Birthday? College graduation? For many of us these are days that we can easily pull from our memories according to our secular calendar. We have the option of using those Jewish dates to orient ourselves around a sense of sacred time. The important occasions in our lives deserve to have Jewish importance as well. A great challenge for us living in America is living a life that gives both Jewish and secular satisfaction and meaning. The more that we can harmonize those two existences, the more fully we can realize our Jewish selves. It is not a false choice between being a Jew and being a modern secular person, but rather a challenge to both at the same time. An exploration of Jewish time provides a perfect avenue for this exploration. As it turns out, my Jewish birthday was Erev Purim. I was born as Jews around the world were putting on silly costumes, tilting back a glass, and getting ready to read the Megilah. Now I know I get a little something extra every time the month of Adar rolls around. Besides, I now have a built in excuse for being silly. It was my destiny from birth! Please Note: Our Purim Extravaganza and Carnival will be on March 16th at 10:00 AM. Our Religious School children will be participating, and I would love to see all of you there for the show and Carnival to show your support of our kids. If you would like to volunteer for the carnival, please call me at 327-6722. |
