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Thoughts to Nosh OnApril 2006From the Desk of Rabbi SharffWith Passover around the corner, we begin our formal preparations for one of the most observed holidays of the Jewish year. Since time immemorial, Jews have been gathering together to recount the miraculous story of our Exodus from slavery to freedom. It is a story every child knows well. Ask any child and he or she can readily list many if not all of the Ten Plagues. They can tell you who stepped first into the Sea of Reeds. And with a little grape juice and encouragement, they would probably even begin singing the four questions in Hebrew and English. This is all because the Passover Seder is perhaps the greatest didactic tool ever created. Through the use of food, song, and imagery, we help the youngest members of our communities and households understand the true meaning of redemption and freedom. But we would be remiss if we did not help them to also understand that others in the world are not so free at this time. We would be remiss if we did not teach them that hatred and intolerance still exist, and that these are very real shackles that bind up millions. In particular we think of those suffering in far-off places not readily talked about on the twenty-four hour news stations or in our magazines. Places like Darfur, Chad, or the Republic of Congo. We do not know about these places in part because we may not speak the same language or share the same stories with them. But in the end, we are all people striving for peace. We are all people looking for a shelter under God's wings. Therefore Passover is also the perfect time to teach our children that though we may be living in one of the best times of prosperity, not all or so lucky, Jews and non-Jews alike. And it is one of our missions, as a people who have known persecution and slavery, to help stop travesties wherever they occur, whether in our own backyard or across the seas. So when we lift up one of our four glasses this Passover, I invite you to remember those who are not as of yet free. And then we can, as a community, implore those who are free to work together to liberate the rest. Then, all may, as Micah said, live safely under their own vine and fig tree. May this Passover be filled with wonderful family and food. And may it also mark the beginning of a time when redemption will come speedily, not just for some, but for all. Rabbi Ben Sharff |
