A Jewish Idea - Freedom

Saturday night the holiday of Passover ended. All over the world Jews began to enjoy ordinary foods. Middle Eastern Jews celebrated Maimouna, which is an opportunity to go from house to house and joyously share food. Some Jews sampled Italian food and some went to a restaurant of any preference. Manette, Danit and I enjoyed grilled cheese sandwiches and milk shakes. Those first bites and first slurps bore a very special taste because for eight entire days we had gone without such luxuries. One of the purposes of changing our diet for the holiday of Passover is to identify with people who have much less than we do. Thankfully, many of us Jews have been free for many centuries. Pesach reminds us that there are those in our world, of many different religious identities, who still suffer oppression and abuse. We must never take our freedom for granted. We must celebrate and enjoy the taste of religious and communal liberty every day and work to assist others who are deprived of freedom and humanity. 

          In our own community, please remember to mark the 70^th anniversary of the liberation of Jews from Auschwitz by attending the Yom HaShoah service on Wednesday, April 15 at 7:00p.m. at the Shul. Local middle school and high school students have been studying theHolocaust and many pieces of artwork will be on display for our viewing. It isvery moving that local teachers in Mobile and Baldwin counties have been teaching Holocaust to our areastudents. Please attend the service and reflect upon the artwork and how the lessons of the Shoah are being transmitted throughout our region of the Deep South.

Remember--Friday April 17 is Tot Shabbat.

Family Service is 5:30-5:55 and Dairy Mexican dinner(6:00-6:30 p.m.) is available for all who RSVP ($3 for Shul members, $5 fornon-members. Toddlers eat free).RSVP to the office by Thursday April16 at 5:00p.m.

May we all live and be well!

Shalom. Rabbi Steve Silberman

Pesach Thoughts- Yom HaShoah

Who doesn't enjoy candlelight? The flickering flames cast shadows upon our walls. Our eyes are drawn to the hypnotic ballet of the candles and we pause and reflect.

It is easy to see candle-lighting as a meditative practice. Why not kindle two flames tonight in honor of the seventh night of Passover? Pesach is gradually departing from us-the 7^th night is tonight and the 8^th night coincides with Shabbas. Take three moments out of your busy schedule and watch the flames as they remind us of the eventual departure of the world’s first holiday to celebrate spiritual freedom; our Yom tov (holiday) of Passover champions spiritual freedom and in this world wherein Muslim extremists are murdering Christians and Jews and many are afraid of walking the streets,Passover is ever–more significant. As Pesach 5775 begins to fade, share your heart with someone who is suffering by including him or her in your personal prayers.

Tonight we offer a brief blessing after lighting the candles and we say:  Blessed are you, Lord our God, sovereign of the universe who has made us holy with the commandments of ‘kindlingYomtov flames’.  (Tomorrow night we say the exact same sentence but change the last phrase to ‘kindling Shabbat flames’.)Tonight: Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam asher kid-shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzeevanu l’hadlik ner shel Yom tov.

(Tomorrow night we say: Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech

ha-olam asher kid-shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzeevanu l’hadlik ner shel Shabbat).

Reminder the Shul office will be closed Friday April 10 but there will be services Friday evening at 6 PM.

Saturday morning April 11 marks the first of a new trial format of service. We shall begin the morning service followed by a Jewish coffee klatch!

         From 10 to 12 we will have our Torah service and concluding prayers. Saturday is the last day of Passover and we will have the Yizkor memorial service for our loved ones (approximately 11:30-12). Stay for lunch!

***Pesach ends Saturday night at dark- only after dark may we eat ordinary foods!

Three lastreminders:

1)   Yom Hashoah service is on Weds. April 15, 7:00-8:00 p.m. at Shul. Come see artwork made by dozens of area middle school and high school students as reflections of what they have learned about the Shoah. You will be amazed by the insight and human concern of our Christian friends and neighbors. It’s a shame that so few Jews attend.

2)   Friday April 17. Tot Shabbat service 5:30-5:50. Dairy Mexican food dinner from 6-6:30 p.m is open to all. $3 per adult member, $5 per non-member (toddlers eat free).

 Brief Adult service 6:30-7 p.m.

3)   Kiss someone you love.

Happy Pesach and Shabbat Shalom.

Rabbi Steve Silberman

P.S. You might also bless God over a glass of wine tonight and tomorrow night after kindling the candles.

***Blessed are you,Lord our god, ruler of the universe who creates the fruit of the vine.

***Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam boray pri ha-gafen.

Pesach Thoughts

Friday–1^st Seder- Meditation (perhaps during the Dayenu)

 Tonight we celebrate our liberation from bondage.

Slavery rendered our ancestors who were living as neighbors of the Egyptians into captives; freedom transformed us into a nation. As we descendants of Miryam and Moses and unnamed thousands of others eat matzah and bitter herbs and recite the sacred account of our Exodus we open our ears to the suffering of others. In the days of Torah, Egyptian firstborn children lost their lives and we today lessen our joy by diminishing wine from our cups.

 In these very hours Christians are being murdered by Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab. We diminish our joy and we remove an extra drop of wine from our cup of liberty. If others are still chained we are as well. Hear our prayers, o God, prayers for liberty for all who are oppressed and persecuted by religious extremists. Hear the prayer of all of your children, o God of our ancestors who delivered us.

 On this first night of Passover, a night of enduring  hope for freedom, a night during which we ONLY SAY THE FIRST PHRASE OF SH’MA AND NO OTHER  PARAGRAPH BECAUSE OF THIS NIGHT’S  PROTECTIVE POWER ,WATCH OVER ALL OF YOUR CHILDREN AND GRANT THEM  SAFETY!

  

Saturday -2^ndSeder-Meditation (after the meal is eaten)

What could be more important in our world than kindness. Kindness is so important that we mark a week long period of time named CHESED. From Saturday night April 4 to Saturday night April 11 we are seeking to instill ever increasing levels of CHESED within our minds and our hearts. Beginning with each of us is the hallowed goalof putting kindness into our world. God, be in front of us during the upcoming week. Usher into our own daily world the power to place Chesed in our communities. Establish each one of us as force for causing kindness to permeate the lives of others.

We begin the sacred act of counting the Omer with the following words:

 Blessed are you Lord, our god ruler of the universe who has made us holy with the mitzvah of counting the Omer. Tonight is the first day of the Omer.

 Baruch atahadonai eloheinu melech ha-olam asher kidshanu b’mitzvotavv’tzeevanu al s’feerat ha-omer.

A Jewish Idea- Passover

  

A year has passed since last Passover and each of us has changed. Some in our Shul have lost loved ones and have suffered emotionally, others have undergone surgeries and experienced illness and still others have witnessed births and marriages. In large and small ways, all of us are different than we were last Passover.

        As Passover approaches, consider doing something just a bit differently than in prior years. Take a moment to reflect upon what you are thankful for this year and share that thought at the beginning of Seder.When eating the bitter herbs,if comfortable, share an episode or experience that embittered your life since last year and recognize the importance of leaving it behind. Journey away from that moment of bitterness in your own personal life towards the third and fourth cups of wine which are emblematic of increasing levels of redemption.

              As we remove 10 drops of wine from our wine cups and call to mind the suffering of the Egyptians reflect upon the suffering of others, near and far, and meditate upon how you may make a difference in the lives of others.

       Try a new kind of Charoset (see two attached recipes). Perhaps ask one or two guests to bring one or two of the ingredients, arriving just a bit early to combine the ingredients together; thus making Passover a shared preparation experience.

      You are invited to a special study session on Friday, April 3 (8:00 8:30 a.m.)at shul to mentally prepare for Pesach by studying a short passage o fBible in association with remembering the death of the Egyptian First-borns. How incredible –that we Jews prepare for our holiday of freedom by thinking of and remembering our oppressors! It is a lesson in collective empathy.

 Please mark your calendars for a short study session on Sunday April 5 (Noon- 1p.m.)in honor of the 2^nd day of Yomtov.

Don’t forget that we mark Yizkor for our loved ones on Saturday April 11 during morning services.

Make the last day of Pesach different by memorializing our loved ones in the company of others.

Happy Pesach to you and all of your loved ones!

May you and your loved ones celebrate this year in health and joy!

Chag Sameach (Happy Holiday of Passover)!

Rabbi Steven Silberman

 Persian Charoset Recipe / Iranian Charoset Recipe

1 unpeeledpear, cored and finely chopped

1 unpeeledapple, cored and finely chopped

1 cup finelychopped walnuts

1 cup finelychopped almonds

 1 cupfinely chopped hazelnuts

1 cup finelychopped pistachio nuts

1 cupchopped pitted dates

1 cupchopped raisins

2 teaspoonsground cinnamon

2 teaspoonsgrated ginger root

1 tablespoonapple cider vinegar

Sweet wine

Instructions for the Persian Charoset recipe/ Iranian Charoset recipe:

Combine pear, apple, walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, pistachio nuts, dates and raisins in a large bowl, and blend well, being careful not to chop the mixture into a paste. Add cinnamon, ginger root, cider vinegar and enough wine to bind.

Place on a platter and shape into a pyramid. Cover and refrigerate.

Moroccan Charoset Balls Recipe

500 gramshazelnuts

250 gramsalmonds

250 gramsdates

250 gramsgolden raisins

Note: 500grams = 1 pound + 1.65 ounces; 250 grams = 8.825 ounces.

Instructions for the Moroccan Charoset Balls recipe:

Using a food processor, grind the nuts together coarsely.

Add dates and raisins and process until consistency is smooth but still has some texture.

Prepare balls of the mixture about 2 centimeters in diameter (about 0.79 inches in diameter).

Can also be served as a dessert during Pesach.

Shabbat Thoughts- Holy Ground

The term “Holy Ground” may bring to mind many famous locations including the Kotel (The Western Wall),synagogues, churches, etc… 

Having visited Arlington National Cemetery and Ground Zero near the World Trade Center,I am sure that you would agree that final resting places of our loved ones are also holy ground. Ask yourself what sanctifies ground? Perhaps a shul is considered holy because a community of people has agreed that this particular building will serve unifying spiritual purposes, including prayer,gatherings for mutual support, Torah study, shared Tzedakah and Yomtov (Holiday) observances. Perhaps a cemetery or the site of a terrible and tragic loss is holy because it is a tangible link to our loved ones. Visiting a cemetery or a place where a tragedy has occurred connects us to those loved ones who are at the very core of our being; having shaped our identities they contributed to who and what we are as people.

 When standing at a cemetery or at the site of loss, often overwhelmed with emptiness we are carried back to a moment or a season of fullness. It is that journey from fullness to emptiness that we sense at a cemetery. It is that stark spiritual awareness of loss and the awareness of what we possessed and still possess that is Kedushah (holiness).  Kedushah is that heartfelt call to anchor ourselves with love and memory in the past while seeking to transmit an essence of our loved ones into the future.

In this week’s Parsha (Tzav), Aaron and his sons are dedicating the first Israelite worship site which is called Mishkan (portable sanctuary). For seven days, Aaron and his four adult sons dwell in a small enclosure located just inside the outer gate of the Mishkan.  They are not allowed to exit the gate to enter the camp, nor are they allowed to go further into the Mishkan. They are on holy ground in preparation of establishing a sanctuary for the community and a spiritual support system for individuals who celebrate joy and experience grief. In those ancient days, the Mishkan was the greatest embodiment of holiness (Kedushah) because it served to connect Israelites to G-d. Now that we no longer have sacrifices and incense offering, how do we connect ourselves to G-d? In your own lives, where is the holy ground?

May your Shabbat be a season of holy time. May you find an element of the non-ordinary realm by rooting yourself in Shabbat, by being with family and friends in a way which is anything but routine.

        Shabbat Shalom.

       

        Rabbi Steve Silberman

Shabbat Thoughts- and He called out

The day before yesterday 60 people gathered in the Student center on the campus of the University of South Alabama. Drawn together by a spectacular example of courage, this disparate group consisted of students and non-students, teenagers and senior citizens, campus activists and Zionists,members of the MAJF and members of the greater community of Mobile; all of whom are enthusiasts who champion true equality and freedom for women-united in a shared desire to learn from a woman who is breaking ground on the formerly taboo subject of rape.

Linor Abargil, an 18-year-old Sabra from Netanya, Israel won the Miss Israel competition in 1998. Shortly thereafter, while modeling in Milan, Italy she was raped by an Israeli travel agent who had offered to assist her in returning to Israel.  Returning to Israel,suffering from extreme trauma she continued her preparations and won the title of Miss World six weeks after being attacked!

 The film (Brave Miss World) documents her accepting the crown but also highlights her emerging need to confront and testify against her attacker; seeing to it that eventually he was arrested and served 16 years in prison in Israel. Over the course of  5 ½ years, Linor repeatedly traveled to many locations in the U.S., Europe and South Africa- raising awareness of the importance of supporting women to speak out about their having been raped. It is up to all of us throughout our entire world to reject the terrible objectification of women which is rampant in society. I was moved to tears when I saw Linor, a young woman of 21 begin a mission to support women from many varied cultures, racial groups, countries, economic circumstances and religious backgrounds. The applause which erupted from this audience after the film and a second time after the remarks of Cecily Peck (film"s director and Veronique & Gregory Peck’s daughter) came forth naturally from many people,some of whom were openly crying.

 I suffered a terrible thought; how many people in this room had been attacked or have a loved one who had been attacked? Thank you to the Mobile Area Jewish Federation for co-sponsoring this film (under the auspices of the Jewish Film Festival) with the University of South Alabama! Doors of understanding have been opened. It is up to all of us to walk through these doors and to bring others with us.

This week’s Torah reading, Vayikra, starts with an improbable opening (Lev. 1:1). Most of us picture G-d as speaking down to people from mountains or clouds. G-d is usually imagined as being above us and the audience is below. But, this week’s Parsha opens with the phrase “and G-d called out to Moses from the Tent.” True enough, it was the special tent of public worship (namedTabernacle or Mishkan), but it was a tent nonetheless. It was on the same ground as all the other tents in the encampment of Israel. G-d, Moses and all of Israel were all on the same level during this communication!

A lesson for us all emerges from this Torah passage. Never underestimate the direction from which G-d’s speech may come. It may be from Moses to Pharaoh demanding that slaves be freed. It may be from a former Israeli beauty pageant contestant, now a lawyer, working in the Israeli Attorney General’s. Or it may come from the mouth of a Christian professor visiting Mobile from Lebanon imploring us to hear of oppression against Christians. We must open our ears in order to hear G-d’s voice better. Each of us has  a role to play in the world to share G-d’s voice of justice, compassion and love.

Shabbat shalom. RSS

A Jewish Idea- Aniv’atah n’shaneh et ha-olam

 In the words of a well-known Israeli folk song, “You and I can change the world” (Aniv’atah n’shaneh et ha-olam) we assert our power to make a difference. We can encourage each other during challenging times. Our community is blessed with two opportunities this week to repair some of the brokenness within our world.