Congregation B'nai Israel Vallejo
  • Welcome
  • The CBI Community
    • President's Message
    • Publicity
    • Birthdays
    • Youth Education Program >
      • Our Teachers
    • Membership
    • Donate on-line >
      • Donate with Check >
        • Gift Planning
        • Fund a Need New Refrigerator 2017
        • New Prayer Books - Book Plates
        • Sponsor a Seat
        • In Honor and Fond Memory of Beryl Cohen Flooring Campaign 2017
    • Bulletin
  • Rabbi's Blog
    • How to be of help and strength in the aftermath of the wildfires
  • Calendar
    • Laptops wanted
    • Finding Myself in Torah ongoing
    • Stop the Bleed training, December 10th
  • History
    • Tree of Life Leaf
    • Yahrzeit
    • Memorial Page
  • Photos
  • Advertise
  • Links
  • Contact Us
    • Building and Grounds

Holidays Linking our Origins to Our Present and Future

4/1/2015

 

During the month of April, coinciding with the first month in the Hebrew calendar, Nisan, three holidays link our origins to where we are now in history.  The first is Passover, which itself provides such linkage in that we are taught that in our Seders we are celebrating 3 points in time: the original Exodus from Egypt; the second is the Passover we are in, a time of precariousness for Israel and our world; and the third is the Passover of the future, when the world is redeemed and our problems are resolved.

In tandem with Passover are two recent holidays, the first more a commemoration, in that there is little to celebrate when addressing the destruction of European Jewry in the observance of Yom HaShoah.  The 2nd is arguably miraculous in the celebration of the reemergence of the State of Israel. 

Since the destruction of the 2nd Commonwealth of Jewish autonomy, by the Romans in 70 CE, until the mid-20th century, the month of Nisan was home to Passover, as wherever we dwelled during that 2000 year period we dreamed of the possibility of a Jewish return to the ancestral home while surviving in the various countries of dispersion.

Then, tragically, the near destruction of world Jewry (it would possibly have been complete destruction had the Nazis won the war, which some historians suggest would have happened had they not prioritized train usage to transport Jews to the death camps rather than their troops to front lines) mandated the importance of a day to acknowledge the Holocaust.  Thus Yom HaShoah has in our times eclipsed the other day of observance of catastrophe, Tisha B’Av, marking the loss of both previous iterations of Jewish independence in Israel, with the destruction of both Temples on the same day, 586 BCE and 70 CE respectively.  The latter marked our dispersal throughout the world lasting until the 20th century with the beginning of return to the Promised Land and the official reemergence of Israel in 1948.

These holidays demonstrate vividly that our people are not simply part of history, nor participants in ritual observances that pertain primarily to keeping a tradition alive; we are part of the story of human continuity that permeates the daily news headlines.  The world faces the same kinds of threats and unknowns that have characterized Jewish existence throughout the ages; nothing is certain and times of wellbeing are not conditions to take for granted.

In observing Passover and Yom HaShoah (for which we will join our sister congregation, Beth Shalom in Napa on Sunday afternoon April 12 for a very special program) and then celebrating Israel’s 67th year of what is now the third iteration of independent Jewish statehood in our promised land, we are left with the mandate to not only observe these special times but to absorb the lessons that they hold for us and humanity.  As Passover indicates, freedom alone is not enough; Passover without the gift of Torah fifty days later with the holiday of Shavuot (for which again we will join Beth Shalom at Diamond Creek Vineyard the first Sunday of June) is not enough to be and remain free.  The teaching of the Seder is a start: we must remember the bad and how bad it tasted, i.e. the Maror/bitter herb; and we must treasure the good, the freedom to relax at our Seders and sing the songs of freedom in anticipation of the upcoming gift of Torah which provides the blueprint for maintaining and growing freedom.

And, so it goes with Yom HaShoah and Yom Haatzmaut, Israel Independence Day, holidays that are separated by a week.  They are distinguished by the former confronting the worst that happened to our people and the latter celebrating the impossible to believe (at least for nearly 2000 years of Jewish dreamers) miraculous return of the dynamic state of Israel with Hebrew once again a living language. 

So, when we celebrate our Jewishness, we go far beyond ritual that is for many rote and purely ceremonial.  These observances mandate pauses to reflect on the heart and soul of life meaning as we and our families and communities absorb it and interact with it. 

The teaching of Passover indicates in the telling of the story that you go from despair to exultation, the trauma of having been slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt to the unbelievable heights of independence and freedom.  It is uniquely special and meaningful for our generations in that it gives context to unbridled joy of the restoration of the Jewish state, home to all Jews who desire to live there and destination for all Jews that would like to experience being in the majority culture simply by visiting for a week, month, year or more.

May we learn and absorb all the teachings that can enable and empower us to do our part to restore balance and wellness to a world that is sorely in need of our insights and truths that have transcended the ages and outlasted all the nations that attempted to destroy us.  May our light bring light to all those in darkness and may we find much to rejoice in having such values to hold and share.  


    Reflections
    by Rabbi
    David White

    Ideas, suggestions, and other feedback is most welcome.

    Archives

    September 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009
    September 2009
    August 2009
    July 2009
    June 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009
    March 2009
    February 2009
    January 2009
    December 2008
    November 2008
    October 2008
    September 2008
    August 2008
    July 2008
    June 2008
    May 2008
    April 2008
    March 2008
    February 2008
    January 2008
    December 2007
    November 2007
    October 2007
    September 2007
    July 2007
    June 2007
    May 2007
    April 2007
    March 2007
    February 2007
    January 2007

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.