Finding the Afikomen

Happy Passover! But warn the kids: I myself plan to find the afikomen this year.

The afikomen is one of the most important parts of the Passover seder. Jewish law says the seder is not complete until everyone tastes a piece of it. Furthermore, we are not supposed to eat anything else after the afikomen. Its taste should linger until the next day and carry us into the Passover week. But I feel bad for the afikomen. It comes from good lineage but ends up playing second fiddle. At the outset of the seder, we uncover the three matzot, remove the middle one and break it in two. We return one half to the table where it plays a lead role. We point to it, lift it, bless it, eat it, and make the Hillel sandwich with it. We wrap the other half in a shmattah and it becomes the afikomen. Somebody sneaks it from the table and hides it for the entertainment of the children. Most of the adults, however, don’t even think about it and the afikomen becomes lost forever. One of our staff members told me that she just found last year’s afikomen still hidden in her laundry room. She threw it out.

Our tradition has offered many interpretations for matzah. One teaches that the three matzot represent the Jewish community: Cohen, Levi, and Yisrael. The broken matzah reminds us that we – both communally and individually – are not yet whole. We have a missing piece that has been wrapped up, put away, and forgotten. Well, this year I aim to find that lost half and I think you should too. I am not talking about the piece of matzah abandoned between the washer and dryer. I mean to recover those lost parts of our heritage and identity that we wrapped up and forgot. This year, let afikomen symbolize two things we seem to have forgotten: the heritage of our immigrant ancestors and our relationship with the state of Israel.

At the turn of the twentieth century my great grandfather, Michael Garber, came to the United States from Russia. His whole family - wife and children - had been wiped out in the Ukraine. I don't know how they died exactly, but I know he came here to find a new life. I also don’t know much about him because I never met him. He died even before my mother was born and nobody really told stories about him. I don’t even think we have a picture of him. Long ago, he was broken off from our story and our identity. We wrapped him up and put him away and we stopped thinking about him. We didn’t do this purposefully. It happened because we achieved his dream so completely. Our family has came so far from his origins and immigration that he became the afikomen to our broken matzah. I am only the third generation down from him. I am now married with two of my own children. While I am not rich by American standards, I do pretty well. I live in Red Bank, New Jersey, a town with Tiffany’s and a half dozen sushi bars, two cars in my driveway, good health care, and the ability to filled up my tank with record-high gasoline. I imagine my great grandfather would be happily amazed to see how we live given what happened to his family.

But for all that difference, I’m only three steps away from him. I suddenly remember that I have a broken and lost other half that must be remembered and found. I never think of myself as anything but a deeply rooted, native son of America. But this year, I promise to remember and acknowledge the debt of gratitude that my family owes this country. We have lived in safety and abundance and health. We should remember that our lot was not always so good. This year, I promise to remember not only that my ancient ancestors were freed from Egypt but that my great grandfather found redemption in America. This year I’m finding the afikomen and keeping my obligation to ensure the promise and the legacy of this place.

This year, I will also think of the afikomen as Israel. Exactly 60 years ago, Passover fell on the calendar just like this year. The Jewish year 5708 was a leap year and so Passover fell in mid-April. It was 1948. Just like every single seder that had ever been held, we ended that Passover with the words “Next year in Jerusalem.” The stage was set for erev Shabbat, 5 Iyar - May 14, 1948, when David Ben Gurion declared the independence of the state of Israel. Our people had dreamed of this for almost 2,000 years. We had just barely come out of the death camps of Europe and the dream came true. This year we celebrate Passover on the eve of Israel’s 60th year of Independence. For many of us, Israel has become a lost or hidden heritage. Many studies indicate that we no more see ourselves connected to Israel than we see ourselves connected to China. In fact, we may feel more bound to China than Israel. Israel has come so far that Ben Gurion would barely recognize it today. He would be happily amazed to see what the state has become. But both the hope and the fear that characterized Israel’s founding and early years have given way to a sense of distance, anger, and apathy. We have gotten used to terrorism and violence against Jews in the Land of Israel. We have forgotten that just five years ago a wave of Palestinian suicide bombers included one that killed 28 people at a Passover seder in Netanya. We have lost our sense of outrage at the hail of rockets falling daily on Sderot. We have forgotten about Gilad Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev, whose chairs will be empty again at their family seders this year (add this special prayer for them at your seder). I returned to Israel last year with my family and I will go again this year and I will go again next year and the year after that. I plan to be in Israel every year that I can for the rest of my life. Someday, I think I may even live there and truly call it home. But for now, I promise that I will not cover up my connection to Israel, forget it, or abandon it like a lost piece of matzah. I hope you'll find that connection as well.

Afikomen must be found and shared with everyone for the seder to be complete. Find the stories of your ancestors in this country and share them. Find your way to Israel and share its importance with the world.

L’shanah Habaah B’yerushalayim. Next Year In Jerusalem.

With Friends Like These...

Wouldn’t it be great to know that the Jewish people had 20 million or more friends strongly dedicated to the development and safety of the state of Israel? Or would we cite the old saying, “with friends like these, who needs enemies?” That issue has become increasingly debated within the Jewish community since Pastor John Hagee founded Christians United for Israel (CUFI) in February of 2006. Hagee is the senior pastor of the 18,000 member Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas. The Forward Newspaper described CUFI's rise: “In little more than a year since its inception, Hagee’s Christian Zionist group — with an almost entirely volunteer staff of 13 regional directors, 46 state directors and more than 85 city directors — has hosted 40 dinners in cities nationwide, well-attended by Jews and evangelicals alike. To date, the events, billed as ‘Nights to Honor Israel,’ have raised more than $10 million for charitable causes in the Jewish state.” When Jewish Federations around the country launched “Israel Emergency Campaigns” during the 2006 Hezbollah war, CUFI gave $1 million to the San Antonio Federation alone. An internal dispute erupted as some Jewish leaders accepted invitations to the CUFI dinners while others, including Reform Jewish leaders, used them as an opportunity to reject CUFI and Hagee.

The Forward described Hagee as, “the author of several books on what is known as ‘end days’ theology. His most recent book, Jerusalem Countdown, depicts a scenario in which Iran and a coalition of Islamic countries, led by Russia, will unleash a nuclear attack on Israel, leading to the ultimate battle of Armageddon. According to Hagee, this battle between what he terms the ‘Islamo-fascists’ and the Christians and Jews is already upon us and will entail the loss of countless Israeli lives.”

At the CCAR convention last week, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, President of the Union for Reform Judaism, took a strong, public stand against cooperation between the Reform Movement and CUFI and Pastor Hagee. Rabbi Yoffie spoke along with Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (See the NYTimes profile of Rabbi Eckstein from 2005). Rabbi Eckstein is one the leading Jewish advocates for cooperation with Evangelical Christian Zionists.

I urge you to read the full text of Rabbi Yoffie’s speech on the URJ website.

Rabbi Yoffie distinguished his critique from the usual progressive Jewish fears. Many fear that Christian Zionism is a façade for proselytizing to Jews. They also fear that Christian Zionists ultimately seek to inflame the Middle East in order to bring about the end-of-time scenario that is central to their religious beliefs. Many progressive Jews oppose any alliance with evangelicals because of their strident opposition to abortion, gay and lesbian rights, and other social and political issues we typically support.

Rabbi Yoffie stated that he does not reject working with CUFI because of abortion or other issues. In fact, he noted, we work closely with the Catholic Church and others with similar outlooks. He does not reject CUFI because he fears their ulterior motives. He stated, “in my experience… motivations are notoriously hard to judge,” and we could assume their support for Israel is not a conversion ruse. Rabbi Yoffie rejects political alliance with CUFI and Pastor Hagee for two reasons. “The first is that Jews should not enter into alliances of any kind with those who do not speak respectfully of other faith communities.” Many have accused Hagee and other CUFI leaders of disparaging Islam and Catholicism. Rabbi Yoffie specifically cited Hagee as calling the Catholic church, “the great whore,” an “apostate church,” and “false cult system.”

The second reason Rabbi Yoffie rejects an alliance is that Pastor Hagee and CUFI members, “oppose any territorial concessions by the Government of Israel for any reason whatsoever. It follows that their vision of Israel rejects a two-state solution, rejects the possibility of a democratic Israel, and supports the permanent occupation of all Arab lands now controlled by Israel.”

Pastor Hagee responded directly to Rabbi Yoffie’s comments. You can listen to Hagee’s full statement to the press. Pastor Hagee denied directly attacking the Catholic Church. You can see his notorious comments for yourself here on YouTube (this is the link the Catholic League posted on their web site's critique of Hagee).

He argues that his comments reflect a theology and widely held understanding of the Book of Revelations wherein Christians will be separated and judged according their beliefs. Hagee’s point is that he is quoting and teaching Scripture and not attacking any one particular denomination. Revelations is the quintessential depiction of Armaggedon, the great battle against the anti-Christ, etc. Hagee’s infamous statement cites Revelations 17:1-3 with language drawn directly from the Bible. I am not an expert in New Testament and would not tread into a Christian internecine debate. However, his lesson does not strike me as hate speech. The annotations to these same verses in the New Oxford Annotated Bible (RSV) identifies the woman on the beast with Rome, “the city on seven hills and the arch-persecutor of the saints.” The Oxford annotations indicate that the “Rome” cited here is the pre-Constantine Roman Empire and not today’s Vatican. Hagee may be wrong in identifying the beast of Revelations with any particular church or any specific group, but this is a point of Christian interdenomination dispute. It is not a field where Jews should get involved.

By comparison, orthodox rabbis frequently, publicly, and unmistakably lambast our Reform movement and Reform rabbis in particular. They almost always cite scriptural verses and talmudic teachings in their assaults. They say the most virulent and dismissive things using the language of piety. They blame us for the Holocaust and identify us using biblical phrases that invoke the death penalty. A former President of the State of Israel would not even use the title "Rabbi" when speaking with Eric Yoffie. This kind of speech is ridiculous and has no place in civil discourse. Yet, we reach out to these same Jews when we can and never completely dismiss them as partners or brothers. We never ask non-Jews to enter the debate and cut them off either. I do not believe we should enter the fray of the Protestant – Catholic debate.

Hagee also argues that he supports Israel’s right to make its own decisions without American or other pressure to do more for the Palestinians than they are ready to do. He explicitly cites the Gaza withdrawal (and I would add the Lebanon withdrawal) as proof that Palestinian nationalists and Islamic militants will not respond to Israel’s peace gestures with anything other than violence. I agree with Hagee on this point. We need only look at the current situation in Sderot and intelligence reports that Hezbollah has re-armed to a more dangerous level than before the 2006 war – more missiles with longer range and better accuracy – in order to see that Israel’s pursuit of peace has not generated peace or good partners. Even Rabbi Yoffie concluded his CCAR speech: “from the Palestinians we see only relentless terror. Surely the Palestinian national movement, in its various manifestations, is one of the ugliest and stupidest national movements in modern history. Just once we would like to see a Palestinian leader come forward and say: the Jews are not in intrusion here, or an accident of history. Just once we would like to hear them say: in coming to Palestine, the Jews have come home. Just once we would like to see a Palestinian Rabin.”

Rabbi Yoffie's right. With friends like these we don’t need enemies.

The Moral Leadership of MLK

Today is the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We honor his memory and keep Dr. King alive through his words and his inspiration. In Detroit, February 1954, he delivered a sermon – not on civil rights or poverty or the things that made him most famous. A young preacher, he gave a sermon called “Rediscovering lost values” about morality and leadership in a message that we need to hear again today. You can read (and hear) the full sermon at Stanford University's online MLK Papers Project. I have selected a few paragraphs to introduce tonight's service:

"I want you to think with me this morning from the subject: "Rediscovering Lost Values." There is something wrong with our world, something fundamentally and basically wrong…. And when we stop to analyze the cause of our world's ills, many things come to mind.

We begin to wonder if it is due to the fact that we don't know enough. But it can't be that. Because in terms of accumulated knowledge we know more today than men have known in any period of human history.… I think we have to look much deeper than that if we are to find the real cause of man's problems and the real cause of the world's ills today. If we are to really find it I think we will have to look in the hearts and souls of men.

The trouble isn't so much that we don't know enough, but it's as if we aren't good enough. The trouble isn't so much that our scientific genius lags behind, but our moral genius lags behind. The great problem facing modern man is that the means by which we live have outdistanced the spiritual ends for which we live. So we find ourselves caught in a messed-up world.… The real problem is that through our scientific genius we've made of the world a neighborhood, but through our moral and spiritual genius we've failed to make of it a brotherhood. The great danger facing us today is … not so much that atomic bomb that you can put in an aeroplane and drop on the heads of hundreds and thousands of people—as dangerous as that is. But the real danger confronting civilization today is that atomic bomb which lies in the hearts and souls of men, capable of exploding into the vilest of hate and into the most damaging selfishness—that's the… bomb that we've got to fear today.

I'm not going to put my ultimate faith in things. I'm not going to put my ultimate faith in gadgets and contrivances. As a young man with most of my life ahead of me, I decided early to give my life to something eternal and absolute. Not to these little gods that are here today and gone tomorrow, but to God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

I'm not going to put my ultimate faith in the little gods that can be destroyed in an atomic age, but the God who has been our help in ages past, and our hope for years to come, and our shelter in the time of storm, and our eternal home. That's the God that I'm putting my ultimate faith in. That's the God that I call upon you to worship [today].

If we are to go forward, we must go back and rediscover these precious values: that all reality hinges on moral foundations and that all reality has spiritual control. God bless you."

550 Moral Leaders

I write this from the 119th CCAR convention in Cincinnati, Ohio (CCAR is the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the main organization of Reform Movement rabbis). Our conference theme is “Challenges of Moral Leadership.” There are over 550 Reform rabbis here at the convention. It is one of the largest rabbinic gatherings in history. We have spent the week learning, discussing, and sharing ideas about the current state of American culture and society, Israel, the future of Judaism. We are focused particularly on the role of Reform Judaism and its rabbis in facing the challenges of our day. I will post separate entries during this week summarizing individual sessions that were particularly good. For now, however, I simply review the overall themes of the conference.

Actions speak louder than words and conference activities have revealed three messages on moral and rabbinic leadership. First, gender, race, and matters of personal identity are still a primary area that requires our courageous moral leadership. The Conference and HUC-JIR honored Rabbis Sally Priesand, Sandy Eisenberg Sasso, and Amy Eilberg, the first women ordained by the Reform, Reconstructionist, and Conservative seminaries. The entrance of women into the rabbinate has revolutionized Jewish life worldwide. We learned from Rabbi Priesand, her colleagues and classmates about how far we’ve come and how far we have still to go. Rabbi Priesand reminded us that a few courageous individuals made all the difference in her groundbreaking ordination. She especially thanked HUC’s chancellor emeritus Gottschalk, the rabbi who ordained her in 1972 over the objections of many influential faculty members. Rabbi Sasso taught us that strong family relationships and personal happiness are vital to a leader’s ability to take courageous steps. She spoke movingly of her husband and the personal happiness they shared throughout her years as a student and rabbi. Rabbi Eilberg showed us that courageous moral leaders are still subject to forces beyond their control. Her travel plans were scrapped as a snow storm closed the Minneapolis airport.

The second message from the convention is that effective moral leadership requires crossing boundaries while maintaining one's root in an organizational base. Two of our keynote speakers came from institutions outside the Reform movement, David Harris, executive director of the American Jewish Committee and Dr. Arnold Eisen, chancellor of JTS (see Blog entry from Nov. 7, 2007 "Count the Stars" for more on Dr. Eisen). Harris explained five major challenges facing Jews, two of which require crossing boundaries. Harris urged us to overcome Jewish infighting – secular versus religious, observant versus progressive, Republican versus Democrat, etc. He also pushed us to reach across the sea and draw closer to Israel. Chancellor Eisen spoke about the unique window of opportunity we have for cooperation between the Reform and Conservative movements. In the same speech, he reminded us of the essential differences between us and the necessity of those distinctions.

Third, the convention urges us to remember that leaders must demonstrate integrity in their lives and their jobs in order to succeed. In studying about Abraham Lincoln with Dr. Doris Kearns Goodwin, the specter of today’s moral failures and weak-willed politicians hung heavy in the room. She spoke of the personal and political genius of Lincoln. He drew people close to him and forgave their shortcomings and insults. He wanted the best for America, for his family, and for himself and he used his humor, intellect, and high personal integrity to those ends. The message was clear: we must do the same.

The Jewish community and all Americans face serious challenges on almost every front. From the economy to the elections to the future of Jewish identity in America, our workload is heavy. However, we have unique opportunities. This is a time of great possibility and solutions. Log in and read some of the assessments and solutions to the specific issues presented throughout the conference. Add your voice through this blog. What are the greatest challenges we face in the Jewish American community today? What do we most need from our leaders now?