I’d like to discuss a television show that I loved watching in the mid ’90s.
No, I’m not talking about Baywatch. My favorite show was Northern Exposure.
The show is a basic fish-out-of-water tale. The main character is a Jewish New York doctor who upon completion of his medical training is set to begin a carefully planned career that would include the location of his practice, his area of expertise and even his “choice” Jewish fiance.
Starting on the second night of Passover, we began the period of the Counting of the Omer, which in Jewish tradition helps us with spiritual preparation for our next festival, Shavuot (when we celebrate Moses’s receiving the Law at Mount Sinai). This period represents the time between our liberation from slavery and our formation as a people in covenant with God. We count the Omer during the seven weeks (49 days) between Passover and Shavuot.
There are several customs associated with the Omer period. One of these is studying Pirke Avot (Portions of Our Fathers, which is a book contained in the Mishneh, part of Jewish oral tradition).
This year our Passover seder will be celebrated on Saturday, April 12, starting at 6 p.m. We will be led by our rabbi, Jennifer Lewis, and we will have a full seder meal. We will drink the wine; we will break the matzot and eat the bitter herbs.
We will celebrate while reclining (at least symbolically) the Exodus from Egypt and the miracles performed at that time, at that place. Those miracles are well retold in the seder, and the awesomeness of the Lord will be recounted.
But there is another miracle that arises from the seder that is not often considered. The miracle that I wish for us to consider is the sharing of a meal within our small community and, often, with the larger community. The miracle I speak of is the shared meal. The sharing of a meal has great power for all who attend.
As we prepare to celebrate Passover together, beginning the evening of Saturday, April 12, we also note the start of the Hebrew month of Nisan. The trees and flowers are finally blooming in Terre Haute (and Cincinnati)! The Festival of Freedom will soon be upon us.
And yet, the transitional period from Winter to Spring, beautiful as it may be, comes with its challenges. Allergy season is here, for one! But seriously, as Winter fades and Summer is on the horizon, I am reminded of the wisdom of Rabbi Nachman of Brazlov : “The world is a narrow bridge; the most important thing is not to fear at all.”
Our tradition celebrates our journey from enslavement to freedom, also a time of great uncertainty. Moving from any profound period of change—from stability to uncertainty—can be frightening. This is true whether that change is economic, political, social, personal or spiritual.