 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
Don’t forget to check our website at www.hobartsynagogue.org
11
4. A Reform Jew must work for freedom during Passover.
We are taught, “Remember the stranger, for you were strangers in the Land of Egypt.” During Passover, let
us never forget the festival’s theme of freedom. May we be mindful of those who are enslaved by poverty and
hunger, by illness or by prejudice, by homelessness and by hopelessness. May the festival inspire us to yet
another act of tzedakah, to help the needy of our larger community, wherever in the world they may be. Let
our voices and our deeds struggle for the freedom of all humanity. Our Passover Haggadah tells us that we
are not truly free until all men and women live at liberty and in peace. May we rejoice in our own freedom by
committing ourselves to the liberty of others.
5. A Reform Jew must hope during Passover.
At the Seder, we shall open the door for the prophet Elijah, the biblical crusader for God. At the end of his
life, Elijah did not die, but was taken up into the heavens in a fiery chariot. Our tradition teaches that the
prophet will return to us, to herald the coming of a messianic age in the future. Significantly, we are not
permitted to wait idly for God to send a Messiah. Instead, we Jews are commanded to repair this broken
world, little by little, to build the messianic future with our own hands, with God’s help.
Often, we may despair. Our world seems so rife with trouble, so sad and irreparable. On Passover, festival
of freedom, we open the door, not only to Elijah, but to the possibility of a brighter future in a world at peace.
Let us begin during Passover to hope, to dream of the reality of a more perfect tomorrow, and to work toward
making the dream real.
6. A Jew must strive for faith in God during Passover.
On this night, more than a few self-proclaimed atheists will sit around Seder tables. Also present will be many
whose faith is unshakable. Most of us, though, will be in the middle. We believe in God; we wish to believe
in God; and yet, we experience doubt. We question God, which is very much a part of being Jewish, for we
are called Yisrael, Israel, meaning, “one who struggles with God.”
The Seder service does not mention Moses, because we are not to focus on a human liberator, but on our
God. May we strive, even if the struggle is difficult, to develop our faith in God during Passover, each in his or
her own way.
7. A Jew must observe Passover dietary restrictions.
Yes, we should refrain from eating hametz, foods that are forbidden during Passover. Technically, hametz
consists of five grains – wheat, barley, spelt, oats, and rye – when those grains are mixed with water for long
enough to rise. Some Jews don’t eat corn or rice; some don’t eat garlic. I have no argument with Reform
Jews who observe those additional restrictions. However, I do not. Therefore, I ate at Karam’s last Passover.
Corn tortillas, in my practice, are permitted, as are foods with corn syrup.
Whatever Passover dietary restrictions we adopt, we should do so with seriousness, with consistency, and
with purpose. We can learn discipline, by staying with our Passover dietary restrictions throughout the week.
We may sanctify our homes for the holiday, by removing forbidden foods from our refrigerators and our
pantries, and we may symbolize that act of cleansing by checking every nook and cranny for hametz. We
must not bring ridicule on our faith, on our people, on Reform Judaism or on our Temple by eating obviously
inappropriate foods in public during Passover. We lose respect for ourselves, and we relinquish our esteem
in the eyes of others, when we eat sandwiches, rolls and pastries in restaurants during Passover.
You no doubt noticed that I left the dietary restrictions to the end of this sermon. I did not “save the best for
last.” In fact, as concerned as I am that some among us will ignore these mitzvot altogether, I am equally
disconcerted by those whose obsession with these dietary laws obscures the deeper meaning of the holiday.
We eat matzah to remind us of the poor bread our ancestors ate in slavery. We eat matzah to remember the
bread that our people baked so quickly as they were leaving Egypt. We eat matzah to call our minds to the
plight of others who eat only poor bread all year, not by choice or by ritual, but because they are not free, just
as we were slaves in the land of Egypt.
When we badger ourselves, or one another, about a drop of corn syrup in a Coca-Cola, but fail to work for
freedom, we are in violation of Passover. When we spend days preparing pesadich cakes but do not reach
out to our fellow Jews, we are not keeping Passover. When we pop Pesach macaroons into our mouths but
fail to praise God for our blessings, our Passover is downright treife.
This year, may each of us indeed have a “kosher Passover.” May we keep Passover, in what goes out of our
mouths and in what goes into our mouths. May we observe the festival, in the foods served on our Seder
tables and in the services conducted there. May we faithfully seek to be God’s partners in securing the
welfare of our Jewish people, and in fighting for the freedom of men, women and children everywhere. Then,
may our Passover observance truly be pleasing in God’s sight.
Amen.
 |