For 70 years or so, WDEL has broadcast “The Rabbi Speaks” on Sunday mornings. The times have changed but that’s about it. Now it’s heard at 7:30 a.m. The rabbis of the state alternate; this Sunday is my turn. I recorded this earlier this week, but I wanted you to read it on the first day of Pesach. Here are excerpts from that radio program.
“Once again, Passover and Easter fall together…That they converge shouldn’t be a surprise…There are so many similarities between the two because of the original source of the holidays before they took on their unique theological differences….
This has been a mild winter, similar to our first winter in Delaware when for the only time in history there was no measurable snowfall...until this winter. But mild or otherwise, winter moves into spring, and spring is the season we all look forward to. As we sing on Passover, “Behold, it is the springtide of the year; over and past is winter’s gloomy reign.” I’m not sure there’s a comparable Easter song, but it doesn’t matter.
Renewal/rebirth is the theological basis for both holidays. For Passover our exodus and arrival on the safe side of the Red Sea renewed us as a People;…and of course Easter celebrates the resurrection of the Christian savior, yet another rebirth for sure.
We need that spirit in these trying times.
We need a rebirth of good health, of a strong economy, of the unemployed going back to work, of the world to focus not on tragedy but working together to improve relations between nations, between peoples, so that, paraphrasing Isaiah 32:17, the effect of this scourge when we return to health “will be quietness and confidence forever.” We need…
A rebirth of compassion…from the top;
A rebirth of truth…from the top;
A rebirth of justice…from the top;
A rebirth of righteousness…from the top.
At a time when we need true honesty, it’s good to hear it from Dr. Fauci, but he should be the one who just verifies what those in leadership have said, not correcting it by necessity….
I and others should look dishonesty in the face – the top gun as well as those who stand motionless with glued-on smiles each and every day – and say as we do on Passover, “Dayenu!”, not “it would have been enough,” the exact translation, rather, “We’ve had enough of this!”
This is a sacred season for both faiths, for the various branches of the faiths, and my prayer is that we join together in prayer for the obvious things, but also for the rule of law and truth, for all the good things we need in this hour of major concern. May your Easter be a wonderful one, may your Passover be a sweet one.”
Those interested in the full text (a great deal has been left out for brevity’s sake) may email me at interimbethelrabbi@gmail.com and I’ll send it to you.
(I’m not adding a joke today, but here’s a true story about the history of The Rabbi Speaks….for years it was broadcast at 9:00 am. One day it changed to 9:15 am. I didn’t have to inquire as to why because an Episcopal priest friend told me. “I was wondering why so many of my parishioners came late to our worship. I found out that they stayed in their cars and listened to The Rabbi Speaks until it was over. It didn’t matter which rabbi was speaking.” Why it took them so long to change the time is beyond me, and why they again changed it, this time to 7:30, is pushing the boundaries of those who are regulars)