Passover Really is Different in Israel

It sounds trite, but it’s true.  

Passover really is different in Israel.

For one thing, it’s unavoidable.  During the week leading up to Pesach, the upcoming holiday is very much in the air.  School vacation begins a few days before Pesach, so kids are very much more in evidence.  The supermarkets are mobbed. So too are the hardware stores.  There’s a place near my apartment that reminds me of--you guessed it--Harvey’s in Needham: it specializes in personal service and there is merchandise outside of the store as well as inside.  Its tight aisles make it a great place for shmoozing.  We and lots of other people in the neighborhood made several last-minute trips there to purchase counter covers, new utensils, etc. More often than not, we were helped by the owner's son, who was home from school.  

But the big difference is that the final preparations for the holiday aren’t just done in private, as they are in the States.  They spill over into the street.  Passover isn't just a religious holiday here; it's a national holiday.

For example, take a look at the picture below.  In our neighborhood, a station for kashering pots, pans, utensils and oven racks was set up to do hag’alah (dipping utensils into boiling water) and libun (blowtorching).  All sorts of people lined up.  Judging from their dress, they ranged all the way from Hareidim (ultra-Orthodox Jews) to Hiloniim (secular Jews).  

(On the other hand, the fellow in charge, to the left in the photo above, with his postage-stamp-sized kippah and long tsitsit, was definitely "Dati-Leumi"--i.e., Orthodox though not ultra-Orthodox.)  

As one would expect, kids of all ages and all stripes get a real kick out of seeing a blow torch in action:

On the morning before Passover, pillars of smoke were rising from all of the neighborhoods around us.  Why?  Because many people were doing “bi'ur hametz”—i.e., the "burning of hametz."  But they weren't doing it individually.  The city had provided large metal dumpsters. In the one below our building, a roaring fire was raging by the time we got down there.  Again, everyone made use of it to dispose of their bread, rolls, pasta and crumbs of all kinds:

(Note the sign on the dumpster:  "ביעור חמץ", i.e., "bi'ur hametz.")

By early afternoon, our street (normally bustling) was quiet.  Everyone, it seemed, was getting ready for the seder.

We were, too.  Ordinarily, we would have been preparing for a seder with our family.  But not this year.  This year, Elana and I were going elsewhere.  

About a month ago, I volunteered to officiate at a seder at a battered women’s shelter at an undisclosed location.  It turned out to be challenging, yet also deeply meaningful and fulfilling.  Let me share just a few details to give you the flavor of the experience.  

For one thing, certain passages in the haggadah took on new meaning that night.  Words like, “This year, we are enslaved; next year, may we be free!” didn't sound like mere slogans.  After all, the women at that shelter aren’t yet where they’d like to be--where they have a right to be.  Yes, they’re on their way to freedom. They have found temporary shelter.  They--and their kids--can go to sleep at night without fear.  

And yet, they aren’t fully free. They know that very well.  They cannot yet allow people to know where they live.  They know that danger is lurking just outside of the shelter.  (When the time came to open the door for Elijah, it was clear that it was going to be an interior one.  The exterior door of the shelter is always kept locked, and is monitored constantly by closed-circuit television.) 

And so that night was a ליל שמורים, a "night of watching" (just like the previous night, and just like the next one).  Nonetheless, that evening was truly joyous and celebratory.  The women, who came from many different countries of origin (including Russia, Ethiopia and Iran), prepared the food together, and there was a real spirit of cooperation and mutual support in the air.  The women and their kids dressed up in all their finery.  With open arms, they welcomed Elana and me, as well as two students from the Conservative Yeshiva whom we had brought along to engage and play games with the children.  For that one beautiful night, those eleven women and their twenty-two children were free to celebrate our national saga of liberation, together with the rest of the Jewish people.  

One other thing about that seder: By way of contrast, just the other day, I happened to see a portion of a Jon Stewart show in which (surpise, surprise) he made fun of Passover.  At this seder, there was none of that.  There was no "When are we going to eat?" from anyone.  There was no apathy or indifference, and certainly no hostility.  Only an authentic, earnest appreciation of the experience. It was refreshing. 

The next day, the first day of Passover, was also different from what we generally see in the States.  Once again, there were pillars of smoke throughout the land.  The reason is that it’s become a tradition in Israel, for secular as well as religious Jews, to barbecue on the holiday, which is somewhat reminiscent of the description of Passover in the Bible (Exodus 12).  

Hol Ha-Moed is different, too.  It's when literally millions of Israelis of all varieties travel.  Here are two pictures I took from a bus stop at a popular destination just outside of Jerusalem:  

Here's another difference:  although some kosher restaurants close for Pesach, many others remain open. And Passover food here is terrific.  Pizza anyone?  (It's quite good: you'd never know that the crust doesn't contain hametz.)  And how about some ice cream, some premium ice cream?    

(The signs make it clear that both the pizza and the ice cream are kosher for Passover.)

I have more to say, but it's getting late, so let me close by wishing everyone a joyous conclusion to the holiday.  I am going to use the same words that Egged (Israel's national bus company) has been offering its many, many passengers this week.   Here is the sign that appeared on the screen at the top of many of the buses I was on this past week:

(Translation:  The staff of Egged wish you a happy and a kosher Passover.)  

And I do too!  Let me wish you a joyous conclusion to the holiday!

Sincerely,

Rabbi Carl M. Perkins

Passover Greetings From Jerusalem

In honor of the upcoming holiday, I would like to share a brief teaching about the seder.

Most of us are not actors or actresses.

Nevertheless, our tradition sometimes urges us to  "play a role," or to "act a part."  The goal is to develop understanding and empathy that might otherwise not be accessible to us.  The best example of this is the Passover seder.

On the night of the seder, we are called upon to act as though we ourselves came out of Egypt.  It isn’t enough merely to read the Haggadah.  It isn’t enough simply to understand intellectually what happened to other people in some distant era.  

We have to try to feel that we were liberated.  We declare that we (not “they”) were slaves, and that we (not “they”) have been freed. 

In order to say that with conviction, we have to feel it.  But how can we feel it, if we ourselves weren't really slaves, and weren't really freed?  

And so the Mishnah (the early rabbinic text that first describes how a seder should be conducted) instructs us how to prepare to “play our role.”   It tells us:  “On the afternoon of Erev Pesach (i.e., the afternoon just prior to the seder), no one should eat before it gets dark.  And even the poor shouldn’t eat before reclining.” 

Note that there are two separate conditions:  we shouldn’t eat before dark, and we shouldn’t eat before reclining. (Incidentally, it’s been my experience that, while most people are aware of the second condition, they may never have heard of the first one.)

I have studied this passage many times, but I hadn’t fully understood its subtlety until the other day, when I attended a shiur (study session) conducted by a colleague of mine, Rabbi Joel Levy, at the Conservative Yeshiva.  

Rabbi Levy pointed out an obvious fact:  most of the time, most of us are not hungry.  If anything, we struggle with overeating more than with malnutrition.  It’s an effort for us to play the role of the hungry, oppressed slave.  How then can we prepare for it?  

One simple thing we can do is to refrain from eating on the afternoon of the seder.  Now, this may seem trivial, even ridiculous:  after all, can one possibly gain empathy for hungry people simply by going without an afternoon snack?  And yet, there is something to this:  after all, the rabbis say that when we eat the matzah at the very beginning of our festive meal, we have to have an appetite.  It’s hard to act as though you have an appetite if you’re really full. And so the least we can do is to refrain from eating on the afternoon of the seder.

But some of us are, indeed, hungry.  If we don't know where our next meal is coming from, we don’t have to be told to fast on the afternoon before the seder:  we may not have any alternative. 

If we fit this description, we have a different challenge:  to experience the transition to liberation even when we don’t feel free. 

If that’s the case, then we too have some preparation to do.  We have to be sure to recline, just like everyone else, before we eat and drink. Otherwise, our reenactment will not be complete.

*     *     *     *     *

This passage from the Mishnah teaches us that, whatever our station in life, we have to stretch a bit on the eve of Pesach. We have to prepare ourselves, and then we have to be willing to act differently from the way we would ordinarily act.  The purpose is to develop understanding and empathy. For by doing things differently, deep insights may arise.

(For example, note in this photograph the power of doing things differently to concretize values.  How often do we dip our fingers into our cups at a fancy dinner?  And yet, by doing so on this night, we are reminded not to rejoice unduly at the downfall of our enemies.)

I hope  that each and every one of us will gather with family and/or friends to celebrate our people's transition to freedom.  I hope that we’ll properly prepare for our role, review the seder's "script," follow its "stage instructions," and make use of all of its "props." 

I hope that by doing so, we will develop a true commitment to learn the lessons of our history, and that this will inspire us to work for the liberation of all oppressed peoples.  May that geulah, that redemption, come soon, speedily and in our days.

From the beautiful city of Jerusalem, Elana and I want to wish all of you a healthy, happy and kosher Pesach!

!חג פסח כשר ושמח

Sincerely,

Rabbi Carl M. Perkins

P.S.  One last piece of advice: don't rush your seder.  As you can see from the following video, it is possible to fit everything into one minute -- but it just won't be the same:

How is Bar Refaeli different from many other Israeli women?

What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of Bar Refaeli, the well-known and widely photographed Israeli supermodel?

 Wrong answer.

For Israelis—at least, those who’ve been following the news lately—there’s a different answer. 

Yes, Bar Refaeli is an international celebrity.  Yes, she recently starred in a highly publicized commercial that aired during the Superbowl. That got a lot of publicity here, as elsewhere. 

But Refaeli is now in the news for a different reason.  She was recently invited by Israel’s Foreign Ministry to participate in making a Youtube video promoting Israel.  According to the ministry, “the video will show various objects made in Israel,” such as tomatoes, computer chips, and—yes, you guessed it—Bar Refaeli.

Now, you wouldn’t think that that would be particularly controversial, but it is.  The reason is that many Israelis do not consider Refaeli appropriate to represent Israel in an Israeli government video.  This has nothing to do with the clothes she wears, or doesn’t wear—though she has received her share of criticism in that regard.

Rather, it has to do with two things about Bar Refaeli that you might not know if you’re not Israeli.  The first is that she didn't serve in the Israeli army.  That, in and of itself, is less controversial than it used to be.  More and more young Israelis—particularly women—do not serve, for one reason or another. 

However, Refaeli is also known for something else, namely, expressing pride and satisfaction with that decision—rather than guilt or remorse.  Responding to criticism of her decision, she is famously alleged to have said that “celebrities have other needs.”  That response bothered a lot of people here.

When news of the Foreign Ministry’s video project broke, Yoav Mordechai, a spokesman for the IDF (the Israel Defense Forces, Israel's armed forces) wrote a letter protesting Refaeli’s appearance.  “This sends,” he wrote, a “negative message” to Israeli society.  “In recent years, the IDF has been trying a variety of methods to improve the value of military service and to combat draft evasion in order to preserve the societal value that sees the IDF as the people’s army.”  Using Refaeli in the video, Mordechai continued, demonstrates an unduly lenient and forgiving approach to not serving in the army.

The Foreign Ministry dismissed the army’s concerns.  “We are not in the business of boycotting people; we fight boycotts,” the Ministry spokesman said.  “We certainly don’t boycott someone who volunteered to appear.”

And so, it seems, the video will feature Refaeli. 

This particular episode may recede in the public’s consciousness, but the issue will not go away.  In fact, seeking to distribute the responsibility to serve in Israel's army among the entire population was a key issue in the recent national elections here.  Shivyon ha-netel—i.e., concern regarding the “equality of the burden (of national service)”—is understood to have been a key reason why many Israelis voted for either the Yesh Atid party or the Bayit Yehudi party.  Those voters weren't thinking about Bar Refaeli.  They were thinking of the tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox men who are currently granted virtually automatic exemptions from national service.  

This has long infuriated families whose sons and daughters serve, and it now looks like something may actually be done about this.  As a condition for entering the new government’s coalition (which was sworn in yesterday), leaders from both Yesh Atid and Bayit Yehudi (who together garnered 31 seats in the Knesset) insisted on a promise to try to change that.  

Time will tell whether the new government will carry out its promise.

Meanwhile, Bar Refaeli shrugged off the criticism.  And then, making clear that she is not entirely oblivious to Israeli public opinion, she went ahead and posted a link on her Twitter account to a poster calling on President Obama to free jailed Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard.  

An Interesting Morning

I finally got to visit Beit HaNasi (the official residence of the President of Israel) and meet Israel's President, Shimon Peres.  I say “finally,” because the apartment I'm living in during my stay here in Israel is just down the street from Beit HaNasi, and I pass it several times a week.

I had been wondering when I would get the opportunity to step inside.

Just yesterday, I learned that the eighth graders from the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston, who are finishing up their Israel trip, were going to be visiting Beit HaNasi this morning. 

I had been looking forward to meeting up with the group (six of whom are from Temple Aliyah), and to think that they were going to be right down the block!  

And so I walked over to Beit HaNasi and met the group as it was arriving. It was great to see them, particularly our shul's kids.  They looked well and seemed to be having a great time.  

In addition, I was permitted to enter Beit HaNasi with them, which was a real treat.  

The residence and grounds are very impressive.  We saw the Garden of Peace, where the former Pope once planted an olive tree, and where President Obama is expected to plant a tree that he will be bringing with him from the United States. We saw the synagogue, which is a cozy, handsome structure with a dramatic ark. 

(Those are the Hebrew words for, "And there was light," inscribed on the front.)

We saw the room where the President greets dignitaries, such as President Obama, who is expected here in just two days.  

And we saw President Peres.  He is as dignified and urbane in person as he appears in the press. He greeted us warmly and with gentle humor.  (Note the two security guards on either side of Mr. Peres' secretary.)

All in all, it was an interesting morning.  

On my way back, it started to hail.  Yes, hail!

This, coming so soon after the swarms of locusts flying over the border from Egypt, gave me pause. What next? Boils?

How Is This Presidential Visit Different From All Other Presidential Visits?

I would like to share a few reflections on President Obama’s scheduled visit to Israel next week.

Excitement in the air

The last time Mr. Obama came to Israel was in 2008, when he was running for President.  Two pictures taken during that trip appear below. The first shows then-Senator Obama meeting with then-Foreign Minister Tsipi Livni—who is currently hoping to serve as Israel’s chief negotiator in talks with the Palestinians in the new government that Prime Minister Netanyahu is putting together:

(Incidentally, that picture was taken at the police station in Sderot.  In the background you can see the many spent rockets from Gaza that have been collected over the years.)  

The second picture from Mr. Obama’s last visit to Israel was taken at what I hope is a familiar site.  

There has been a lot of attention in the media surrounding the President’s upcoming visit. That’s not to say that Mr. Obama is popular with everyone here.  He isn’t.  News anchors do not hesitate to remind their listeners that Messrs. Obama and Netanyahu have had a rocky relationship. (Incidentally, it hasn’t always been rocky.  Not too long ago, when the President personally intervened to help secure and evacuate the Israeli embassy in Cairo, Mr. Netanyahu praised Mr. Obama effusively.  But the news media tend to focus on conflict and controversy rather than comity.) 

Commentators have engaged in endless speculation regarding how the President’s trip will play out.   Every aspect of the trip—every site that the President will visit, and every site that he won’t; the foods he will eat and the foods that he won’t (about which I’ll have more to say below)—is being scrutinized. 

For example, as of now the President is not scheduled to address the Knesset (Israel’s parliament). 

This has been met with disappointment.  Several legislators have written to the President, urging him to reconsider because they feel that the Knesset is the ideal venue for him to address the Israeli people.  Other legislators have their own reasons.  For example, Moshe Feiglin, a member of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud Party, expressed disappointment because he had been hoping to stage a public walkout of the Knesset during Obama’s speech.  (Perhaps this has something to do with the decision not to schedule a speech there.)

Inevitably, the question of President Obama pardoning Jonathan Pollard has come up.  So far, Pollard has served 28 years in prison for spying on the United States on behalf of Israel.  (For Wikipedia’s version of this unfortunate story, see:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Pollard .)  Every Israeli leader who will be meeting with Obama, including Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Peres, has been asked to request Jonathan Pollard’s pardon.  The Pollard family has asked that Israelis in general and Israeli leaders in particular treat Mr. Obama with great respect during his upcoming visit, and not seek to embarrass him.  Time will tell whether they will heed this request.  (Incidentally, even without a presidential pardon, it is anticipated that Pollard’s life sentence will be commuted by the time he completes thirty years of prison, in 2015.) 

Obama also hopes to visit the Palestinian city of Ramallah during his trip. 

The President is not that popular there either.  As one Palestinian interviewed on the news yesterday put it, “He’s not coming to eat humus and falafel here. He’s coming because it’s in the best interests of the United States to reach out.  But I wish he were offering some concrete proposals.”

Speaking of concrete proposals, the President will apparently not be offering any to try to re-start negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians.  Or so he and his representatives have made clear. This seems to have been met with relief among many, yet others are not so sanguine. Yes, the West Bank seems calm now. But in fact, the situation is fundamentally unstable.  Israel, a thriving democracy, exercises military, political and economic control over the lives of two million stateless Palestinians, inevitably breeding resentment and hostility.  There have been a number of incidents over the past few weeks that suggest that the situation could explode at any time.  (See here:  http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/with-recent-escalation-in-west-bank-israelis-and-palestinians-edge-closer-to-boiling-point.premium-1.505304 .)  Perhaps the President is wise not to bring new ideas at this time.  But hopefully they will arise and be considered seriously by the parties, sooner rather than later.

An enthusiastic ambassador

The President could not have a more enthusiastic supporter and cheerleader here than the American ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro. 

Mr. Shapiro, it seems, is everywhere, promoting the American-Israeli alliance. One day he’s visiting a football game in the Tel Aviv area, another day he’s meeting new American olim (immigrants).  I met him at Rabbi David Hartman’s funeral last month. He’s bright, professional, and personable.  And he’s no stranger to the Boston area.  He graduated from Brandeis and did graduate work at Harvard.  And gosh, can he speak Hebrew:  watch the following YouTube video of him answering questions on television in Hebrew about the President’s upcoming trip.  Even the news anchors are impressed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ViNny13j3ho .

Under Mr. Shapiro’s leadership, the U.S. embassy is using Facebook rather creatively to improve Israeli perceptions of America here.  For example, the embassy is holding a contest:  they’re giving away 20 tickets to attend the President’s major address here next week to the people who provide the most original and creative reasons why they should be invited: 

Other fun and irreverent contests show up on the page as well.  For example, recently the Ambassador posted the following question: 

President Obama is the real deal, but which of these Presidents did you like best?

A - Mackenzie Allen

B - Josiah "Jed" Bartlett

C - David Palmer

If you really want to get to know Ambassador Shapiro, take a look at the Purim costumes he and his wife recently wore (scroll down on his Facebook page, which you can access here: https://www.facebook.com/AmbassadorDanShapiro?fref=ts ).

Nu?

I began this post with a question:  How is this presidential visit different from all other visits? 

The answer, of course, has to do with Passover, so let me say a little about that. 

Obviously, Passover is coming.  (Today is Rosh Hodesh Nisan, so we have exactly two weeks to go.)  In the States, we know when Passover is coming because, in the supermarkets, there are special sections (usually at the ends of certain aisles) with large signs that say, “Kosher for Passover.”  And what do you find there?  Usually, traditional Eastern European Jewish foods like gefilte fish and borscht, as well as matzo. 

Here in Israel, it’s different.  Yes, there are “Kosher for Passover” signs.  But they’re all over the store!  And there are signs everywhere else as well, signs that read, “Hametz!” Also, the kinds of foods in the Kosher for Passover sections are different.  There is much more variety than you would find in the States.  Finally, you can find lots and lots of food that is kosher for Passover but which contains “kitniyot,” (legumes of one kind or another, traditionally not eaten by Ashkenazim on Pesach).  For example, today I saw Kosher for Passover rice, humus, and tofu!   Those aren’t too easy to find in the States.

Even if you didn’t step foot in a supermarket you would be reminded that Passover is coming, because Egypt is suffering from a plague of locusts, and those locusts are now finding their way into Israel!  I kid you not:  swarms of locusts are crossing the Israeli border and threatening farms in the Negev.  Take a look:

This has led to some interesting stories in the paper.  Many varieties of locusts, as some of you may be aware, are kosher.  They’re apparently quite tasty, and so a number of local chefs have recently shared recipes for locust dishes.  If you have a stomach for it, take a look at the Wall Street Journal video accessible at the following site: http://www.janglo.net/index.php?option=com_adsmanager&page=display&catid=99&tid=256672 )

Which leads me finally to the answer to the question I posed at the beginning of this posting.  How indeed is our President’s upcoming visit to Israel different from any other presidential visit? 

The answer is this:  Although President Obama is going to be visiting Israel before (and not during) Passover, all of the food that he will be served at the King David Hotel, where he and his staff will be staying, will be Kosher for Passover. 

And why is that?  The reason is simple: there is just no time between the end of the President’s visit and the beginning of Passover for the hotel kitchens to be kashered, so it is all going to have to happen in advance.  Which means that the President will not be served any of those delicious Israeli rolls or pitas or bourekas—even though it won’t yet be Passover! But, not to worry: the chefs at the King David Hotel have it well under control.  In case you need convincing, take a look at the following article:

http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/jerusalem-vivendi/no-bread-for-obama-presidential-fare-to-be-kosher-for-passover.premium-1.508531

Let me conclude by wishing everyone a happy and a kosher Passover.   I hope that the holiday will be a wonderful opportunity to be together with friends and family, and that everyone will enjoy a festive seder – but I hope that the seder will be more than a feast.  I hope it will present opportunities for each of us to talk about freedom and about the many different ways in which we can each contribute to greater freedom in our communities, in Israel, and throughout the world.

Hag Sameach!

Sincerely,

Rabbi Carl M. Perkins