When I was a kid, I travelled quit a bit. Usually
the most exciting thing in the room (I pre-date mini-bars and in-room movies)
was the PHONE DIRECTORY! In every city I
looked up the category “SYNAGOGUES and TEMPLES.” In a big city, this list could run several
columns. You’d find the usual, “Beth El”
– House of God, “Beth Torah” – House of Torah, “Rodeph Shalom” – Pursuer of
Peace, “Temple Har Sinai” – Mt. Sinai.
HOWEVER, on occasion you might come across more
creative names, “Bet Shira”– House of Song, “Bat Yam” – Daughter of the Sea, “Sha’ar Zehav” – Golden Gate (located in San
Francisco), “Kol BeRamah” – A Voice in a
High Place (Santa Fe, New Mexico) , “Or Ha-Tzafon” – Light of the North
(Anchorage, Alaska).
Many years later I walked into a shul called
Congregation “Bet Breira”. I had no idea
what that meant so when I met the founding rabbi of the temple, I asked… “What
does ‘Bet Breira’ mean?” His answer
confused me! “It means ‘House of
CHOICE!’”
I was momentarily befuddled. Had it been named “HOUSE OF UNBENDING RULES”
or “HOUSE OF THE THREE HOUR SHABBAT MORNING SERVICE” or HOUSE OF IT’S OUR WAY
OR THE HIGHWAY” – I could have grasped it.
But what could “House of Choice” possibly mean? The rabbi put it in terms any Jew could
understand.
“You know how in a Chinese restaurant there are so
many options on the menu that you can’t choose which appetizer you want, so you
order the Pu Pu Platter that has a little of this and a little of that? Well, think of our shul as the Pu Pu Platter
of JUDAISM! You don’t have to decide all
at once. You don’t have to take
everything… but you can try a little of everything and take
what you like.” It turns out he was a
man WAY ahead of his time.
The phrase “Jew By Choice” has, traditionally, been
reserved for people who have converted to Judaism and adopted a Jewish
life. It goes back to the Book of Ruth
when Ruth says to her mother-in-law, Naomi, “Your People shall be MY People and
YOUR GOD shall be MY GOD.” But that isn’t the case anymore. Today
we are ALL Jews by Choice.
How is that?
Well, we live in a global marketplace of ideas, products, and
commitments and we find ourselves constantly making choices about how we will
spend our time (our most valuable
asset) and our money (our second most
valuable asset.) As the array of secular
opportunities grows, things that pull on our time can pull us away from our
“Jewishness.” But we also live in a world of increased JEWISH opportunities and
choices. In fact, Judaism or
“Jewish-ness” has evolved into a marketable item! We “choose” not only with the
click of our mouse, or our checkbooks, but most significantly, we “choose” with
our “feet” and our time.
We look at the calendar of events and try to make I
all “work out.” Just look at the Baltimore Orioles and the Ravens and their
“Rosh Hashanah Dilemma” or trying to fit Passover Seders into the Secular
School Vacation Calendar!
We all make choices. We have families who have chosen to enroll
their children in Religious School. We
have congregants who have chosen to come out on Saturday morning for Torah
study. We have many folks, members as
well as “not yet” members who find the time for fellowship, food and prayer on
Friday nights and festivals. We have
members who have chosen to give time; we have others who have chosen to give
money. Our Book Club chooses to read Jewish Books.
So how can we find other ways to engage so that each
one of us will choose to be part of a life lived “Jewishly” however YOU choose
to define it?
As you are preparing for next week’s Passover
Seders, think back on the Israelites who left with Moses. We explain to our children, “I do THIS
because of what the Lord God did for ME, taking ME out of the Land of Bondage
with a strong hand, with signs and wonders.”
Yes, God CHOSE to take us out of Egypt and out of Bondage, however we don’t
become “THE CHOSEN PEOPLE” until God reveals what He expects from us.
“Then Moses went down to
the people and repeated all the instructions and regulations the LORD had given
him. All the people answered with one voice, "We will do everything the
LORD has commanded." Exodus 24:3.
We have been “Jews by Choice” ever since that day.
Chag Sameach!
Wishing you and yours a Sweet Passover,
Rabbi Rose Lyn Jacob
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