Religion 101 (7 page)

A
shofar
is a trumpet made of a ram’s horn. In biblical times, blowing the shofar heralded important events such as holidays, the new moon, or preparation for war. It is also symbolic of Abraham’s aborted sacrifice of Isaac, when a ram was offered in Isaac’s stead.

As the month of
Elul
draws to an end, there is a special
Selichot
(forgiveness) service on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah, when the congregation recites a series of important prayers. Around midnight, the congregation reviews the thirteen attributes of God, a ceremony that helps to prepare everyone for the approaching holy days.

Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur, the last of the Days of Awe, is observed on the tenth of
Tishri
. While
Shabbat
is the holiest of days, it is only human nature to regard Yom Kippur, which occurs only once a year as opposed to once a week, as something very special and out of the ordinary.

Yom Kippur is the “Day of Atonement.” It is a day to atone for the sins of the prior year. Yom Kippur is sometimes referred to as the “Sabbath of Sabbaths” and has been an integral part of Judaism for thousands of years.

Fasting is an important part of Yom Kippur. Refraining from consuming food or liquid is a concrete expression of the gravity of the day. It helps each person attain the state of mind required to focus on the spiritual. Furthermore, fasting manifests a form of self-mastery over bodily needs. Another more socially conscious justification states that by fasting, people can identify more readily with the poor and the hungry.

No Young Children, Please

Jews need to observe the mitzvah to fast as long as it does not pose a physical threat. Children under the age of nine and women in childbirth (that is, from the time the labor commences to three days following the birth) are absolutely not permitted to fast. Older children, not yet bar or bat mitzvah, and women from the third to the seventh day after childbirth, are permitted to fast, but should resume eating or drinking if they feel the need.

Chanukah

In 167
B.C.
, the Greek king Antiochus IV attempted to force the Jews to officially adopt Greek practices. His edicts included the banning of all practice of Judaism, the placement of a Hellenist (a Sadducee) in control of the Temple, desecration of the Temple by requiring the sacrifice of pigs on the altar, and killing those who refused to obey. The time was ripe for rebellion.

The Maccabean Rebellion

Mattityahu (Mattathias) was an elder and religious leader of the distinguished Hasmonean family who lived in Modiin. Resisting the efforts of the Greek army to establish a pagan altar, he launched an uprising against them. Mattityahu and his five sons became known as the Maccabees, which in Hebrew means “men who are as strong as hammers.” Though much smaller than the mighty Greek armies, the Jewish forces under the command of Judah Maccabee ultimately triumphed. On the twenty-fifth day of Kislev (the first day of Chanukah), the Maccabees reclaimed the Temple. It was a victory of the oppressed over the oppressors.

When the Jewish forces recaptured the Temple Mount, they wanted to rededicate the Temple. (In fact,
Chanukah
is the Hebrew word for “dedication.”) Part of the rededication ceremony required lighting the Temple Menorah, but the Jews could find nothing more than a small quantity of suitable oil, enough to last for one day.

The day after the battle for the Temple Mount, a rider was dispatched to Mount Ephraim, where olive trees grew that provided the oil for the Menorah. It would take three days to reach his destination and three days to return, plus the day needed to press the oil. Meanwhile, there was no way the oil found in the Temple would last that long — but it did. The small quantity of oil burned for eight days, until the messenger returned with new oil suitable for the Menorah. Chanukah celebrates the miracle of the oil.

Purim

The festival of Purim is a happy occasion. It commemorates a historical episode packed with court intrigue, convoluted plots, revelry and insobriety, a cast of characters possessed of every human trait from treachery to jealousy to courage, the near annihilation of the Jewish population, and, finally, its deliverance at the hands of a beautiful damsel.

On Purim, many people arrive to the synagogue in costume or participate in a Purim parade or carnival held at the synagogue. Most often, people dress in costumes representing one of the characters in the Purim story, but contemporary political and historical figures appear as well.

The Story

About 2,500 years after the destruction of the first temple, the Persian king Ahasuerus had married Esther, a beautiful young woman. On the advice of her uncle and guardian, Mordecai, she concealed from him the fact that she was Jewish. Mordecai thwarted a plot to assassinate the king but went unrewarded.

Meanwhile, an evil counselor of the king, Haman, decided to destroy the Jews. He arranged with the king to have them slaughtered on a day that was determined by drawing lots (
purim
). Mordecai learned of the plot and asked Esther to intervene with the king. When Esther did so, Ahasuerus relented. Rather than killing the Jews, he hung Haman from the very gallows the counselor had erected to execute Mordecai.

The day before Purim, the thirteenth of
Adar
(when the story says the massacre of the Jews had been planned), the Jews observe the Fast of Esther, which commemorates her three-day fast before walking in unannounced to confront King Ahasuerus. Like all days of fasting, other than Yom Kippur and Tisha B’Av, the fast lasts from dawn until nightfall.

Haman’s Hat

One of the traditional foods eaten at Purim is a small three-sided pastry, called
hamantashen
or Haman’s Hat, commemorating the king’s evil advisor.

Passover

Passover celebrates the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt, perhaps the most pre-eminent event in Jewish history. Today, Passover remains the most widely observed Jewish holiday.

During their time in Egypt, the Israelites fell out of favor with the Pharaoh. Their growing numbers threatened his power structure.

In an effort to keep the Israelite population in check, the Egyptians enslaved the Hebrews, assigning them harsh work under cruel conditions. Things became even more precarious when Pharaoh was informed by astrologers that an Israelite male child born at that time would grow up to overthrow him. As a result, Pharaoh decreed that every Israelite male newborn be drowned in the Nile River.

Not willing to accept the decree, Amram and Yochebed placed their baby boy in a basket and floated him down the Nile. The boy’s sister, Miriam, following at a safe distance, saw the Pharaoh’s daughter, Bityah, lift the basket from the river. Bityah called the baby boy Moses.

Moses and the Exodus

Moses grew up as a prince in Pharaoh’s palace. One day, he saw an Egyptian overseer striking a Hebrew slave. When the overseer would not stop the beating, Moses killed him. Fearing for his life, Moses fled to Midian, where he became a shepherd and was content with his life until one day, when he was tending to his flock and came upon a burning bush that was not consumed by the flames. It was then that God spoke to Moses, instructing His reluctant emissary to go into Egypt and tell the Pharaoh to let the Israelites leave.

Along with his brother Aaron, Moses conveyed God’s demand to Pharaoh, but Pharaoh was angered and only made things worse for the Hebrews. To demonstrate the power of God, ten plagues were visited upon the Egyptians. Before subjecting the Egyptians to the final plague, the slaying of the firstborn males, God directed Moses to instruct each Israelite family to slaughter an unblemished lamb before sundown. They were to smear the blood of the lamb on doorposts and thresholds and then prepare the lamb for their dinner.

During this meal, the Israelites ate the roasted lamb, unleavened bread (because there was not sufficient time for the dough to rise), and
maror
(bitter herbs). While they recounted the many miracles God had performed for them, God passed through Egypt, slaying every firstborn male. Because the houses with the smeared blood of the sacrificial lambs denoting the homes of the Israelites were passed over, the holiday that celebrates the Jews’ eventual liberation from Egypt is known as Passover.

What’s It Mean?

The Hebrew word for Passover is
Pesach
, derived from the Hebrew root
peh-samech-chet
, which means to pass through or over, or to spare.

The following day, Pharaoh ordered the Israelites to immediately leave Egypt. Under the leadership of Moses, somewhere between 2 and 3 million Israelites departed from Egypt.

Pharaoh soon regretted his decision. He sent his army to pursue the Israelites, catching up with them at the Sea of Reeds. With the sea directly ahead of them and Pharaoh’s mighty army at their backs, the Israelites were trapped, but God parted the water and allowed the Israelites to pass through. When the Egyptian army pursued, the water fell back and they all drowned.

Reed Sea or Red Sea

Historical opinion generally agrees that the crossing took place at Lake Timsah, a shallow salt-water lake filled with reeds (hence the name Sea of Reeds). Later narrators moved the site of the crossing to the much deeper Red Sea, making the story a much more dramatic demonstration of God’s power.

JEWISH CULTURE

The Ties That Bind All Jews Together

Jews share more than Judaism, their religion. They also have a common culture.

Given a history of almost 4,000 years and the geographic dispersal that forced the Jews to confront and sometimes assimilate other world cultures, Jewish culture has always been heterogeneous. Yet somehow all the diverse customs and practices have managed to come together in a remarkable synthesis.

Jewish Literature

Wherever Jews live in respectable numbers, there is a presence of Jewish literature that augments a sense of oneness as a people. In the last fifty years, American Jewish literature has flourished.

Jewish American Writers

A variety of well-established Jewish American writers have achieved critical acclaim, including Saul Bellow, Henry Roth, Bernard Malamud, Philip Roth, Joseph Heller, Elie Wiesel, Chaim Potok, Cynthia Ozick, and Leon Uris. With young writers of fiction such as Michael Chabon, Myla Goldberg, Thane Rosenbaum, and Allegra Goodman, the future of Jewish literature in twenty-first-century America is secure.

In Israel, not only have Israeli novelists had a great impact on Israelis, but much of their work has been translated from Hebrew, making them accessible to Jewish communities around the globe. We have been fortunate to witness the likes of Aharon Appelfeld, S.Y. Agnon, A.B. Yehoshua, and Amos Oz, as well as the emergence of a new generation of gifted Israeli writers such as David Grossman and Etgar Keret.

Jewish Music

How can you not sense the bond with Jews living in Israel when the resonance of “
Ha-Tikvah
” (the Israeli anthem) fills your ears? And when hearing “Jerusalem of Gold,” do you not find yourself closing your eyes and seeing before you the hills of Jerusalem? Nor do you need to understand a word of Yiddish in order to perceive a kinship with all the sons and daughters who ever sang “My Yiddish Momme.”

Today there is a resurgence of Jewish music called Klezmer music, reminiscent of the times when groups of itinerant musicians went from village to village in Eastern Europe, entertaining the local Jewish populace with folk songs and folk dance as well as traditional music. Another branch of Jewish music is comprised of traditional and contemporary songs in Hebrew that originate from Israel.

Jewish Food

Food plays an important part in many cultures, and the Jews are no exception in this regard. In fact, food has probably had a greater role in keeping the Jews together as a people than it has for most other groups because food frequently serves both ethnic and religious functions.

Jewish food as a concept is really an amalgamation of many cultures. It reflects the numerous places the Jews have lived over the centuries. Therefore, you will find the influence of Middle Eastern, Spanish, German, Mediterranean, and Eastern European styles of cooking in Jewish cuisine.

Jewish Food … or Not?

Many foods that you might consider “Jewish” are not exclusive to Jewish cuisine. For example, hummus and falafel are common in much of the Middle East; stuffed cabbage is not just a Jewish food but is prevalent in Eastern Europe; and knishes are familiar to Germans as well as to Jews. Nonetheless, in part because the style of preparation and cooking had to conform with
kashrut
(dietary laws) and in part out of a desire to be original, a Jewish flair and distinct touch was often applied to the foods and cooking techniques extracted from the lands in which Jews resided.

Certain Jewish foods are associated with particular holidays because they are generally served on specific occasions. Of course, there is nothing wrong in having these dishes served throughout the year, which many people choose to do. For instance, Jews serve
challah
, a soft, sweet, eggy bread, as part of the
Shabbat
dinner, as well as at most other festive meals.

What’s It Mean?

The word
challah
refers to the portion of dough that was set aside as “the priest’s [
kohein’s
] share” (Numbers 15:20 and Ezekiel 44:30). When challah is baked, a small piece is customarily tossed into the oven or fire as a token and remembrance of this practice.

Matzah
is a flat bread made of a simple mix of flour and water (without any eggs). Food dishes made with matzah abound. One good example is matzah ball soup, which is made of chicken broth with vegetables, like celery and carrots, and matzah balls that are floating in it. These matzah balls are known as
knaydelach
(Yiddish for “dumplings”).