Joliet Jewish Congregation
From the Rabbi's Study
January 15, 2025
FOR YOCHEVED: THE MOTHER AND HEROINE
“When she could no longer hide him….
She placed the child in it,
and placed it among the thickets
near the bank of the Nile River.”
Shemot 2:3​​
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Watching from the safety of our homes the devastating effects of the blazing fires in California, we cannot help but be in awe of the heroic demonstrations of humanity. Specifically, that deep reservoir of strength and focus to survive that is awakened when we realize our own life and the life of our loved one’s surpasses any value that we might place on material things. This ability of one to let go of one’s selfish attachment to something to protect the life of something bigger is a unique gift. This week we are introduced in Torah to a woman who bears this very gift in her heart, Moshe’s mother, Yocheved.
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When the news arrives, that Pharoah is killing the male children of the Hebrews, Yocheved digs deep inside of her heart to create a basket to send her son into the thicket for safety. Yocheved does not pause for reflection and much like the residents who had to evacuate their homes during the fire, she makes the difficult decision to place life first. She lets go of her need to be near to her child and taps into the greater need for his survival.
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Would we have the courage to make such a choice? Many of the parents who sent their children on the Kindertransport during the Holocaust faced a similar dilemma. When they were faced with the inevitable, these parents made the decision to let their children go to safety. In the depths of their grief and separation they found solace in the light of hope that the lives of their children would continue.​​
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There is much for us to learn from Yocheved and the survivors of the fires this week. We can see in them both, a reflection of the most awesome parts of our own hearts. There is an opportunity in this moment to act without waiting for a tragedy to hit. We might choose to expand our hearts to include a deeper understanding for the value of life by reaching out in new ways in our own life.
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Let’s seek to make deeper connections with our loved ones and friends and open our inner eyes to the value of the non-material gifts we have been given. These are gifts of love, life, and freedom. We do this, For Yocheved. For without her, Moshe would not have set us free.​​​​​​​​​​​​​
WE ARE STRONG
By Rabbi Jenny Steinberg-Martinez JD CHT
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The peaceful Buddhist country of Tibet was invaded by Communist China in 1949. Since that time, over 1.2 million out of 6 Tibetans have been killed, over 6000 monasteries have been destroyed, and thousands of Tibetans have been imprisoned. When the Dalai Lama’s Tibetan Sanctuary, was invaded by the Chinese, and the surviving monks were sent out into the world to survive, he called upon Jewish leaders for advice. Why? It is because we are strong in our identity and have remained true to ourselves in a life of Diaspora. With our strength we have managed to touch all four corners of the globe with our wisdom, joy, and traditions.
The summer time in the Western World brings celebration, barbecue, swimming and fun. It seems a strange time of year for our most somber holiday. Tish B’ Av, the sacred fast, arrives this month to remind us of the 9th day of Av a day when a number of disasters in Jewish history occurred, primarily the destruction of both Solomon's Temple by the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the Second Temple by the Roman Empire in Jerusalem.
Tisha B'Av is regarded as the saddest day in the Jewish calendar and it is thus believed to be a day which is destined for tragedy. The observance of the day includes five prohibitions, most notable of which is a 25- hour fast. The Book of Lamentations, which mourns the destruction of Jerusalem is read in the synagogue, followed by the recitation of kinnot, liturgical dirges that lament the loss of the Temples and Jerusalem. As the day has become associated with remembrance of other major calamities which have befallen the Jewish people, some kinnot also recall events such as the murder of the Ten Martyrs by the Romans, massacres in numerous medieval Jewish communities during the Crusades.
So how do we honor this day with an appropriate balance of reverence and optimism? This is how; we claim our Diaspora as a beginning and not an ending. We claim our Diaspora as a call from God to persevere in the world and be a force of Torah for all to experience. We claim our strength. It is when we claim these things that we can help bring unity and healing to the whole world without preoccupation with what was lost; for we have found more than we have lost. We have found our power. We are strong!
*To read more about the Jewish and Buddhist conversation: The Jew in the Lotus, by Roger Kamenetz