THOUGH PASSOVER IS over, the lessons and themes continue to resonate. Two themes permeate Judaism … freedom and empathy seen in the story of the Exodus from Egypt.
Throughout the Passover Seder we are enjoined to feel as if we are actually experiencing the Exodus ourselves, empathizing with the Israelites’ journey, and even the Egyptians’ pain.
Remembering the lessons of Passover is not meant to be a once-a-year event. Every week in our Shabbat service, and in fact during most holidays, we are reminded that we must take care of the stranger because we were once strangers in Egypt.
The Torah repeatedly reminds us of this. “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 22:20). “The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as one of your own citizens; you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. (Leviticus 19:34). “You too must love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 10:19).
In today’s environment, when immigrants, refugees and the poor are treated with increasing cruelty and inhumanity, instead of empathy and mercy, Jews remember that we too experienced such treatment. We see it as a duty to work tirelessly to protect the most vulnerable.
Our Constitution makes clear that all people living in our country, citizens and non-citizens alike, are entitled to basic rights and freedoms.
There are clear examples in the Seder of the importance of empathy. When the Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go, God brought down 10 plagues upon the Egyptians. Though we are glad this caused him to finally relent, we take 10 drops of wine out of our cups to symbolize that, even in our joy, we remember the suffering of the Egyptians from the plagues.
When the Israelites crossed the sea but the Egyptian soldiers following them were drowned, the angels rejoiced, and God admonished them. Though it was understandable that the Israelites danced with joy in their freedom, there should be no celebrating the deaths of the soldiers because they too were God’s people.
Empathy is a deeply held value in Judaism, even for our enemies. This is why it is so shocking to hear the richest man in the world claim that “The fundamental weakness of civilization is empathy.” And just as shocking is seeing the utter cruelty in actions taken against the vulnerable in recent years, emphasizing that cruelty seems to be the point.
As we mourn the death of Pope Francis, we honor a man who truly lived a life of empathy and compassion for the poor, the sick, the migrant and the refugee. We Jews have always connected with his love and concern for those who have the least. He taught “The measure of the greatness of a society is found in the way it treats those most in need, those who have nothing apart from their poverty,” and “Embrace with tender affection the whole of humanity, especially the poorest, the weakest, the least important.”
In despair at the lack of empathy and concern for the stranger, Rabbi Rachel Barenblat says in The Velveteen Rabbi, “Today’s plagues may be less obvious or dramatic, but are no less insidious … and responsibility for their existence lies on our shoulders.”
Barenblat says they include:
“Apathy in the face of evil
Brutal torture of the helpless
Cruel mockery of the old and the weak
Despair of human goodness
Envy of the joy of others
Falsehood and deception corroding our faith
Greedy theft of earth’s resources
Hatred of learning and culture
Instigation of war and aggression
Justice delayed, justice denied, justice mocked…”
She prays, “Shekhinah, soften our hearts and the hearts of our enemies. Help us to dream new paths to freedom, so that the next sea-opening is not also a drowning; so that our singing is never again their wailing. So that our freedom leaves no one orphaned, childless, gasping for air.”
Kein yehi ratzon … may it be God’s will. Shalom.
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Issues of Faith is a rotating column by religious leaders on the North Olympic Peninsula. Suzanne DeBey is a lay leader of the Port Angeles Jewish community. Her email is debeyfam@olympus.net.
