I was about to write a thoughtful essay about finding spiritual strength in troubling times. And then I went to the kitchen to grab a snack. I split an English muffin and place it in the toaster. Just then I had an insight. My search for transcendence began in my kitchen.

I had been reading Parshat Emor. Aaron, the High Priest, was told to collect oil to keep the lamps continuously burning. Also, Aaron was directed to display twelve loaves of bread each week. I thought about how we always leave a light on in our kitchen and the food on the counter. Two under-appreciated blessings were in front of me. First was the luxury of lights being ready and always available. The second was the display of English muffins, neatly arranged and packaged. Our kitchen was a modern replica of the holy temple.

The Priests lit the oil lamps and displayed the shewbreads of the bet Hamikdash solely to honor God. They were not on public display. Yet, these holy accouterments required collaboration and effort. The oil for the lamps and flour for the bread were contributions from many people. The lighting of the lamps and the baking of the bread required the work of the priestly hands. So too, the electricity we enjoy and the foods we eat reach us only after the efforts of many. We can undertake the priestly role. When we turn on lights or set out food to eat,  the priestly act is to remember God as the true source.

An additional instruction to Aaron was to place the candelabrum and shewbreads on “pure tables”. Curious, I wondered what makes a table pure? In Talmud, the Rabbis explore the purity of objects. Movable items, like a table, can contact impurity. Moreover, the tables were not Ikea pressboard, but solid wood covered with gold. Even ordinary items like a table can be made worthy of God’s notice. Then came my next insight.

What is ordinary, even in a kitchen, has the potential for holiness. Only two things are required. First, keep the kitchen pure. I don’t merely suggest cleaning surfaces. We wash hands before eating, compost scraps, buy healthy foods, avoid food waste, and recycle plastics. Waste, pesticides, and excess packaging are the impurities of today. While engaging in essential daily activities like shopping, food preparation, and eating, we should be mindful of these impurities.

The second is to treat our possessions as if they should be pleasing to God. We don’t have to display our possessions for the world’s approval. Rather, consider if your belongings are worthy of God’s notice. Do you buy free trade products? Or prefer something cheap made by underage labor over items made in safe work environments? Do you treat your possessions with respect or as disposables? How we engage in commerce is a daily opportunity to bring Godliness into our homes.

I found holiness in my kitchen, eating an English muffin. I elevate my spirituality when I avoid the impurities in this world and make purchases worthy of God’s notice. If we all did the same, we would be a nation of priests, just as the Torah desires.

Rabbi Evan J. Krame

Television news is disturbing. The reports from war zones make me particularly uncomfortable.  I’m not worried about the sensationalist style of reporting. While the newscasters are breaking headlines, my response is what I find most troubling. Too often, my response is silence.

Silence is a critical part of the stories we share this week. In Torah, we read Parshat Acharei Mot. We also honor those murdered in the Holocaust on Yom Hashoah.  Each of Acharei Mot and Yom Hashoah have elements in common. Acharei Mot completes a story from earlier chapters. Two sons of Aaron offered strange fire, acted improperly, and were consumed by fire. Their death is inexplicable. In similar fashion, Yom Hashoah recalls inexplicable deaths.

Another element in common is silence. Aaron’s reaction to the death of his sons was silence. Despite his grief, Aaron’s duties as High Priest require his continued service. Aaron’s devotion is beguiling if we only notice the silence. While Aaron’s cries are muffled, his actions speak of devotion to both God and His people. Aaron acts with a higher purpose.

This Holocaust Remembrance Day the world is still confronting its unflinching silence during the Shoah. Recent studies have again condemned the United States leadership for failing to bomb the railways leading to the camps. While some Jews advocated for help, our government was mostly silent. But we gather each year to remind the world that silence is not acceptable.

Recall Elie Wiesel’s summation of how we must react to oppression. “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” Wiesel’s words have not moved the needle of public opinion.

Silence is not the absence of words. Silence is turning off the television so that we won’t be bothered by the news. Silence is worrying about the cost of gasoline while war is fueled by oil. Silence is gratitude that the bombs are falling far away from our homes.

I am struggling to find my voice. I’ve donated money. I’ve protested outside of the Russian Embassy. And now I am silent. Silence is pervasive. We’ve celebrated earth day but our continued silence denies the ravages of climate change. We’ve bemoaned anti-semitism and racism, yet our continued silence gives bigots a platform. Silence elects craven and power-hungry politicians. Silence throws a sheet over dead bodies in Mariupol.

At the core of America is a new silent majority. This is not the silent majority of the Nixonian era. The silent majority today are decent people with relatively comfortable lives. Rescuing a burning planet or rebuffing white supremacists are extremely difficult tasks, and so overwhelming that we avert our attention. Instead the new silent majority bitches about the price of tomatoes and turns the newspaper over to hide the headlines.

As we enter an election cycle here in the US, don’t be silent. Talk about ending the war, saving lives, and rescuing the planet from destruction. Otherwise, politicians will fill our silence with nonsense about critical race theory and pedophilia.

Like Aaron, we must find the greater purpose so that we are not silenced by grief but calling out with conviction. Like Elie Wiesel, we cannot let grief or complacency keep us from calling out injustice. Should you encounter bad news, pause and wonder if you can be inspired to speak out.

Rabbi Evan J. Krame

Many Jews feel compelled to update their Passover seder each year. You might make your seder more entertaining with a new au courant theme. Other seder updates take on the issue of freedom where people are in danger. Topical seders can make Passover more relevant to our modern lives. That is why I’ll be talking about Ukraine this year.

Last year’s seder conversations included freedom from Covid. The year before that the popular theme was . . . Covid. Over the years seders have highlighted important issues like civil rights, Muslim refugees, the labor movement, and Soviet Jewry. Some themes are represented by additions to the seder plate. We honor women’s rights at the seder by placing an orange on the seder plate. If you aren’t familiar with the symbolism, it has to do with a juxtaposition of competing ideas of excluding and including women in Jewish religious life.

Reflecting on a current issue through the lens of the seder is an important tool. Starting with our liberation from Egypt, we can better empathize with other enslaved or imperiled people. As the Haggadah says, we are supposed to feel as if we ourselves were set free. We can amplify that understanding when also considering a modern story of a people in peril.

On the other hand, some feel pressured to create an entertaining Passover seder. I saw new Haggadahs created around themes like the Disney movie Encanto and the television show The Golden Girls. These will be added to the pantheon of the Schitt’s Creek Seder and the Mrs. Maisel Seder. These leitmotifs make the seder enjoyable. Yet, they detract from Seder’s best feature, the opportunity for family and friends to express gratitude for the freedom we enjoy.

This year the world is more imperiled than last year. The war in Ukraine has disrupted the lives of 44 million people. Many Ukrainians have emigrated or escaped. Many more are trying to reach safety. There is no liberty when sirens are blaring the warning that bombing raids are upon your city. There is no freedom when your family is hiding underground to stay alive.

This year, I want to reflect on Ukraine at our Passover Seder.  I will add an icon to the seder table in honor of Ukraine and I urge you to do the same. Perhaps you can use a blue and yellow flag or sunflowers which are symbols of Ukraine. You might add an olive to your seder plate, to remind us that the olive branch is a symbol of peace. When you reach the part of the seder where we discuss the symbolism of matzah, maror, and the bone, point to the symbol of Ukraine as well.

This Passover let’s focus on the core reason for the Seder. We should take time to appreciate our freedom and commit ourselves to liberating all people from oppression.

Rabbi Evan Krame