THE
OICE
Igniting the passion to connect with Jewish values, with each other, and with our world.
MARCH/APRIL 2020 | 5780 CONGREGATION RODEF SHOLOM • SAN RAFAEL, CA
Purim, Passover, and the Jewish Imperative to Speak Up This year, 2020, stands at the intersection of three pivotal events in our nation’s civic history: It is the 150th anniversary of the 15th amendment, which, following the Civil War, granted African Americans the right to vote; It is the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment guaranteeing women the right to vote (it was passed by Congress in June, 1919, and ratified in August, 1920); and it is the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act which aimed to overcome legal barriers that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote. The Voting Rights Act was drafted in the Reform Movement’s Religious Action Center (RAC) reflecting the Reform Movement’s long history of voting rights advocacy and action. Amidst our present divisive political climate, presidential primaries, and upcoming general election, ensuring that each person has a voice and a vote is imperative. Jewish tradition commands us to get involved and fight for the rights of all people, including the right to vote and be counted! In Deuteronomy 22:3 we learn, “You shall not hide yourself.” The great commentator Rashi interprets this to mean, “You must not cover your eyes, pretending not to see.” We do see, and as hard as it is sometimes, we must not look away. Instead, we are called upon to respond, speak
out, and defend justice and truth wherever and whenever it is threatened. This moment, and the Jewish tradition, demands us to participate in our democracy and fight for the rights of all people to do the same. In the Book of Esther, when Jewish lives are being threatened, Mordecai approaches Esther and implores her to stand up and speak out, to use her privilege and position to save the Jews. He then adds, in what is for me one of the Bible’s most moving passages, “Perhaps this is the moment for which you have been created.” Esther 4:14. It was for this moment that Esther attained her power, conscience, and voice. And I believe it is in this very moment that we too can exercise our power to uphold our democracy, rights, and justice for people in our land.
This moment, and the Jewish tradition, demands us to participate in our democracy and fight for the rights of all people to do the same. Passover reminds us that the ultimate obligation of free people is to fight for the freedom and liberation of all people. As Abraham Joshua Heschel teaches, “the opposite of good is not evil, the opposite of good is indifference.”