Rabbi Yaier Lehrer
ylehrer@gmail.com
412-820-7000
Thought for Shabbat – 4/3/26
With our seder(s) behind us, with this Shabbat we are about halfway through our our Pesach celebration. But now that we have had our seder with all of its tradition and modern adjustments, we have entered that period of time when it’s about the matzah and the absence of chametz.
It’s one thing to eat your matzah at home. But when you eat it at work or in the school cafeteria, it is something else altogether. And when you tell your friends you won’t meet them for a drink after work, or tell your schoolmates, there will be no fast food together for a few days. But it is in those moments that you say who and what you are. It is in those moments that you show what you value, not just to those who do not observe Judaism, but to other Jews as well, empowering them to feel comfortable in observance, showing them they are not alone.
Every time we take a day off for a holiday or Shabbat, every time we post or describe our observances online, we are standing up for our identity. Every time we do something publicly or privately that confirms our identity, whether specifically Jewish or not, we strengthen the identity of an entire people and what it stands for.
The rituals we do, the blessings we say, the causes we stand up for, the synagogue we attend, are all part of our cumulative present and reflect on our the strength of the values of our past as a people. And it is a stronger future that we ensure. Sometimes it doesn’t feel comfortable to stand out alone, especially when so much of the world stands against us. Sometimes it is easier to be very private in our feelings. And sometimes it takes a certain amount of courage, to stand up for what you believe. But never for one moment believe that you are alone. We are in this together.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Yaier Lehrer
Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behavior. Keep your behavior positive because your behavior becomes your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny. Mahatma Gandhi
Yizkor service for the last day of Passover will be on Wednesday, April 8. Services will begin at 9:45.
Thought for Shabbat – 3/27/26
The Shabbat before Pesach which begins tonight is called Shabbat Hagadol, the Great Shabbat. We are reminded of the upcoming celebration and perhaps what we can do to enhance the experience either by word, prop, people, vibe or food. Sometimes it means taking a look at the ritual and wondering if it still works.
I was recently preparing for our congregational Seder when I began to feel like something was not working for me, something I had struggled with for quite some time. I was reading the story of the four sons who are experiencing the Seder and have questions. There is a wise son, a bad son, a simple son, and a son who doesn’t know how to ask a question. To make a longer story a bit shorter, the bad son asks “What is this service to you?” The Haggadah highlights the word “you” to mean that this son is separating himself from the community. He is to be told that I am celebrating what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt. He is told “for me” because had he been there he would not have been redeemed.
I would ask any parent to let me know if this approach would work in a similar situation with their own children, whether what it is best described as an act of tough love, and at worst an act of verbal violence, has any real potential of convincing a child of anything. Would it convince a child to suddenly decide to feel included or part of something.
But there is another viewpoint to be considered. According to Rabbi Mishael Zion, maybe this is the year we don’t need to make any changes. Maybe the seder as we have known it, the story we have told each other for thousands of years, is not only sufficient but recommended. It should not be hard to make this year’s seders relevant and understandable in light of the Jewish situation in the world. The rabbis who spent all night long talking about the Exodus until morning would certainly be talking about the events of the world today vis a vis our people.
According to Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, the seder is the story of us. After all, our ability to tell the story every year is part of who we are. ANd at a time when the story of who we are is being purposely distorted, it is our duty to preserve it in its best form. Even in the worst of times, we have continued to tell the story, a story and experience that creates memories for a lifetime and creates continuity for generations.
Not every great story is part of the Exodus. Some of the stories, the memories, are about the seder where something silly happened or when someone spilled wine or soup or accidentally made a silly remark that resonates years later. Or even perhaps it is the story I have told many times before of my cousin who was allergic to horseradish root and would still insist on eating it and have those assembled observe his reaction. Those stories are also part of the continuity of our tradition.
May our seders, whatever form they take and whoever is at the table, create great new memories that we can share with each other and for years to come. May this holiday and these seders be the zissen or sweet experience they were meant to be and may the memories we create be an inspiration for years to come.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Yaier Lehrer
If you’ve heard this story before, don’t stop me, because I’d like to hear it again.
Groucho Marx
There is Torah study tomorrow morning at 9:15 before our 10 am service.
On the eve of Pesach this Tuesday, we will be able to burn our chametz on a grill outside the synagogue and we will hold our annual minyan/service of first born at 8:00 followed by the last bagel you will eat for several days. Please make a point to attend in person or online.