THIS IS AN UPLIFTING STORY ABOUT INTERFAITH RELATIONSHIPS AND THE BUILDING OF BRIDGES
By Margaret Ramirez
Chicago Tribune
CHICAGO - Inside the basement auditorium of a Chicago labor union headquarters, Jewish community leaders broke matzo at a model Passover Seder this week in the unlikely company of Muslim lawyers, Latino workers and black supermarket employees.
The invited Muslims sipped grape juice instead of the traditional red wine and shifted nervously in their seats. But, by the end of the Seder, the guests discovered a striking connection to the Jewish people.
I thought it was important to be here and share the discrimination and suffering that Muslim immigrants are facing,'' said Kamran Memon, a Muslim civil rights attorney who attended the Immigrant Justice Freedom Seder last week. I saw parallels between the way Jews suffered in the past and other groups today. It came out clearly.’’
The eight-day holiday of Passover, which begins at sundown on Saturday, has been celebrated by Jews worldwide for nearly 3,000 years and commemorates the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt.
In recent years, the holiday’s powerful symbols, rituals and prayers have been embraced and reinterpreted to connect with contemporary plagues and oppressions in groups including immigrants, drug-addicts and homosexuals.
After the civil rights movement, Jewish leaders focused on Seders that united them with the African-American community, meshing text from the Haggada (the script for the Seder) with the speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr. Now, more Jewish groups are using the Passover Seder as a bridge for better relations with the nation’s Muslims.
The theme of liberation is seen as a universal theme. It resonates with everyone,'' said Arnold Eisen, chair of the religious studies department at Stanford University. And there is something about the gathering around the table, eating, and telling stories of slavery and oppression that has the ability to bring different people together.’’
The Jewish Council for Urban Affairs organized the second annual Immigrant Justice Freedom Seder at the headquarters for the UNITE labor union and used the Passover story to highlight the current struggles in other communities. Rabbi Jill Jacobs, director of outreach and education for the Council, explained that the message of Passover makes it possible for every generation to re-enact exodus in its own way. The fact that Passover is a home-based religious ritual, as opposed to a synagogue service, makes it easier to adapt, she said.
It's always being interpreted differently. Some people do political issues, some do more personal things. But because of the work we do, we wanted to focus on immigrants,'' said Jacobs. In inviting members of the Muslim community, we’re hoping it leads to more understanding and respect for each other.’’
At the start of the Seder, Jacobs emerged from the side of the auditorium in a white robe with her head wrapped in a scarf to dramatize the plight of the ancient Jewish slaves.
``Oh! I have come so far through the desert and all I have to eat is this little matzo,’’ Jacobs said. At that, guests roared in laughter.
On the Seder plate, every item of food represents a significant part of the Exodus. A blend of apples, nuts and spices represents the mortar used in pyramid building. Horseradish symbolizes the bitterness of slavery. A hard-boiled egg represents the cycle of life and the wine speaks to the sweetness of liberation.
``There is a shared history. Jews were not allowed to integrate fully, the same way many Latinos are not allowed,’’ said Jessica Aranda, executive director of the Latino Union of Chicago.
But, as more Christians have come to adopt Seders, some debate has surfaced about how non-Jews should interpret the Seder meal.
Particularly offensive are attempts by evangelical groups to celebrate the Seder as a Christian event. The concern has even led to publication of a new manual this year entitled ``Let Us Break Bread Together: A Passover Haggadah for Christians,’’ by Mike Smith, a Baptist pastor and Rabbi Rami Shapiro.
Michael, a professor of Judeo-Christian Studies at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, has warned against inserting Christian theology into the Passover experience.
It is fine that the Passover-Easter season has turned from the worst time into the best time as far as Christian appreciation of Judaism is concerned,'' Cook responded in an e-mail message. Nonetheless, allowing the Passover Seder to dissolve the lines between Judaism and Christianity poses at best a mixed message for Christian-Jewish relations.’’
But, Eisen, of Stanford University, said he is not offended by such Christian connections.
It seems almost inevitable that they will see these connections. And there has been anxiety expressed by some Jewish leaders about a stealing of our rituals. But, as a scholar and a Jew, I see nothing wrong with it,'' he said. They feel it speaks to them because it’s such a human story.’’
Vennie Lyons, 25, who attended the 8th annual African-American Seder, sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League, said he would use the messages in a non-religious sense, to help him relate to other cultures people in his job as a bank underwriter.
``I think any event that breeds unity is definitely a positive one, especially with two communities that have been through so much.’’