The Torah – A guide for distributive justice from a Faith perspective (Chula Vista)
“In Israel’s Torah, God says, ‘The land is mine; with me you are aliens and tenants ‘ (Lev. 25:23). We are all tenant farmers and resident aliens in a land and on an earth not our own.” John Dominic Crossan, The Greatest Prayer, p. 13, HarperOne, 2010.
A MANDATE TO REMEMBER
The book of Deuteronomy requires an annual Freedom Festival to remember Israel’s liberation from the slavery of Egypt. “… so you will remember, all the days of your life, the day you came out of Egypt.” (Deut. 16) This is the core story of Holy Week.
“Miklat,” the Milwaukee Jewish part of the New Sanctuary Movement, arranged a collaborative Sanctuary – Miklat Seder meal celebration with Congregation Sinai of Fox Point. “Miklat,” refuge in Hebrew, and the Sanctuary Movement assist families who have a member on the cusp of deportation or have already been split apart by deportation. The meal celebration was held at Congregation Sinai on Sunday, April first. Over one hundred of the faithful were in attendance including members of the Sinai Congregation and the “strangers.”
The Seder food, drink and prayers are to remind the gathering of their faith and the freeing of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. KIDDUSH – THE BLESSING OF WINE – “Blessed are you, eternal God, ruler of the universe, Creator of the vine.” YAHATZ – POOR BREAD – “We break the middle piece of matzah to remind us that when we are poor – a whole loaf of bread is an unheard of luxury.” MAGID – “We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt and God brought us out from there with a strong hand and outstretched arm.” “… you are to feast on all good things … you the Levite and the stranger that lives with you.” (Duet. 26) “You must love the stranger as yourself, for you were once strangers yourselves in Egypt.” (Lev. 19)
According to the great Jewish biblical scholar Moses Maimonides, the teaching from the Torah to respect the “stranger,” was a moral principle that: “strengthened the bond of love and brotherhood among the children of men.” Maimonides was born in ll35 in Cordoba, Spain and wrote in Arabic. (Moses Maimonides, The Guide for the Perplexed, Translated from the original Arabic by M, Friedlander , Ph.D. Dover Publications, 1956.)
The Seder is not only a reminder of tradition, but also recognition of the convergence of the faith story and our current situation of injustice. During the event Jennifer Martinez told of her husband being deported to Mexico leaving her without a husband and her four children without a father.
Rabbi Cohen of Congregation Sinai noted: “In his book Exodus and Revolution, Professor Michael Walzer proposes a remarkable thesis – since the time of Exodus, every western social revolution has consciously modeled itself after a pattern set down during the Israelites’ liberation. Walzers’ argument establishes the Exodus text as a paradigmatic influence on the way we see ourselves and particularly the ways in which we engage in social change.”
The Seder gave us hope and inspiration to continue the struggle for justice, for the - “strangers”- the immigrant families.
MAY DAY SOLIDARITY MARCH: SUNDAY APRIL 29, 2012 – 1230 P.M. ASSEMBLY AT
VOCES DE LA FRONTERA (5th and WASHINGTON, MILWAUKEE – MARCH TO VETERANS PARK AT THE LAKE)
Thanks for this background, Bill. I begin most of my immigration talks refering to the great importance of the Exodus in Hebrew history. Because the heart of God is revealed in that story, the patriarchal generation mandated that every year it be re-membered how God saved them when they were aliens in Egypt. The word "alien" (also translated "stranger") appears 92 times in Scripture. In fact, today's U.S. Jewish campaign for immigration reform is titled, "We Were Strangers, Too." --Josephe
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