Happy Holidays!

Suggestion: This is quite a long, but condensed post. Don’t be mad at me for it, (ahem…yoella), simply split up your readings so as not to feel obligated to or bored of reading the whole thing.

I hope every one had a wonderful Purim/Shabbat/Easter weekend. I had a really great experience in Sea Point at my official favorite shul in Cape Town, Beit Midrash Morasha (with the three rabbis and brachas [Kiddush] that would make me want to be Jewish if I were not already a member of the tribe). It took me quite some time to figure out my costume and I was quite proud of what I came up with even though time and resources were lacking…sadly though my efforts were not too appreciated. I was an American trying really hard to be South African: I wore a “Cape Town” hat and South Africa lanyard. I carried around my UCT orientation bag with a copy of Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, a popular travel book and malaria medication. On top of all of this I dressed in earth tones to reflect the foreign assumption that Africa is a bush that requires such soft, plain colors to avoid getting eaten by lions. Yet to counteract this fictitiousness, I made sure that all of my Cape Town touristy things were bright colors which was intended to mock the American misinformed conception of Africa. Yea, no one got it, which was sad, but I was proud of myself…that counts for something…right?

The celebration at shul was amazing. The megillah was read by one of the rabbis complete with inserted voices and sound effects. The food at the meal was quite delicious and the festivities that followed once again proved the innovation and care that continue to emerge within this community. The rabbis, the community bachurim and the b’nei akiva youth group leaders all put on very cute skits that clearly required a great deal of time and creativity. The gathering of the community was the largest collection of Cape Town Jews that I have experienced so far. It was quite inspiring to see such an eclectic group of people (augmented by the fact that they were all in costume) who practice and experience their Judaism quite differently unite to celebrate a holiday that is so complex and can appeal to anyone because of the various fun, communal customs that also yield deeper meaning.

I have heard a lot of ideas relating to Purim recently that have added many new dimensions to my understanding of the holiday. One that I believe will escape from the depths of my brain and reintroduce itself to me each year comes from the Friday night sermon given by the shul Rabbi (though my interpretation of his words may be a little off). He started off speaking about the linguistic connection between Purim and Yom Kippur (Yom Haki-purrim). He discussed the seriousness of Yom Kippur and how we depart from our humanity for the day to ask for forgiveness by speaking so personally with God. In order to reach this level, this status that is supposed to emulate that of angels, we must refrain from a variety of normal, physical, human actions on Yom Kippur (such as eating, drinking, using soaps and sprays, wearing leather etc.). He then discussed that Purim seems to be quite the opposite. The day is a celebration of our survival as a Jewish people and the miracles that God has done for us. In order to rejoice we are supposed to fulfill a bunch of mitsvot associated with Purim (eating a good meal, drinking alcohol, giving mishloach manot and tzedakah etc.) that are all physical actions through which we can derive pleasure. It seems strange that these two holidays would have such similar names, one is so rooted in the spiritual while the other is so clearly physical...where is the connection?

I thought the answer to this question was quite beautiful. From what I understood though I might be filling in some of the blanks myself, he said that on Yom Kippur, our existence as physical beings is not quite prepared to be the agent through which our true selves emerge. We must first completely acknowledge our faults, our wrong doings through the spiritual outlet of repentance before we can fully express our best selves in a physical way. Once we have allowed this understanding of our identities to sit, to marinate inside of us, we are then ready to demonstrate our positive qualities through physical actions. This shift of positive, human expression, from spiritual to physical, takes place on Purim. We eat, we drink and are merry and we do so with members of our family and community. The obligatory seudah is an event that combines giving and taking. The giving continues with m’shloach manot and matanot levyonim. We use obligations that require physical actions as a way to elevate ourselves, reveal who we truly are on a spiritual level through physical practice. Purim is the fusion of the spiritual and physical self and ultimately facilitates the process through which we become our best selves.

The idea of giving being the core of who we are was strengthened by another experience I had over Shabbat. I started the newest book on my “get to know South Africa” reading list, Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s “No Future without Forgiveness.” The book discusses the development and findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which was established by Nelson Mandela upon becoming president as a government sponsored initiative to come to terms with the unspeakable atrocities and sentiment of South Africa’s past. Tutu who just retired as Archbishop at the time was appointed as the leader of the program in 1996. The commission was the spawn of a tricky debate regarding how to confront the past of a broken, dehumanized people. The process was complicated by the reality of oppressor and oppressed still needing to live among one another. South Africa’s transition to democracy was not a victory for the marginalized majority, it was a product of frustrating negotiation that failed to produce a full awareness of the apartheid system’s lasting, horrific impact, that failed to create a set plan for how to have the logistical reality mirror the new, non-prejudice constitution. So how does one place such horror in the archives of a country’s history?

Instead of engaging in long, expensive trials of the perpetrators such as the case was in Germany after the Holocaust and instead of simply moving forward and letting bygones be bygones, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was created. The objective of the commission was to offer amnesty to perpetrators of violence and criminal acts in exchange for their stories, their details, their accepted responsibility. Stories of victims were also collected by the commission in order to provide those who suffered with a voice that was silenced for so long, voices that those who were oppressed did not even know they had. The purpose of the commission was not to paint individuals as the primary enemy, but rather paint the apartheid system as the beast, expose the awful legislation and institutions of the racist regime that birthed such hateful individuals as the true opponent. In order for each person to be pardoned of their crimes, their narratives needed to fit within many criteria that were created so as not to grant amnesty to those whose motivation for committing such crimes was beyond the fulfillment of a commanded task. Pinpointing an entire way of thinking and putting that on trial seemed much more constructive in preventing such terror and dehumanization from occurring again. Many criticized this process because they did not believe that it granted justice to the countless victims of such a terrible regime or hold the latter fully accountable.

Tutu responds to this critique by discussing two different kinds of justice. He first mentions retributive justice, in which the primary objective is to be “punitive” and retaliatory. This type of justice was arguably not placed at the forefront of the initiatives of the commission. Yet Tutu says that this is accomplished by placing the blame on the state and understanding the wrongs of an entire system and dismantling not only the physical institutions but the ideological remnants as well. The second form of justice that he discusses is restorative justice in which “the central concern is the healing of breaches, the redressing of imbalances, the restoration of broken relationships, a seeking to rehabilitate both the victim and the perpetrator, who should be given the opportunity to integrate into the community he has injured by his offense” (54-55) The driving concept behind this form of justice is ubuntu. To quote the book again to show you the true beauty and inspiration of the author’s words, Tutu describes ubuntu by saying:

“It speaks to the very essence of being human.... You are generous, you are hospitable, you are friendly and caring and compassionate. You share what you have. It is to say ‘my humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up, in yours.’ We belong in a bundle of life. We say ‘a person is a person through other persons.’ It is not ‘I think therefore I am.’ It says rather: ‘I am human because I belong. I participate, I share.’ A person with ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed, or treated as if they were less than who they are.” (32)

I cannot express how in awe I am of this man, of this idea (really, I want to name my child ubuntu or something…ok maybe a middle name, or a pet fish). Understanding humans as intrinsically linked to one another, as beings that must confirm their humanity through kind and positive interaction is a complete reversal of all that apartheid attempted to accomplish. While the Nationalist government did everything they could to strip all non-whites of their dignity and humanity, in the end, it is them who were devoid of this. It was the selfish, cruel inhumanity that ideologically elevated those who mobilized around and fought injustice, who were able to rise above the evils of the world and be what a human is expected to be. In seeking justice this same level of giving seems to have applied according to the revolutionary, remarkable standards set by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Giving, whether in the form of an extra piece of bread or forgiveness is what grants someone their humanity which is especially valuable when one has had it beaten into them that they do not possess any. (Unfortunately I cannot yet go into too much about the Commissions actions since I am only on page 56, but I am sure I will have much more to say about Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s spectacularly inspiring and spiritual understanding of reconciliation through the prism of truth, of responsibility and of giving.)

Continuing on the theme of giving, I once again had a wonderful Shabbat in the Cape Town Jewish community that continues to expose me to people’s constant generosity. I along with four other friends stayed at the house of one of the four. It felt really natural to have a fun, friendly sleepover…in Cape Town. Sadly there were no pillow fights but it made me realize how warmly I have been taken into the community; not only have I been invited from place to place but I have really started to develop personal relationships with people inside of it which I am so thankful for. Then on Friday night, three of us went to the house of the official Rabbi of the shul who has given most of the sermons I have quoted on this blog including the one I have already mentioned. (I have to tell you I am such a fan of this man and is whole family. One of his three kids is a six year old boy who sings Anim Z’mirot to a really elaborate tune and like studies Talmud.) Anyway, dinner was really interesting especially because one of the guests was the American presidential administration’s appointed special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism (yea now try to repeat that) who is currently visiting South Africa and I am guessing trying to monitor and combat anti-Semitism here. The position was created in 2004 (he was sworn in by Condoleezza Rice) and he is the first person to occupy it. He told us how his job consists of visiting various countries and trying to gauge the status of Jewish sentiment there. He visits places that both have Jewish populations and some that do not have any. He discussed various experiences in Yemen, Australia, Saudi Arabia etc. It was really amazing to hear him speak about all that he does because he probably is the only person on the earth to have access to so much knowledge regarding various Jewish communities and mentalities relating to Jews within the context of a vast base of international political knowledge.

Putting politics aside, there was so much to be gained from what he said, from what he does. To know that there is an office in the U.S. government devoted to understanding the status of sentiment regarding Jewish people around the world is comforting in a way. At the same time it was hard to understand how one can quantify anti-Semitism in meetings with various higher ups in different countries around the world. How do these conversations play a role in changing ingrained mentality, ingrained hatred that does not stand on its own? Anti-Semitism is an institution that is specific in its victims, but universal in its ideological foundation. It is hate, it is disrespect, it is the denial of entitlement to personal belief; it is the same foundation that has produced systems like apartheid and continues to manifest itself in the glaring inequalities of this country. It is intertwined with every other anti, ever other prejudice, so how does one monitor and combat hate when it is often more present in humans than the ubuntu Desmond Tutu so fantastically defined? While I am really intrigued at the existence of this man’s position, it is difficult for me to understand what can actually be brought about by what seems to me to be gaining awareness of isolated presences of anti-Semitism? I do not phrase this question in a way that demands the answer of nothing. Rather I truly have no idea what the answer is (this might have a lot to do with the fact that I clearly do not have full grasp on what this new office does which I hope to research). I suppose there is some connection here begging to be made between this office and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission but the trouble is that there is no end in the case of Anti-Semitism, no transformation that can offer the discoveries a new context in which to be useful. There is a huge difference between institutionalized oppression and ideological oppression and the latter is clearly not cured by disabling the former, but it is a starting point. But what is the starting point when the motivation to create this new office in the U.S. government is the result of a worsening wound and not the beginnings of a healing process? Could this potentially give way to such a thing? I was both comforted and discomforted by this experience, mostly I am now rather confused. If you have any thoughts please share!

On a different note, I am officially on fall break, no not spring break, fall break. So starting tomorrow I will be on a safari in the world famous Kruger National Park hanging out with lions and giraffes and sleeping under the stars. I suppose my earth tones would come in handy there. Anyway hopefully when I get back on Friday I will have lots of fun stories to tell you and pretty pictures to share from my adventures in Kruger.

Congratulations you deserve a really awesome South African Ulpan after all of this:

Joll – noun- pronounced joel (as in billy joel) – origin: Afrikaans - a party

After the Philadelphia Eagles win the Super Bowl in 2009, there is going to be a huge joll throughout the entire city…oh and Cherry Hill New Jersey too since they are devoid of their own culture.

Cheers!