Exodus: Out of Slavery

     This week I have been traveling with my daughters.  Along the way we visited Tuskegee University, the Historical Museum in Montgomery, drove along US 80 from Montgomery to Selma, and walked across the bridge.  At the University we saw the stained glass window at the Chapel which highlights spirituals sung by slaves.  In Selma, we also saw pictures: both contained scenes from Egypt.
     >see pictures on Facebook, type in the link "KosherCopy"
     The Passover story has meaning in every generation.  It is so full of meaning the Jewish people have been telling the story, celebrating our freedom, and incorporating concern for others through 3,500 years.  The African American also celebrates this story, as well as their own freedom.  And we need to look today at those who still need freedom, for the story is meant to teach us compassion.
     One celebrated verse in the book of Exodus says, "Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh and say to him, 'This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: "Let my people go, so that they may worship me." (Ex 9:1) Enslaved people need a God who will give them boldness and the way to ask for freedom.
     God tells us, "Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt." (Ex 22:21)  We are to take this teaching and apply it to our world today.  What of children of aliens born in this country?  This seems to be a political hotbed.  The Bible would teach us not only to care for the children born in this country; but also their parents (yes, some are illegal), who have come to make a better life for themselves.  We are to care for them and help them.  We live in a land of immigrants.  (We saw at the History Museum how white men displaced the Indians illegally).  
     We, as parents set the example for our children.  We are to "On that day tell your son, 'I do this because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt." Ex 13:8.  Certainly we are to take the teachings of Passover and put them to use, so all will be able to hear the Gospel, and live in the land.
     

Exodus: Ben Finkelstein

His hometown might have been Stanislwow, but his heart was on bigger things. Although Stanislwow was called home by a large Jewish population, Ben Finkelstein saw no future there. He wanted larger things. He learned the garment industry from his father, Joseph, and his mother, Rifka, for clothing manufacture was the prevailing industry of this community.

In the past Stanislwow had a thriving economy. It had been on one of the main trade routes running from the Ukraine into Austria and Europe. However, changing politics of this region pushed the flow of commerce elsewhere, and in Ben Finkelstein’s time, other than clothing manufacture, and a pitiful agricultural yield the economy of Stanislwow, and the region called Galicia was poor at best.

Galicia, perhaps because of its beauty, drew people. There were more people per acre here than in most places in the world. The region boasted a great Jewish population, and was the home of Hasidism. However, for Ben Finkelstein, the glitz and the glamour lay elsewhere; further east, in the region currently controlling Galicia: Austria.

As a young man Ben felt the call of the city, and he left his family to create his life and to make his fortune in Vienna, the capital of Austria. He left behind the world he grew up in, his family, and the family trade in the garment industry to create something new for himself. He found work driving a taxi. He found life in the theater and the thriving culture of urban Vienna.

My mother tells how he made friends with the Emperor’s son, Franz Ferdinand, who took the taxi whenever he went on a tryst to see his mistress lover in a distant quarter of Vienna from the palace. The friendship was not immediate, but Archduke Franz Ferdinand found my grandfather was a calm spirit who could be trusted. My grandfather became the Archduke’s regular transportation for his secret affair.

Ben loved the culture of Vienna. He found many new friends. He enjoyed the theater, dancing, and concerts. But as in his homeland of Galicia, the politics of Europe were changing. In 1914, crown prince Franz Joseph was assassinated by a Bosnian dissident. This event would throw Europe into a world war. Ben Finkelstein knew this killing would also bring a wave of antisemitism across the region.

Ben could have escaped the turmoil of the Hapsburg Empire by going home … but the Ukrainians were also gearing up for war, and would have quickly inducted a young man in his 20’s into the army. Ben Finkelstein said, “I don’t hate anyone;” and headed for Bremen, Germany. He boarded a ship, the Breslau, and headed for the United States of America.

Ben Finkelstein had an acquaintance who my Grandfather said would receive him when he entered the country. Be followed in this man’s footsteps, entering the United States at the port of Baltimore, and quickly moving to Columbus, Ohio. Once in Ohio, he found work in his family trade, as a presser in the garment industry. He of course found the Yiddish Theater, and a young lady who captured his eye. His Exodus from poverty and antisemitism was complete.

Exodus: Solomon Tabatznikoff

     According to family tradition he was a simple country doctor, who lived in a village on the road from St. Petersburg to the Tzar's Crimean resort. At least once when the Tzar's son was in a medical crisis, this family doctor was able to help. Other than that, Solomon lived a quiet life in his community among his people.
     But then things changed. Following the death of Tzar Alexander II anti-Jewish sentiment arose within Russia. The first trouble arose in Kirovograd the end of April 1881. This spread throughout the region to Kiev and to Odessa. Property was destroyed and homes were set on fire.
     Count D. Tolstoy, the new minister of the interior wrote in June 1882 the riots were the result of poor oversight by governors and other officials in the area. But in other quarters officials pushed an anti-semetic agenda. Nikolai Ignatyev  minister of internal affairs pushed through a law which prohibited Jewish settlement in unauthorized areas; it forbid signing deeds and other legal documents with Jews until their legal status could be decided; and Jews were forbidden from doing business on Sundays and other Christian holidays.

     As the persecution continued Solomon worried about his family. Life looked better elsewhere. He talked with the neighbors about moving, and about greener pastures.  All this was a concept until a new progrom hit the village.  Solomon got mad and punched a Kosack in the nose.  He knew he needed to leave his village.

     So the Tabatznik family Solomon, his wife, and nine children, boarded a ship, and traveled to France. A distant relative lived in France. Following a long passage across the Black Sea, through the Bosphorus, around the tip of Greece into Italy.  Then the family walked to Paris.  Solomon found the home where his relatives lived, and knocked on the door.

     Solomon's uncle opened the door, and it is reported my Great Grandfather said, "I'm here with my wife and nine children.  We're staying."  Solomon told his uncle how life was bad at home, and they needed to move.  They would stay until they could figure something out.

     After a few years "Uncle Louie" figured something out.  He received a flier telling about the Jewish Colonization Association funded by philanthropist Baron Maurice de Hirsch.  "Uncle Louie" convinced his nephew to apply.  Funding was obtained, and in April 1893, the Tobatznik family boarded the Maasdam in Boulogne for New York in the United States of America.  

     The passage was hard.  Many doubted the food was kosher, so they did not eat.  The ship was crowded and sanitation was poor.  One government report spoke of cholera outbreaks which were transported in situations like this.  It is said five children died on board the ship, and Solomon's wife died soon after arrival. 

     Solomon found housing in a tenement and survived as he could.  He would find a desperate landlord, and move his family into an apartment with the promise of pay, until the money was due.  Then he moved elsewhere.  Solomon came with no money, and no job.  He eventually found work in a Piano factory, where he supported his three children the best he could.

     Eventually Simeon, his son was old enough to find work in the garment industry.  At first it was just piece work.  Simeon worked hard, made friends, and became a salesman.  The Exodus was complete. The family had found their Goshen.

To learn more and hear me read this story, visit Chelsea's VoiceThread project from her class at the Jewish Theological Seminary last year. Click images on the left to page through her presentation and hear the stories!

Spring – The Last Supper

     Question: How many Passovers (Kindle) did Jesus celebrate? Answer: He celebrated Passover (Kindle) with family or friends every year! Because Jesus was Jewish, we know the Passover was a significant event for him, his family and his friends.
     The New Testament contains details from four Passovers which Jesus celebrated. Each year the celebration was unique and important in his life and ministry. I have detailed these in more depth in my book Spring: Connecting with God. (Kindle)
     The first recorded Passover celebrated by Jesus occurred when he was twelve. His family went to Jerusalem for this important Harvest Festival. During the time of the preparation for the feast, Jesus’ family left him alone, and he went to the Temple. While in the Temple he began to dialogue with the Sadducees, Pharisees, Sanhedrin members and Priests. The Bible records how his parents left him behind in the city when they went home; from the culture we can understand more details.
     The first Passover of Jesus’ ministry years was celebrated in Jerusalem. The Gospel of John contains eye-witness details of this Passover, including a visit to Nicodemus, teacher of the people of Israel. In this Passover Jesus shared with his disciples how to come out of bondage to sin into the light of God’s love.
     The year before Jesus died, he did something very unusual: He celebrated Passover at home. Every other year (except for the years spent in Egypt) Jesus, his family and his friends traveled to Jerusalem. John 6 contains details of how Jesus celebrated this Passover at the Sea of Galilee. As Jesus raised the Motzah on this Passover, he called himself the bread of life.
     Jesus’ last Passover is called the Last Supper. All four gospels tell about this Passover Seder. Matthew, Mark and Luke briefly skim over this dinner. (Luke’s Gospel contains some unique details). John’s gospel goes into detail as he describes the actions and teachings which occurred in the upper room.
     When we understand the Passover we understand more about Jesus, his culture and the teachings he was trying to share. In the Christian world today, it is sad that we too often rush through the cup and bread without understanding the great lessons of Passover; and in these great lessons the things Jesus was really telling us.

The Real Topic "Connecting with God" (A Great Study!)

     Many years ago, while I was still in Seminary, I was asked to help put together a Passover Hagaddah for the Messianic Jewish Community in Louisville, KY. Across the years I have enjoyed sharing the Passover, and recently I have put this Seder into print: A Christian Passover in the Jewish Tradition. And in the process of producing this Hagaddah, God did something wonderful.
     As I tried to put the Hagaddah into presentable form, God spoke to me. This occurred while I was on a trip to see my father. As I drove, the Lord brought ideas and chapters to my mind which I had studied in the past. These realizations came from the time I assembled the first Passover Hagaddah for our group in Louisville.
     In my book Spring: Connecting with God I follow the development of the Seder, from the Garden of Eden (when Adam used to walk with God in the cool of the day); to the Communion of Abram and Melchezedek (Genesis 14:18); to the instructions of the first Passover in Exodus 12 (and its observance in Exodus 13); all the way to it’s history during time of the Kings of Judea. I teach on how the Passover has ties to the Peace offering of Leviticus 3-4 (and 7). I also examine four Passover Seders observed by Jesus in the New Testament (at 12 years of age, and each year of his ministry). I show how the agape feast of the early church is tied to the Passover, and how we will enjoy fellowship meals in heaven.
     I thought I wrote a good book, until God showed me something else. I was asked to share an outline of Spring: Connecting with God in a local Senior Adult group, and put the outline into presentation format. As I shared, I realized the book is more about our relationship with God than it is about the Passover.
     Spring: Connecting with God shows how our love for God goes from passionate to cool; and from churchy to forgotten. The book is a call for us to fan to flame the love which is in our hearts for God, and shows us how to avoid the things which cool us off. I would encourage people to take the book, and use it as a 10 week study (but then as the author I am biased). But I know study groups could be enriched through this study.

Whispers

A Whisper
Coming softly to my ears
Murmuring something
That I cannot understand
Unless I listen
With my whole being

What is it saying?
I wonder
Is it telling me
Something important
That will change
My entire life ...

(Poem © Chelsea Simon) ...
It’s completion & more poems can be found in the book.

Passover Preparation - Day 2 - Meeting God

Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the back side of the desert and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. … Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” And Moses said unto God, “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Exodus 3:1-2, 10-11)

     Moses was a person like us, with a few advantages. He was born during the time the family of Israel was crying out to God over the atrocities visited on their people. This included the male children of the Hebrew people being thrown into the Nile River. This fate would have been visited upon Moses, save for his mother’s quick thinking. She protected him with a basket boat and put him into a field of bullrushes near the place Pharaoh’s daughter went daily to bathe. She then stationed Moses’ sister Miriam to look after her new brother.
     In time, Moses was adopted by Pharaoh's daughter and taken into her father's palace. This adoption afforded Moses the best education possible in the world at that time. For many years he enjoyed the benefit of his placement - until two eventful days. On the first, he saw a Hebrew slave, one of his people by birth, being beaten by an Egyptian overseer, and Moses killed the perpetrator. On the second, he stopped a fight between two of the Hebrew slaves, and became fearful when one of them said, “Are you going to kill me, too?”

     Moses escaped to the wilderness, where he met Zipporah, the daughter of a Midianite Priest. They were married, and Moses became the shepherd of his father-in-law's flock.
     While Moses was watching the sheep, God appeared to him in a burning bush. God called Moses to a monumental task - to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt. Moses attempted to escape the call, but God's instruction is inescapable.
     God prepares each of us, giving us a spiritual gift so we can accomplish a task. Do you know your gift and calling? God will show us in His own time and way where we are to be involved, and in what kind of ministry. Can you describe how God called you? Is the calling something you attempted to escape? To avoid God’s call is to miss a blessing.
     When you answer a call, you will in a sense guide people from enslavement to God’s blessing and desire for their life. Pray today to find your calling.

Passover Preparation - Day 1 - Our Cry to God

And the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried; and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God took heed of them. (Exodus 2:23-25)

     Passover begins with prayer. The seventy members of the family of Jacob went down to Egypt during a time of famine. While the Hebrew people lived in exile (400 years), a change occurred in the Egyptian government. The new regime was not accepting of this privileged class of foreign people, and actually feared the Hebrew people, who had grown in population. So they put them into slavery.
     For a period of time the Hebrew people went along with their enslavement. At first they were in shock at how fast their status had changed under the new regime whom they feared. Then as generations passed their status became “normal” and they saw no way out but to accept their “lot in life.” With the passage of time, and a new generation who observed how the rest of the world lived, expected tasks wore on the people. They saw the freedom others were experiencing, and they began to cry out to God in their pain.
     Nowhere in the story does the Bible tell us that God forgot His people. To the contrary, the Bible teaches us God loved His people then, and God loves his people today. The topic of this devotion is relationship and prayer. God’s people accepted life as it came, dwelling in the normality of daily life, and in the routine of this schedule they forgot to pray. Perhaps they were busy (because their taskmasters demanded it); but the point is they were not praying daily and gaining the strength from the relationship with God as His people.
     When we forget to pray; when we lose the most important part of our relationship with God, and all of life becomes a crisis. Within the routine, the crisis was allowed to become severe. And God’s people (after talking and complaining to each other … just like we do today!) began to complain to God. They cried out in their pain, and God heard their cry.
     The question is, how is your relationship with God? Do you pray daily? Do you read the Bible daily? The concept of faith begins with the continual presence of God. God desires us to seek, desire and acknowledge that relationship, and in the relationship to seek Him in His word (the Bible) and prayer. Group meetings are then an enrichment and not the context of our faith.