Finishing dinner around 11 p.m. with a long night ahead of us, we set out to “repair” ourselves through study. Conveniently, we only needed to walk a short distance from the hotel to the Hebrew Union College facility where we were able to participate in two study sessions (in English) among the hundreds offered at various synagogues, institutes and cultural venues across the city. With small groups of English-speaking strangers, led first by Rabbi Rich Kirschen and then by Rabbi Dr. Michael Marmur, we discussed Biblical text and commentary on various aspects of what it means to be “a stranger in a strange land:” What has it meant for Jews to be the “other” in the diaspora? What does it mean to lose this otherness in Israel? What is the relationship between otherness and the Biblical concept of being “chosen” by God for a special purpose-- to receive and live by “the law”? What is problematic v. formative about this concept? The second session with Marmur was especially lively. He used commentary by the famous modern scholar A.J. Heschel to explore what it means to feel alienated or at home in the universe (“I am a sojourner on earth” Psalms 119:19---we are all just passing through). How does this realization affect our conceptions of God/spirituality, compassion, and justice? Have we become too comfortable or complacent during our sojourn? The theme of the stranger is central to Shavuot, embodied in the reading of the Book of Ruth, the ultimate convert and great, great grandmother of King David.
Still going strong at 2:45 a.m. we walked to Beit Avichai-- a gorgeous facility that offers lectures, music, art exhibits, theater and so on—where we joined a larger crowd of mostly young people to study with Avichai Lau-Lavie, the founder of Storahtelling. The evocative title of this session was “Mounting Sinai: Mythos and Eros on the Dawn of Revelation.” Through poetry and interpretive texts we explored the central Jewish metaphor of the union of bride (the people) and groom (God). Presumably the bride (the people) was asleep when Moses returned from the mountaintop with the Torah. Moses called to the bride to wake up and join the waiting groom under the canopy to receive the laws. Now we study all night on Shavuot so as not to miss the big event. Trying to keep our eyes open, we talked about what’s going on inside us when we sleep and what it means to be truly awake. What opens us up? What gives our lives meaning? Ultimately, Lau-Lavie says, it all comes down to love. The power of love enables us to unite polarities within ourselves (head and heart; inner and outer; male and female) and connects us with others.
At 4 a.m. we connected with hundreds of others streaming out of the many sessions at Beit Avichai and elsewhere and following a silent, invisible pied piper through the quiet streets and narrow alleys of the Old City to the Kotel (Western Wall). Waiting for the sun to rise we watched the growing crowd fill up the plaza. Aside from praying, the main activities seemed to be smoking and milling around. Groups of young religious men and women, dressed to the nines (rhinestones and modest necklines) gathered to check each other out. Teens from abroad, dressed more casually, greeted their friends with shrieks of recognition. Mothers guided little girls in fancy party dresses through the chaos. We sought in vain for a spot where we could breathe freely. Although signs warn against taking photographs, there is no prohibition against smoking. Somehow it just doesn’t feel spiritual to inhale second hand smoke in this ancient, revered place.
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