Moishe Moment: How to Remember to Forget?/Salty Sacrifice

Shabbat Zachor
By Caleb Brommer, Jewish Life Specialist

Parashat Zachor refers to a quick three verses (Deuteronomy 20:17-19) where we receive a commandment to blot out the memory of Amalek. These verses are read in synagogue during the Shabbat immediately before Purim because the villain of the Purim story, Haman, is traditionally depicted as a descendent of Amalie. The Amalekites were a tribe of Canaanites who, according to the Torah, attacked the stragglers of the Israelite community as they traveled from the Red Sea towards Sinai. For this act of cowardice and malice, says the tradition, the Amalekites deserve to have their memory blotted out. 

This section is fascinating for many reasons, not the least of which is that it contains a paradox. The text says “Remember (zachor) what Amalek did to you on your journey…Therefore…you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!” (Deut. 17-19). So, are we supposed to remember Amalek? Forget them? Remember to forget them? Forget to remember them? One solution to this riddle is to argue that ‘blotting out the memory’ of Amalek means utterly destroying them so that while we may remember them in our mind, nothing of their existence will be left extant and they will not be remembered by any other people. But I think it is more spiritually edifying to sit in the paradox.

What does it mean to remember to forget? How can we train our own capacity to remember and what kind of world can we build where those who strike down the helpless and disadvantaged are held to account throughout the generations? 

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Parashat Vayikra “And God Called”
By Jessica Herrmann, Director of Jewish Service Learning

We just finished the Book of Exodus, and the last few chapters focused on the detailed instructions on how to construct the Mishkan, the moving holy place that the Israelites created. This week, we begin the Book of Leviticus with Parashat Vayikra, and shift our focus to what we do inside the Mishkan. Moses is instructed by God on the rules of sacrifice and offerings that are to be performed in the Mishkan. We are commanded to “season your every offering of meal with salt; you shall not omit form your meal offering the salt of your covenant with God” (2:13). Rashi explains that the relationship between salt and the covenant with God was established back on the 6th day of Creation when the waters were separated. Since the ocean was upset to be further away from God, God “assured [them] that they would be offered on the altar in the form of salt” (Rashi on Leviticus 2:13).

On Shabbat, salt is not only found as an ingredient in challah dough but in many Jewish homes, it is a custom to dip or sprinkle salt on challah before eating it. This practice recalls the salt poured over the sacrifices that we read about in Vayikra. The salt signifies that a complete offering has been made, thus preserving the Jewish people’s relationship with God. Although salt is external to us, salt can be created by us in the form of tears often based on sacrifices we make in our lives.

Pour some salt on your challah and take a moment to taste the salt, letting it dissolve in your mouth.
What sacrifices have you, or your communities made to get you here today? 
What sacrifices have you witnessed others make to create a better world for themselves and others?