PRE-INAUGURATION RITUAL
The inauguration of a new president is always a time to think about where we are in history. The old administration leaves, a new president, vice-president, cabinet, and Congress take their places and begin their terms.
This transition from the 45th to the 46th president seems particularly momentous to many of us, and there’s a feeling that it needs to be marked by more than simply watching the inauguration on TV.
Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan taught that Judaism has always borrowed from the societies Jews live in, so that American Judaism will in some ways be different from Judaism in other countries.
If you feel the need to think about and give voice to your feelings about the change in our national government, please join Rabbi Ellen Triebwasser for an “Inauguration Seder” on Tuesday, January 19 (erev Inauguration Day) from1-2:30pm.
Just as the rabbis who created the Passover seder borrowed from the Greek symposium, a meal with questions and discussion about important things, we will borrow from the seder to address our history, our fears and hopes, and our plans for the future with songs and readings.
Please have near you:
- A way to ritually wash your hands (a bowl of water and cup to pour water over your hands is traditional)
- Four beverages:
- Milk (of any kind)
- Something tart or sour
- Water
- Your favorite beverage
- A way to record your feelings: paper and pen, a journal, a computer document
- A candle