Reflection of the Month - Rabbi Margaret Jacobi
An image of Rabbi Margaret Jacobi, Progressive Jewish Chaplain
Remembering We Are Strangers
Next week, Jewish people around the world will be observing the festival of Pesach (Passover). It is the festival of freedom, celebrating our liberation from slavery in Egypt thousands of years ago. Forced to leave in a hurry, we didn’t have time for our bread to rise and so for seven days we eat flat bread known as matzah, which is also known as ‘lechem oni’, the bread of poverty or affliction.
The observance reminds us of a foundational experience which has shaped our identity as Jewish people ever since. Our ancestors were slaves and strangers in a strange land and became refugees. Time and again, we are reminded in our Torah to be kind to the stranger ‘for you were strangers in the Land of Egypt’. Many Jewish people today are involved in working with, and for, refugees because of our history. For some of us, this is also much more recent, because our parents, grandparents or great grandparents came to this country as refugees.
But whatever our family history, most of us have experienced being strangers in one way or another. It may have been when we joined a new group or moved to a new school or a new home. Or it may have been when we came to university for the first time. For international students, it will of course be particularly difficult to come to a strange country, but even if we are from the UK, we will have come to a new place, been with people we did not know and been in situations we were unfamiliar with.
Our observance of Pesach reminds us that we must use our experience to empathise with others. We should remember the times when we felt like strangers so that we can treat others who are in the same situation in the way we would wish to be treated. Whether refugees or new students at welcome week, let us to reach out to those who find themselves strangers and help them to feel at home.
I hope you enjoy your vacation if you have one and come back to the final term of the university year refreshed and ready to face the challenges that face you.
This reflection was written by Rabbi Margaret Jacobi, our Progressive Jewish Chaplain. You can find out more about Margaret by clicking here to visit his profile.
The views expressed in this reflection are those of the Chaplain and do not necessarily represent the position of the University of Birmingham's Multifaith Chaplaincy.