On Saturday morning a lot of things went on at Temple Sinai that were a pure joy for me. Although there was no assigned individual to provide our expected breakfast, there was coffee, tea and cakes left over from previous affairs. Such study is helped by munchies.

We discussed Joseph who was in jail where he disclosed he was a good diviner of dreams.  He correctly foretold the dreams of the Pharaoh’s butler and baker with whom he was imprisoned and the baker was executed while the butler went back to butling. Joseph remained in a dungeon until the Pharaoh was puzzled by his own dreams and this reminded the butler that he promised to speak up for Joseph.  That was the beginnings of the good fortune of one Joseph, former most loved of his father’s sons and then a slave who ended up in Potiphar’s dungeon.

My mind usually goes into free spin when Biblical stories unfold.  They are the prototypes for most of the action stories that fill books and TV screens. The plots are familiar and the scenarios are predictable: small town boy is envied or picked on and leaves to make his fortune.  He gets into trouble but in the end he prevails. The most black and white example of this is the Clint Eastwood cowboy anti-hero who somehow saves old west towns located in empty parts of Italy.

Jousting with other members of the class is pleasurable for me although it might be painful to others who pine for being told a lesson straight from the text. But the rest of the morning, following the Bible Class, there was Bible in action with Henri, (son of one of our most faithful members) who was the Bar Mitzvah boy. The Sanctuary was filled with members of our class and whole bunches of students from his classes and lots and lots of family and friends.

Henri’s social action assignment gave him the idea to provide baseball equipment for children in The Dominican Republic.  He is a sports enthusiast and is an excellent reader of his portion from the Torah Scroll.  He performed his part like an adult but still looked a bit like the kid he just used to be. 

What turned out to be a wonderful coda to the performance was his maternal grandfather, a retired cantor and his uncle, also a cantor making the ceremony special.  His grandfather was a Survivor and this, perhaps, was the most poignant meaning of our ceremonies today. These recalled the telling of the story of Chanukah in addition to freedom from slavery and freedom to practice your religion in your own country. This was the message told in Henri’s Bar Mitzvah selection.  Other commentary was added by those of us who study the Bible.