Part of Being Jewish Is a Choice

April 20, 2016

Dear Subscriber:

Each week we examine a theme from a variety of points of view. The theme for this week is faith and Jewish identity, in honor of Passover, which begins on the evening of April 22.

Today’s poem is a Passover poem about how the holiday helped preserve Jewish identity through centuries of exile.

I welcome comments on my poems at http://nicholasgordon.blogspot.com.

Yours,

Nick Gordon

Part of being Jewish is a choice

As one becomes an act of preservation.

Seders start the stream of admonition,

Stories meant to bind one to the past.

On words alone the exiles had to last,

Verses reified by repetition,

Each an heirloom of a generation

Reared to give those ancient words a voice.

© by Nicholas Gordon

Hear or watch me recite this poem and listen to the music I chose for it at http://www.poemsforfree.com/partof.html. For more Passover poems, go to http://www.poemsforfree.com/passoverpoems.html .

This week’s theme: Faith and Jewish Identity.

April 18: Praised Be Those Who Don’t Believe the Tale

April 19: How Best Can We Remember We Were Slaves

April 20: Part of Being Jewish Is a Choice