blogs/brentspodek

For the first time in three years, we read the megilah at BHA last night, and it was simply wonderful.

In 2020, we had our Purim carnival, but by the time we got to the megilah reading, it was clear that we needed to shut down. So we all entered into the lunacy of these past two years, and limped along as best we could - davvening online, gathering around fire pits, pre-recording stories for the children. 

Martin Buber taught that Divinity is the electricity that surges between people in authentic connection, and after a two year global experiment, it's safe to say that connection - that Divine electricity - surges more powerfully between people who can actually see and touch each other. 

Last night was profoundly normal - we read the megilah, ate the hamentashen, watched the little kids look with awe and wonder at the big kids who run and play so boldly. It was communal life of the sort we haven't really had in the past two years and it was glorious. In the mundane and sweet life of a community together, it was a place where electricity had an opportunity to surge, and thank God for that. 

I hope that as we have more opportunities to do more together in person, we will take advantage of those opportunities and ensure this community continues to be a place where the electricity of the Divine can surge between us.