24 | APRIL 9 • 2020
Breaking
Free
What freedoms are we
celebrating this Passover?
SHARI S. COHEN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Passover
T
he Passover Haggadah tells us: “In
every year, each person must look
upon himself as if he just left Egypt.
”
But what does freedom mean for Jewish
Americans today? As local community mem-
bers reflect, freedom encompasses more than
political and physical liberty.
“There are things that enslave you that
you don’
t even realize. The pivotal moment
is when the Hebrew slaves cried to God for
help,
” said Rabbi Joseph Krakoff,
senior director, Jewish Hospice
and Chaplaincy Network.
“When I cry out like that, I am
ready to take the hard steps to
being my best self.
“We need to look at these
challenges, the things that hold
us back from our best relationships with our-
selves, others and God,
” he said.
At Krakoff’
s seder, a mirror is passed
around so individuals can look at themselves
and ask, “What do you like about yourself
and what do you want to change?”
Joel Young, M.D., 58, a psy-
chiatrist who is medical director
of the Rochester Center for
Behavioral Medicine, believes
people can be physically free but
not mentally and emotionally
free. He explains that many
people suffer from addictions, a
sense of inadequacy, ADHD, despair or fear.
“This is not necessarily rooted in reality
and may be overblown,
” he said. “Psychiatry
and psychology can help. That’
s modern-day
liberation — helping people to liberate them-
selves and allowing the individual to be her
own self.
“Jewish thought mandates that the individ-
ual needs to be strong and self-care is very
important — to take care of ourselves, our
family, friends and community. There is so
much we can do for people. There has been
such an expansion of available treatments
that can reduce the suffering,
” he said.
Scott Lowen, 32, who lives in Hazel Park,
grew up in the Detroit area with all the free-
dom and privileges that millen-
nial Jews typically have in the
U.S. He views religious freedom
within the context of generation-
al differences.
“I like to think that I have
the freedom to choose — like
whether to go to seders or ser-
vices. It’
s more of a choice than it was for my
father, when things were traditional,
” Lowen
said.
When asked if recent increases in
anti-Semitism have changed his outlook, he
said, “I do think a little more about what I
put on the internet. I don’
t publicize that I’
m
Jewish on Facebook. It’
s not that I’
m embar-
rassed or not proud, but I don’
t know who
sees it.
”
Lowen is director of youth engagement at
Temple Beth El and works with students of
all ages. “Some have experienced anti-Sem-
itism. A few are hesitant about expressing
their Judaism. Others are loud and proud,
”
he said.
For many individuals who grew up in
Europe, being Jewish meant constraints on
freedom.
Irina, a teacher in her 60s who lives in
West Bloomfield, emigrated from Russia sev-
eral decades ago.
“In Russia, I did not have freedom. I
couldn’
t travel. I couldn’
t have friends from
abroad,
” she said. “It was very difficult for
Jewish people to get into the best colleges.
Here I can say that I am Jewish. There I could
not even say the word. It would show me as
very different. ‘
Jewish’
was like a bad word,
”
she said.
Ruth Webber, 86, a West Bloomfield res-
ident, was born in Poland and was impris-
oned in Auschwitz as a child. There, her
mother would talk to her about happy family
Passover celebrations from years past.
Since emigrating to the U.S. after the war,
Webber has celebrated Passover and other
Jewish holidays with her family for many
years. But this year,
the coronavirus has inter-
vened.
“I don’
t want to do anything that will
endanger human beings,
” Webber said.
“People’
s lives are more important than get-
ting together for Passover. It hurts me that we
cannot do this. I will talk to my family about
the wonderful things we were doing for them
(in the past) as my mother did for me. I have
my past and I can go back to that. I hope and
pray that this will pass soon.
”
Rabbi Krakoff thinks their seder may be
for immediate family only. Some families will
be using Zoom or Facetime to connect.
“We’
re not canceling Passover,
” he said. “It’
s
so important in so many ways to tell the story
of the transition and journey from slavery.
”
Scott Lowen
Dr. Joel
Young
Rabbi Joseph
Krakoff