Dear DOMIM-aLike friends and colleagues,
God says to Moses: “Do not cook a goat in its mother’s milk.”
Moses says: “Okay, I get it… we mustn’t mix milky foods and meaty foods.”
God: “That’s not what I said. I just said, ‘Don’t cook a goat in its mother’s milk!’”
Moses: “Aaaah… so we have to wait six hours between eating meat and milk.”
God: “What don’t you get? It’s just ‘don’t cook a goat in its mother’s milk!’”
Moses: “Now I get it… You mean we need separate dishes and a separate sink for meat and milk.”
God: “Moses, you’re a pain. You know what? Do what you like!”
“When Adar enters, we increase joy” our Sages said. But happiness, laughter, and humor have a big place in Jewish culture all year around, not just in the month we welcome in today. Humor is not just an important component of Jewish culture, but also a way to express subversive comments about the reality of life – and even about God. Faced with the twist and turns of Jewish history, a good joke, a funny poem, or a biting cartoon can help release pressure and bring people closer, while at the same time making a forceful point.
In the world of liberal Judaism, humor can also be used to cast a new light on ancient customs and traditions that are inconsistent with the modern way of life and even with commonsense, as in the example of the joke above.
We hope you have a happy and funny Adar. To celebrate the month, we invite you to
share your favorite Jewish joke with us on our Facebook page.
Keep on smiling!
Chodesh Tov,
Yours –
Rabbi Nir Barkin
Smadar Bilik