The Deputy Presiding
Officer ()
Good afternoon. The first item of business is time for
reflection, and our leader today is Professor Joe Goldblatt,
chair of the Edinburgh Interfaith Association.
Professor Joe Goldblatt
(Edinburgh Interfaith Association)
Deputy Presiding Officer, distinguished members of the Scottish
Parliament and dear friends, good afternoon. As chair of
Scotland’s oldest interfaith association, which is celebrating
its 35th anniversary of serving all faiths and none, I am indeed
humbled and honoured to be invited to address this august body.
For 5,764 years, the Jewish people throughout the
world have demonstrated great resilience despite our many
challenges. When I was a wee bairn in my home town of Dallas,
Texas, my mother, born to a Jewish mother and a Catholic
father, always erected in our home and decorated the largest and
most beautiful Christmas tree in our neighbourhood. We also lit
our eight Chanukah candles. One night, the Chanukah candelabra
was a wee bit too close to the tree, and several branches started
to burn. My mother screamed for help and our papa ran into the
lounge with a bucket of water and splashed the tree. He then
turned to us and said, “Mama, it’s a miracle—the burning bush!”
The story of Chanukah, which begins this year on 7 December,
demonstrates that my ancestors had faith in the Almighty by
hoping that only four days of oil would last for eight days to
kindle their eternal light and their faith. The oil miraculously
lasted. We now annually spin the dreidel top, and when a child
wins they receive a gold-wrapped chocolate coin. I have played
this game with thousands of our Scottish primary school pupils as
I teach them about Judaism. They, too, must then decide whether
to keep the treasure of the coin or share it with others who have
greater need. In every classroom, when I invite them, they always
donate. Bless our Scottish bairns.
One child in a Scottish Borders primary school told me that he
had heard that Jews were often oppressed and punished. He then
asked, “Can you ever just stop being Jewish?” I thought
about this for a moment and I asked him whether he could ever
stop being Scottish. He sprang up from his chair and said,
“Never!” You see, our precious individual identity, as you have
debated many times in this chamber, is important to all of us.
As I discovered those many years ago, it takes not only a burning
bush to make a miracle; there are miracles deep inside us. I wish
all of you and yours a happy Chanukah and Christmas that will
hopefully usher in the miracles of greater love and peace among
every one of us. Thank you. God bless you. God bless Scotland.
Amen.
