Rabbi Ron Segal
Among the varied topics discussed during our recent Temple Sinai–Holy Innocents’ learning series was the visually striking manner in which many churches display specific colors to symbolize different seasons and feast days during the calendar year. In Jewish tradition, though, the only color of any real significance is ‘blue,’ more precisely t’kheilet. In the Torah, the Israelites are commanded to include a thread of blue dye – t’kheilet – in the fringes (tzitzit) of their garments. Today, though, if one were to look at the tzitzit (corner fringes) on most tallitot, you would discover that few still contain the thread of t’kheilet mentioned in Torah, as rabbinic authorities determined the exact color of the blue dye could not be reproduced. However, t’kheilet had become a powerful cultural, religious and spiritual symbol in Jewish life, signifying a connection with God and the remembrance of the commandments.
Thus, in lieu of the fringes, it instead became customary over the centuries to incorporate blue stripes on the fabric of a tallit (prayer shawl). The supply of Sinai’s tallitot hanging outside the sanctuary and inside Freeman Chapel clearly illustrates this custom. And, when the State of Israel was established on May 14, 1948 (78 years ago yesterday), leaders determined to adopt as the new flag of Israel one whose design was inspired by the blue stripes on the tallit, a flag that was created by early Zionists at the end of the 19th century. In the decades prior to the founding of Israel, the blue and white color scheme on the flag became a unifying national symbol, and today, the spiritual, emotional and stirring importance of blue and white remains deeply embedded within the Jewish psyche. Written in the 1960s by Israel Rashel, a Soviet refusenik who dreamed of making aliyah, the well-known patriotic Hebrew song “Kachol v’lavan” says it all:
Blue and white, this is my color. Blue and white, paint my land!
Blue and white, this is my color, all the days of my life.
Blue and white, like a song, like a dream; Blue and white, a hope for peace….
As we celebrate Israel during Shabbat services tomorrow evening, all are encouraged to don blue and white attire (blue jeans, blue and white shirts, etc), “I ❤️ Israel” t-shirts and hats, and other items to display pride.
