Making room for Miriam's Cup

A Passover-time story I wrote several years ago.

Reprinted with permission of The Herald-Times, Bloomington, Indiana.

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Miriam's cup is a modern Passover innovation based on ancient history.

During Passover, the holiday most celebrated by Jews, the story of the Israelites fleeing Egypt and escaping as the Red Sea miraculously draws back is retold during a ritual dinner, the seder. Though the service (haggadah) used during the dinner varies, certain ritual objects are always on the Passover table.

The table always includes a cup of wine to symbolically welcome the prophet Elijah. That's tradition.

But in recent years, many Passover tables also include a cup of clear water for Miriam, the sister of Moses. The cup is symbolic of a legend called Miriam's Well, passed down from biblical times.

According to Sue Swartz, who led a recent gathering on the new tradition of Miriam's Cup at Congregation Beth Shalom, "Miriam is the first explicitly named woman prophet in the Torah (Old Testament), and centuries-old Jewish teachings tell us that her wells provided the Israelites with cold, clear water on their 40-year journey through the desert. In that sense, recognition of her role in the exodus story is not new.

"What is new is that women have increasingly become partners in the passing on and creating of Jewish ritual, and are making figures like Miriam central to that creation."

According to Steven Weitzman, Indiana University assistant professor of religious studies, Miriam's story is not from the Torah (Old Testament), but from the Midrash (collections of early Jewish biblical interpretation).

Tales were told of Miriam's Well following the Israelites during their long sojourn in the desert. When Miriam (who alone had the ability to summon it) called, the water flowed.

"Miriam's well was said to hold divine power to heal and renew. It became a special source of transformation for a people seeking to leave slavery behind them and form a new identity. Throughout our journey as a people, we have sought to rediscover these living waters for ourselves. We remember the sustenance and renewal of God's gift to Miriam ..." (from The Journey Continues, a Passover haggadah by Ma'yan: The Jewish Women's Project).

Making Miriam's cups

At Congregation Beth Shalom, women recently gathered, forming a circle where each introduced herself in Jewish tradition, with her name, and the name of her mother and that of her grandmother.

Before making their own cups under the direction of local potter Laurel Bender, Sue Swartz led women to speak not only of what is known of Miriam, but also of what can be imagined of her experience, and why so little is said about her in the Torah.

Jewish feminist Judith Plaskow points out in her book Standing Again at Sinai that the small amount written about Miriam doesn't seem to make sense when what we do know of her experience seems to be so vital to the unfolding story.

So, in Jewish tradition, stories have arisen about her. One poem ("We all stood together" by Merle Feld) imagines how Miriam, a midwife, was always too busy holding one of her own babies, or someone else's baby, to write down her memories of the important events she lived through.

And so, in a tale important to both Judaism and Christianity, the story of Miriam must be read between the lines.

As the women at Beth Shalom laughed and attempted to make usable cups, some joined teen-ager Lonica Solomon in singing "Miriam's Song," which has become popular at synagogues and Jewish camps in recent years: "And Miriam the Prophet took her timbrel in her hand, And all the women followed her just as she had planned. And Miriam raised her voice with song, She sang with praise and might, We've just lived through a miracle, we're going to dance tonight." (Music and lyrics by Deborah Lynn Friedman, copyright 1988, Sounds Write Productions Inc. Based on Exodus 15:20-21. Used with permission.)

One teen said with a smile, "This is a real female bonding experience!"

Said Sue Swartz, "The truth is that I couldn't get my hands to do what my mind commanded and my cup was a bust. It didn't matter. I still enjoyed picturing Miriam in my mind, dancing at the edge of the sea, leaving the slavery of Egypt for the unknown of freedom, and struggling with being a strong, visionary woman in a male-oriented world. She speaks to my heart."

Miriam's tomb

Another part of the legend of Miriam's Well states that when she died, the well disappeared, either into or near the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee).

The holy site which has traditionally been known as the tomb of Miriam (as well as Zipporah, the wife of Moses, and Yocheved, the mother of Moses, and others) is in Tiberias, a city on the shore of the Kinneret. Though there are many tombs in Israel which are attractions, crowded with tourists and old women selling religious souvenirs, the tomb of Miriam (also known as "Mothers' Graves") is an unmarked site, behind a hotel and down a dusty hillside.

In spite of the lack of official attention and the difficulty in finding it, candles and notes surround the giant sarcophagi. Women go there still to honor their foremothers, to say blessings or to pray.

Symbol of hope and renewal

The Passover ritual is not only seen as a re-enactment, but as a chance to re-examine contemporary issues. According to Debbie Friedman, a singer and songwriter, "We all stand at the shores of the sea every day of our lives."

Many Jews, during their Passover seders, will raise a cup of clear water to Miriam and say a blessing:

"Tonight at our seder, let us remember that we are still on the journey. Just as the Holy One delivered Miriam and her people, just as they were sustained in the desert and transformed until they became a new people, so may we be delivered, sustained and transformed on our journey to a stronger sense of ourselves as individuals and as one people. May the Cup of Miriam nourish us and give us inspiration as we embark on our journey ..." (from The Journey Continues).

To Miriam, who watched over her brother Moses in the bulrushes, who gave the water of life to her companions in the desert, and who sang and danced with joy at a miracle, L'Chaim. To Life.