Our next Jewish holiday falls on Tuesday, November 6.

In Judaism we believe that dina malchuta dina, that the law of a secular government still governs our lives. However, for much of Jewish history, Jews were unable to vote for their secular leaders, and could hardly imagine the privilege of being able to do so today. That historical narrative alone makes Election Day worthy of holiday status. We were in peril, and now we are free. Sound familiar?

It is also a holiday of hope. We light candles in the darkest time of winter because we believe that miracles are possible, and even one candle can remind us to be hopeful. The same is true of a single vote. As my colleague Rabbi Joel Mosbacher wrote, "Voting is about optimism and hope, about envisioning a world more whole and committing to enact that vision and about seeing ourselves as partners with God in the ongoing work of creation."

 And like many Jewish holidays, a little text study -both Jewish and non-Jewish -makes us better able to fully participate in our observance. Our Jewish texts can help us to frame our choices in the eternal wisdom of our tradition, and we must research the positions of every candidate and proposal on the ballot.

Most importantly, please invite others to celebrate the holiday with you. Please make sure that anyone you could imagine inviting to your Passover seder- family, friends, neighbors, strangers, Elijah- is registered to vote by tomorrow (Tuesday, October 9th) and knows where to go on Election Day. Although voting booths may not be as beautiful as your sukkah, they are a great place to shake things up.