“Fiddler On The Roof,” debuting on Broadway in 1964 and based on the stories of author Sholem Aleichem, tells the story of Jewish patriarch Tevye and his family as they wrestle with the growing social and political obstacles related to maintaining a Jewish identity in early 20th century Russia. The show won nine Tony awards and was the longest running show on Broadway for ten years until eventually being outmatched by “Grease.” (Side note, in 2020, the Fiddler is on the roof because all of the entertainment venues have been closed per government orders and he is self-isolating on the roof in an effort to follow strict social distancing guidelines…but I digress…)
While many know the popular number, “If I Were A Rich Man” (daidle deedle daidle
daidle daidle deedle daidle dumb), the opening number, “Tradition,” truly lays out the premise for the major conflict in the show. Tevye sings, “Who, day and night, must scramble for a living, feed a wife and children, say his daily prayers? And who has the right, as master of the house, to have the final word at home? The Papa, the Papa! Tradition! Who must know the way to make a proper home, a quiet home, a kosher home? Who must raise the family and run the home, so Papa’s free to read the holy book? The Mama, the Mama! Tradition!” While it would be easy to criticize the stereotypical gender roles presented in these lyrics (and you would be right to do so), for this particular song, I’d like to focus on that title word, “tradition.”
Truthfully, there are many ways that tradition has genuine value in family and community life. In church, many of our traditions, such as the sacraments of baptism and eucharist, are ways we might feel in genuine communion with Christ our Lord and as the body of Christ together. Certain hymns and methods of worship have a comforting sense of ritual and routine. At the same time, the church has never been rooted solely in tradition, and I am grateful for the guidance of Wesleyan theology which adds the notion of scripture, reason, and experience when discerning the importance of traditions. Methodists refer to these four partners in ethical philosophy as “the Wesleyan Quadrilateral.” Traditions have often left the church on the wrong side of history, but even then, from the abolition of slavery to women’s suffrage to female clergy to civil rights to more and more, faithful Christians have used tradition through the lens of scripture, reason, and experience to move the church forward. In fact, we were given the model over and over by none other than Jesus Christ himself, who had a preference for beginning his theological arguments by updating old traditions, such as in his Sermon on the Mount, where he said, “You have heard that it was said, You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who harass you 45 so that you will be acting as children of your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:43-44)
Dear God, teach us to honor those traditions that bring us closer together and closer to you, and my the scripture, reason, and experience you have provided each of us lead us in the direction of love, mercy, and grace. Amen.
the harlequin complex 