In Kaifeng, a city in China, there used to be a street called “The Lane of the Sinew Plucking Religion”.
I’m assuming it rolls off the tongue in Chinese.
Which religion is being referred to with this pithy statement?
Why Judaism of course.
In this week’s Torah portion of VaYishlach, our forefather Jacob experiences many challenges. He is poised to reconnect with his brother Esau, and that is an experience he is not looking forward to having.
They parted on bad terms with Esau resolved to murder Jacob, resulting in a quick exit on Jacob’s part.
Now after an absence of 20 years, Jacob is coming home and he expects that Esau will keep good on his promise.
Jacob is afraid.
But not only was he going to have to battle his brother on a physical plane, there was also a spiritual fight that needed to take place. And so the night before meeting Esau, Jacob fights the angel of Esau. He emerges victorious but not without a wound.
In the process of vanquishing the angel of Esau Jacob was left with an injured thigh.
Therefore we have a Biblical commandment to commemorate that incident and we are not allowed to eat the sciatic nerve of an animal.
Hence the catchy name of the boulevard in China.
What is the deeper meaning of this Mitzva?
The Sefer HaChinuch, a 13th scholarly work which details the 613 commandments and explains the reasons behind them states, that the purpose of this commandment is to hint to the Jewish people that when we are in exile we will experience many difficulties from the nations of the world, especially from Esau’s descendants. But we should remain secure that although we may be injured, we are not lost.
At some point in the future, we will be redeemed from these trials and tribulations. Therefore, we need to remain strong in the face of these challenges and maintain our faith.

When my parents got married they moved to Tokyo. My Father was tasked with the management of the Tokyo branch of his company. This is how two German Jews, one who grew up in Israel and the other who was raised in London, ended up for a five year stint in the Far East. It was not an easy posting. My parents had to ship Kosher frozen meat from the States twice a year. Getting the accoutrements for Jewish living was challenging. One year, the Matza that had been ordered for Passover was stuck in customs until a few hours before the holiday.
Being an observant Jew in Japan held many challenges but was also the grist for many a story.
One of my Father’s favorite stories happened a few years into their sojourn.
My Father got a frantic call from a young American observant Jewish man who was in Kobe Japan for business. He and his new bride had come to Kobe for a few months to engage in the pearl trade. As they were setting up their home they wanted to take their dishes and little cooking utensils to the Mikva, a ritual pool. This is a Jewish law that certain items coming in contact with food need to be immersed in a ritual pool prior to use. Since the closest Mikva was in Tokyo, this young couple took advantage of the fact that a natural body of water is also used for this purpose, and they had gone down to the pier to immerse their dishes. Shortly after they began dunking the dishes they heard a loud commotion and were shocked to see a horde of police headed their way. The police were shouting and brandishing their weapons and the couple was arrested and taken in to custody. Unfortunately, their Japanese was close to nonexistent and they were frightened and did not know what they had done to deserve arrest. I suppose that the Japanese also allow one phone call because the young man did exactly what I would’ve done under this circumstance, and called my Dad. My Father was fluent in Japanese and was known by the visiting foreign businessmen as a resource in times of need.
So this man, Mr. Green, called my Dad in a panic. My Father told him to put the officer on the line. The policeman explained that there had been a rash of sabotage occurring at the pier. Boats were being targeted by what he called “plate bombs”, bombs that were flat discs and resembled plates. Nefarious characters were taking these plate bombs and planting on the hulls of ships which would then detonate and cause serious damage. When they saw the young couple dunking the dishes, the authorities assumed the worst and thought they had caught the saboteurs.
Now my Father was in a bind. How was he going to explain the very strange and bizarre behavior of his compatriots?
And then he came upon the exact words to convince the police of the innocence of the couple. He explained that they were doing a water purification ritual. When the police heard that they apparently started smiling. In Shintoism there is a concept of water purification rituals and my Dad was literally speaking their language. They understood the concept, had a good laugh and allowed the couple out of their cell.
This was no laughing matter.
A few minutes later and the couple would have been charged with espionage, an offense punishable with death.
Hard to imagine that a few dishes could wreak such havoc?!?