When the world is in turmoil, it's easier to see differences rather than similarities among religions, cultures and races. Yet, certain beliefs and customs link Jews, Christians and Muslims in ways that are at once humble and significant.
In spring, the symbolic significance of lamb brings these faiths together, if not around the table, then through the Bible and their common origins in the Middle East.
Lamb, as an emblem of sacrifice, plays a role at Passover, Roman Easter and Orthodox Easter (celebrated a week later), as well as at the Muslim Festival of Sacrifice, which took place in February.
For Jews, it is a reminder of the sacrifice of the paschal lamb on the eve of Exodus, when its meat was roasted and hastily consumed and its blood was marked on door posts to deter the Angel of Death.
For Christians, lamb is a symbol of Christ.
For Muslims, the sacrifice of a lamb commemorates Abraham's near-sacrifice of his son; in the Islamic faith it was Ishmael.
For everyone who feels delight in spring and gratitude in Earth's annual rebirth, there is also a precedent set well before the advent of organized religion, when lambs were sacrificed to welcome the new growing season.
Thousands of years later, the connection remains. "There's something about lamb and spring," says Upperco cooking teacher Ilene Spector. A marinated roast of lamb was the centerpiece of a meal she and two other Baltimore cooks prepared at a recent spring holiday cooking class in her home.
Caterer Sandy Spanos, who helped perfect the cooking-class recipe, "couldn't stand lamb" until she ate it with her husband's Greek family in New England. The key to delicious lamb is "in the preparation; the fresh garlic and the oregano and the chopped onion," she says, describing marinade basics.
Lamb need not be roasted. A scan of cookbooks featuring world cuisine reveals tagines, cassoulets, croquettes, ragouts, patties, kebabs and countless other lamb recipes that elevate an otherwise mild meat to a staple, made piquant with herbs and olives, or sweetly tinged with dried fruit.
Faith, custom and culture may determine how lamb is prepared. In Exodus, the final meal of fleeing Hebrew slaves is made clear: "They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs." But variations in how that night is honored abound.
