Dolphin Books Hosts Renowned Journalists Cokie & Steve Roberts

Cokie and Steve Roberts are both well known faces in political journalism. Cokie is a commentator for ABC News and a senior analyst for NPR. Husband Steve, is a former New York Times reporter and bureau chief. Together they write a nationally syndicated news column.

Less well known is the duo’s longest running production: an interfaith Passover Seder, clocking in at 45 years and counting. In their latest book, “Our Haggadah: Uniting Traditions for Interfaith Families” Cokie, a practicing Catholic, and husband Steve, who is Jewish, offer a personalized version of the Passover text for use by mixed faith couples.

hosted the pair of Washington, DC-insiders at a packed book-signing on Monday. The couple was introduced by one of Port Washington’s own, novelist Susan Isaacs.

“We didn’t have to teach Susan how to pronounce Haggadah; George Stephanopoulos we had to teach,” said Steve Roberts to audience laughter. “It’s in the DNA,” retorted Isaacs, again to audience chuckles.

Laughter was one of the evening’s themes as the Roberts engaged in light-hearted banter, sharing stories of their married and religious life including Cokie’s self-deprecating assessment of her husband’s marriage proposal. “Steve said the way he proposed to me was ‘Oh, all right Cokie.’” Steve also drew peals of laughter when he noted the irony of wife Cokie’s membership in Hadassah.

“As Cokie mentioned, her mother was the American ambassador to the Vatican,” Roberts said. “She [Cokie] is the only life member of Hadassah whose mother was the ambassador to the Vatican. I can say that without fear of contradiction,” he said to widespread laughter and applause.

Many members of the audience were also members of interfaith couples. Marion Rosenbaum who calls herself the “Jewish half” of an interfaith couple was at the event with her Catholic husband. Rosenbaum had read the Roberts’ first book on their interfaith marriage, “From This Day Forward” and shares the authors’ view that a light-hearted approach helps when navigating serious issues.

“A sense of humor and openness makes an interfaith family possible,” Rosenbaum said. “If you remain as non-defensive and open as possible it probably works out best.”

After their marriage 45 years ago, the Roberts agreed to incorporate elements of both faiths in their lives. “We both feel very much connected to our own religions and neither one of us wanted to leave who we were,” Cokie Roberts said. “As much as we respected and admired the other tradition, we are very much connected to our own.” 

“We’ve been married 45 years and we’ve never said the word conversion,” Steve Roberts added.

The Roberts were invited to Dolphin Bookshop after store employee Leslie Abramowitz heard them speak at an Interfaith Community, Inc. event in New York City.  Abramowitz, who was raised in an interfaith family, is now a Jewish educator for the Interfaith Community.

A number of families from the Long Island chapter of the Interfaith Community attended the book-signing. Chapter co-chair Pam Gawley came to hear the Roberts’ speak for the second time, bringing along her fourteen year old daughter Michaela. “I love the way they navigated this,” Gawley said. 

As part of an interfaith couple, Gawley admires how the Roberts family has worked to incorporate interfaith traditions into their lives.

“I’ve had to put much more work into being Jewish,” Gawley said. “It’s much easier to be married to a Jewish man and go to temple, where you just show up, temple’s got it covered. I’ve had to put much more work into it, for every holiday. It’s me buying the masks for Purim, making charoset for 50 people for our Seder. I’ve had to be much, much more involved in order to make it a part of our life.”

“You have to own it,” Gawley said. “You can’t expect your children to be interested in it if they don’t know about it and if you don’t care about it.”