REFLECTIONS ON PESACH
Passover (Pesach) is an intriguing, and, in some ways conflicting) holiday. Some people get so absorbed in the physical preparations that they forget the real religious aspect of what we are observing and celebrating. All the folks (sadly, mostly women) who are responsible for the pre-Pesach cleaning, shopping and food preparation feel so “enslaved” by all the works that they can easily forget that we are celebrating our deliverance from servitude to liberty and freedom.
Don’t misunderstand, I fully appreciate that a lot of preparation is necessary. I know there must be cleaning to rid the home of Chametz and if the shopping and cooking don’t happen, neither does a big part of the seder (let’s face it, even the most fervently spiritual of us loves Shulchan Orech!) What I am suggesting is that rather that combining spring cleaning into kashering the kitchen and making enough food to feed the whole million plus people who left Egypt, we ought to devote some thought and energy to the real meaning of Pesach. (Yes, I know I am starting to sound like the lament of some of our neighbors around their special December observance). It is hard to express gratitude to God and reflect on what freedom really is when one is totally exhausted. So maybe back off on some of the scrubbing. Maybe the spouse and even the children should pitch in and partner with (yes partner with, not just help) their Eishet Chayil in the physical preparation. And then, the family together can focus on preparing for the really important part, the learning and teaching and thanking and praising.
Pesach is a celebration of freedom from enslavement to the Egyptian Pharaoh. It is about the miraculous and loving act of our God in bring us out, separating the Sea of Reeds and sustaining us for forty years in the wilderness. The seder, of which the festive meal is only a part, a big part perhaps, but only a part, is filled with rituals that involve expressions of gratitude (primarily the Hallel and the bentching), praise as exemplified by Kiddush and teaching as exemplified by references to a variety of special food and symbols. All of this, because some of it so different will, hopefully, inspire curiosity and questioning which will lead to our primary responsibility: the telling and teaching of the story and its significance to the next generations. It is also important, in the retelling and analyzing of the story, to try to enhance our own understand of the story itself and the meaning of boing free. The preparation for the teaching and learning aspect of the seder, in order to make it a meaningful experience, is, to my mind, just as important as the preparation of the great meal.
The story of Pesach does not end at the borders of Egypt. It does not culminate with crossing of the sea and the drowning of Pharaoh’s army. Its real culmination, indeed its purpose, is at Sinai when, our tradition tells us, we receive the Torah. To borrow a thought, freedom is not license. It has within its construct its own rules, responsibilities and constrictions. We are not entirely free; we have acquired (or been acquired by, a new master). We are no longer beholden to the cruel and Pharaoh, but to a loving and caring God who has rules for us to follow as part of our covenantal relationship
Which brings us full circle. Yes, some of the physical work and drudgery are kind of ordained. We need to rid our homes of chametz. We need it to be clean. We need to purchase and prepare food. It is all part of the Mitzvot of Pesach. We also need to clean the chametz from our souls, remove resentment suspicion, hatred and ignorance from our hearts and souls and remember kindness empathy and compassion. “Be kind to the stranger because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” We just need to do it in a way and with an attitude that understand that the requirements are part of the bargain that ultimately brings us the joy.
CHAG SAMEACH V’KASHER
