Two Kinds of Freedom; Freedom From And Freedom To Be (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Lost Sailor")

 

          We have schlepped boxes from the basement to the kitchen. We have emptied our pantry of all the Chametz (all the “non-kosher for Pesach” foods and platters. We have filled the pantry with our Kosher for Pesach dishes, and cooking utensils. We set up a shelving unit to hold the kosher for Pesach food. We have closed-up cabinets and drawers that hold our regular year-round kitchen stuff.  We have carried out our Chametz and “disowned” it.  The bedrooms have been cleaned ( and what our son found while cleaning his room was ruly incredible!). We made numerous trips to the supermarket, so much so, that I have my own reserved parking spot. We have cleaned the kitchen over and over and over again. Of course, there is the yearly discussion of the menu: the Chef wants to make different dishes as she has grown bored making the same foods year in and year out. However, those of us who work as her sous chef and actually eat the food. yearn for the comfort of the same seasonal holiday foods that have been served every year.  The kitchen is about 15 degrees warmer than the rest of the house because it seems that the oven has been on all week. Yes, the Pesach preparations seem never-ending and filled with discussions and arguments about which spouse is strict or lenient regarding what is and is not Kosher for Passover and which Rabbi supports the respective spouse’s interpretation.   Indeed it seems very easy to get bogged down in the minutiae and the detail that we forget the purpose of this slave-like labor and preparation. 

          This Shabbat marks the first day of Pesach, Zman Cheiruteinu – the Time of our Freedom, as well as being Shabbat, Yom Menucha, and a Day of Rest.  Because Pesach comes once a year and Shabbat occurs fifty-two times a year, on this particular Shabbat, Pesach tends to be our focus. We didn’t just partake in a Shabbat dinner; we participated in a Seder.  We don’t read from the weekly Torah reading, we read that part of the Torah that focuses upon the narrative of the first Passover celebration in Egypt as B’nai Yisroel was about to become a free people and leave Egypt. U’Lekachetem Agudat Eizov Utvaltem BaDam Asher BaSaf V’HiGaTem El HaMaSHKoF V’El SHTei HaMZuZoT MiN HaDaM Asher BaSaF V’ATeM Lo TeiTZu ISh MiPeTaCH BeiTo Ad  BoKeR -  You Shall take a bundle of hyssop and dip it into the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with some of the blood that is in the basin and as for you, you shall not leave the entrance of the house until morning (Ex. 12:22). At some point during that tension-filled night, B’nei Yisroel would be freed. What was the exact moment of their freedom? What minute, what hour in the night were these slaves finally freed? The text does not tell us. No specific time is mentioned. Rather, the text tells us that by morning the slaves would be freed from slavery. And we would become obligated to retell this story to each generation.

            So we are obligated to tell this story to each generation. What is more, we are commanded to see ourselves as if we were actually slaves in Egypt and freed that night. Yet all we can say is that we were freed at some point during the night. At what exact time, who can say? Yet each week. we know exactly what time we stop. We know exactly what time we light Shabbat or Yom Tov (Festival) candles in order to usher in the Sabbath and the Chag (Festival). We know exactly when these moments begin and when these moments conclude.  Needless to say, when my son and I are sitting in Shul on Friday night, ushering in both the Sabbath and the Festival of Pesach, we will emit a large cleansing breath, knowing that our preparations are finished, and our work leading up to Zman Cheiruteinu, the Time of Our Freedom, is complete (or as complete as it can be). I know that when my son and I walk into our home, and the Seder Table is set, the candles are glowing and my wife and daughters are sitting quietly for just a moment catching their collective breaths, they are aware of this powerful moment.  At that moment of quiet and calm, we see Shabbat and Pesach conflate into the deepest possible understanding of freedom. At this moment, the final boxes have been put away, the preparation finished, the meal is cooked and we can now partake of freedom. Yes, we are free to sit, free to eat and drink. We are free to ask questions. We are free to offer answers. We are free to discuss and we are free to tell the story. Because we are free to do these seemingly trivial things: eat, drink, ask questions, answer, discuss, and tell stories; we understand and appreciate not only Pesach- Zman Cheiruteinu (Time of Our Freedom), but Shabbat- Yom Menucha (a Day of Rest) as well.

 Peace and Chag Kasher V’Sameach,
  Rav Yitz  

Some Folks Trust To Reason (Robert Hunter, Bob Weir & Mickey Hart - "Playing In The Band")

           Well, we have been living with Covid for over a year now. For the second year in a row, the Passover Seder will look remarkably similar to the prior year but unlike any other year that me, my children, or even my parents can remember. However, there is something different than last year. This year we watch the news and follow the science and eagerly await the opportunity to receive our vaccine. The vaccine reminds us of the importance that society requires experts. Often, listening to the experts, the epidemiologists,  the virologists, the public health experts, has been the difference between life and death.  It seems kind of obvious, and it is the advice that we give our children. When unsure of something, get information from someone who knows. Who is someone that knows? Normally we assume that an expert knows or at least knows whatever their expertise is in. If a person has a question about personal finance or needs an accountant, one doesn’t speak to a doctor. If one has a medical question or needs a doctor, that person doesn’t see a lawyer. When a person has a halachic question or needs to speak to a Rabbi, well the person should probably not seek an answer from a lawyer, a doctor, an accountant or a businessman, or someone who happens to attend shul regularly.  We have been taught to seek out experts. 

          This week’s Parsha is Tzav. It is also Shabbat HaGadol, the Shabbat that immediately precedes Chag HaPesach, the Passover Festival. Like last week’s Parsha, Parsha Tzav focuses upon KoRBonot (offerings). While last week, we read of God’s commanding Moshe to teach the laws of KoRBonot (offerings) to B’nei Yisroel; this week we read of God commanding Moshe to teach the laws of KoRBonot (offerings) to Aaron and his sons. The Parsha concludes with instructions for Aaron and his sons to remain outside the camp for seven days. These are the seven days required for spiritual and to some degree physical preparation and process required to become an expert.  The Priests must remain outside of the camp because they are in the process of purifying themselves for this extremely sacred and vital position, Kohen Gadol.

          Besides Moshe, the Kohen Gadol was the most vital role in Israelite society. It was the Kohen Gadol that served as a vehicle for the common person to draw closer to God. When the common person or the king needed to atone, they would bring an offering to God. However, it was the Priest that had to check for blemishes, It was the priest that had to slaughter the animal in a very precise way. It was the priest that had to sprinkle the correct amount of blood in the correct manner.  Later on, it was the priest who became the “spiritual advisor” to the king. Unlike any other position, the Priesthood was based upon two requirements: genealogical lineage and training. The position was promised by God to Aaron and his descendants for eternity (or as long as there was a Temple).  The focus of the Parsha is entirely upon Aaron and his sons. Tzav et Aharon V’ Et Banav Leimor Zot Torah Ha’Olah Hee - Command Aaron and his sons saying: This is the law of the elevation offering (6:1-2); Zot Torat HaMacheneh Harkreiv Otah Bnei Aharon Lifnei Hashe el Pnei HaMizbeach - this is the law of the meal offering: the sons of Aaron shall bring it before Hashem to the front of the Altar. Lev. 6:7. Zeh Korbon Aharon U’Vanav Asher Yakrivu La’Adoshem God spoke to Moses saying: This is the offering of Aaron and his sons, which each shall offer to Hashem on the day he is inaugurated 6:12-13. Nearly every offering focuses upon the Kohen’s responsibilities: checking to make sure that the offering is blemish-free, that the slaughtering is done with one clean stroke of the knife, that it is done and that it is done at the appropriate time. The entire institution of the  Korbonot hinges upon the purity and expertise of the Kohen. 

Our sages understood the importance of experts and learning from experts. They understood the importance of not paying attention to the Am Ha’Aretz. An expert has specific knowledge and wisdom that needs to be transmitted. The Kohen’s expertise allowed B’nei Yisroel to achieve a closer relationship with God. An expert finds a vaccine, an expert knows how to distribute the vaccine quickly and efficiently. An expert knows how to make sure that a community establishes herd immunity quickly. An expert understands how to “push down the curve”. From an expert, we learn facts and truth. Yes, we watch the news and listen to the experts here in Canada and in the U.S. and appreciate their depth of truth and the clarity in which they share their expertise.

Peace,

Rav Yitz

I Got A Feelin' There's No Time To Lose, No Time To Lose (John Barlow & Bob Weir - "Saint of Circumstance")

My daughter and I went to the supermarket last week in order to get the requisite Kosher for Pesach foods needed for my wife’s assorted recipes. Actually, like many Jews, we went to the supermarket more than once. However on one particular journey to the supermarket, as we were pushing our cart through the throng of Jews, a man carrying a food basket was walking against the flow of supermarket traffic looking decidedly out of place and lost. First, he had a cross hanging from his neck. Yet he was entering the melee of the Kosher for Passover section. He saw me and my daughter just as we left the “Kosher For Passover” section as he drew towards us and said, “Excuse me.” He said he noticed the Kippah on my head. My daughter knew exactly what was going through my mind. I wish had been wearing a baseball cap. I smiled and said to this man with the cross hanging from his neck, “there are many people wearing a kippa on their head and there are even a few wearing black Fedoras and or Borsellino hats.” He smiled and explained that he has already tried speaking to four men. It seems that no one has time for him. My daughter knew what I was thinking: Leave immediately. However, I also knew what my daughter was thinking: be patient and listen. So I smiled and explained it is a very busy time and then I asked him how I could help him. The man had written an article about the Kingdom of God, and the impending Salvation of the Jewish People. He thought it would be particularly poignant to read at this time of year and he needed some input from Jews. He asked me if I could take the time to read it. I looked at my daughter, my eyes pleading with her to give me her permission for me to politely remove ourselves from this very uncomfortable position. She nodded and I turned to the man and politely said that I would love to read the article but I was very busy preparing for the Passover Festival. The man said something stunning. He had written an article about God and mankind and it seems that the Jews don’t have time for God. He then remarked that he was saddened and surprised that these people had no time for God. Now I was growing very impatient and my daughter saw me draw my breath to speak. I leaned in and quietly told the man that while it may seem that these people are all in a hurry, and explain that they don’t have time to stop and speak with you, that doesn’t mean that they don’t have time for God. Every one of these people shopping for Passover, every one of these people preparing for Passover was making time for God. Then I suggested that maybe they weren’t making time for him and the version of God and God’s Kingdom and God’s Salvation, that he felt compelled to discuss with Jews whose focus was on Passover. I wished him a good day and good luck.

This Shabbat marks the first day of Pesach. Pesach is known as Zman Cheiruteinu – the Time of our Freedom. Shabbat is known as Yom Menucha and a Day of Rest.  Because Pesach comes once a year and Shabbat occurs fifty-two time a year, on this particular Shabbat, Pesach tends to be our focus. We didn’t just partake of a Shabbat dinner; we participated in a Seder.  We don’t read from the weekly Torah reading, we read a special Torah reading that focuses upon the narrative of the first Passover celebration in Egypt as B’nai Yisroel was about to become a free people and leave Egypt. U’Lekachetem Agudat Eizov Utvaltem BaDam Asher BaSaf V’HiGaTem El HaMaSHKoF V’El SHTei HaMZuZoT MiN HaDaM Asher BaSaF V’ATeM Lo TeiTZu ISh MiPeTaCH BeiTo Ad  BoKeR -  You Shall take a bundle of hyssop and dip it into the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with some of the blood that is in the basin and as for you, you shall not leave the entrance of the house until morning (Ex. 12:22).  We had to choose a lamb, slaughter a lamb, cook a lamb, eat it and ask questions. In a sense, it seems like we had to hurry up and wait for redemption.

Fridays and the hours leading up to Shabbat have are hectic quality in their own right. Passover preparations are a completely different type of hectic sensibility. The Shabbat “hectic” begins slowly maybe in the middle of the week it culminates in the minutes before candle lighting. The hectic before Pesach begins slowly weeks in advance when the Kosher for Passover food arrives in the stores. It builds with invitations to Seders, menus, shopping lists, and schlepping boxes, converting a kitchen and then cooking. Even when the Festival begins, there is still a sense of hectic when the Seder begins. We need to complete the Seder by midnight. One type of hectic is necessary for being able to appreciate Shabbat as Yom Menucha, a day of rest. However, the other type of hectic is necessary for us to appreciate Pesach as Zman Cheiruteinu – time for our freedom. One type of hectic causes us a desire to catch our breath from the mundane activities of the week. One type of hectic causes us to appreciate the hard work required to be a free people engaged in a holy relationship. So when a man wanting to tell me about his version of God, redemption, and salvation; how do we explain that dealing with “the hectic” and “the chaos” in preparation is really Lichvod Shabbat, and Lichvod Chag HaPesach, for the honour and respect of Shabbat and Pesach and God?  The fact was, all these people that he saw hurrying about had a very specific deadline in order to welcome the Sabbath Bride and be prepared for our Freedom.  Sometimes the preparations for the sacred are tantamount to the sacred moment itself. 

Peace and Chag Kasher V’Sameach,

Rav Yitz 

All Your Life, You Were Only Waiting For This Moment To Be Free (John Lennon & Paul McCartney- "Blackbird")

We have schlepped boxes from the basement to the kitchen. We have emptied our pantry of all the Chametz (all the “non-kosher for Pesach” foods and platters. We have filled the pantry with our Kosher for Pesach dishes, and cooking utensils. We set up a shelving unit to hold the kosher for Pesach food. We have closed up cabinets and drawers that hold our regular year-round kitchen stuff.  We have carried out our Chametz and “disowned” it.  Our children have finally cleaned up their rooms (some of the things they found was truly incredible). We made numerous trips to the supermarket, so much so, that I have my own reserved parking spot. We have cleaned the kitchen over and over and over again. My poor mother-in-law thought she was coming to just visit her daughter and grandchildren had been put to work by my wife. Of course, there is the yearly discussion of the menu: the Chef wants to make different dishes as she has grown bored making the same foods year in and year out. However, those of us who work as the sous chefs and actually eat the food yearn for the comfort of the same seasonal holiday foods that gets served every year.  The kitchen is about 15 degrees warmer than the rest of the house because it seems that the oven has been on all week. Yes, the Pesach preparations seem never-ending. Discussions and arguments about what is and is not Kosher for Passover and which Rabbi supports a lenient or a strict interpretation occurs constantly.   Indeed it seems very easy to get bogged down in the minutiae and the detail that we forget the purpose of this slave-like labor and preparation. 

This Shabbat marks the first day of Pesach, Zman Cheiruteinu – the Time of our Freedom, as well as being Shabbat, Yom Menucha, and a Day of Rest.  Because Pesach comes once a year and Shabbat occurs fifty-two time a year, on this particular Shabbat, Pesach tends to be our focus. We didn’t just partake of a Shabbat dinner; we participated in a Seder.  We don’t read from the weekly Torah reading, we read a special Torah reading that focuses upon the narrative of the first Passover celebration in Egypt as B’nai Yisroel was about to become a free people and leave Egypt. U’Lekachetem Agudat Eizov Utvaltem BaDam Asher BaSaf V’HiGaTem El HaMaSHKoF V’El SHTei HaMZuZoT MiN HaDaM Asher BaSaF V’ATeM Lo TeiTZu ISh MiPeTaCH BeiTo Ad  BoKeR -  You Shall take a bundle of hyssop and dip it into the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with some of the blood that is in the basin and as for you, you shall not leave the entrance of the house until morning (Ex. 12:22). At some point during that tension-filled night, B’nei Yisroel would be freed. What was the exact moment of their freedom? What minute, what hour in the night were these slaves finally freed? The text does not tell us. The text only tells us that by morning the slaves would be freed from slavery but obligated to retell the story to each generation.

                So we are obligated to tell this story to each generation. What is more, we are commanded to see ourselves as if we were actually slaves in Egypt and freed that night. Yet all we can say is that we were freed at some point during the night. At what exact time who can say? Yet each week we know exactly what time we stop. We know exactly what time we light Shabbat or Yom Tov (Festival) candles in order to usher in the Sabbath and the Chag (Festival). We know exactly when these moments begin and when these moments conclude.  Needless to say, when my son and I are sitting in Shul on Friday night, ushering in both the Sabbath and the Festival of Pesach, we will emit a large cleansing breath, knowing that our preparations are finished, and our work leading up to Zman Cheiruteinu, the Time of Our Freedom, is complete ( or as complete as it can be). I know that when my son and I walk into our home, and the Seder Table is set, the candles are glowing and my wife, daughters, and mother in law are sitting quietly for just a moment catching their collective breaths, that they are aware of this powerful moment, a moment where Shabbat and Pesach has conflated into the deepest possible understanding of what freedom is. Tt this moment, the final boxes have been put away, the preparation finished, the meal is cooked and we can now partake of freedom. Yes, we are free to sit, free to eat, drink. We are free to ask questions. We are free to offer answers. We are free to discuss and we are free to tell the story. Because we are free to do these seemingly trivial things: eat, drink, ask questions, answer, discuss, and tell stories; we understand and appreciate not only Pesach- Zman Cheiruteinu (Time of Our Freedom), but Shabbat- Yom Menucha (a Day of Rest) as well.

Peace and Chag Kasher V’Sameach,

Rav Yitz  

Talk About Your Plenty, Talk About Your Ills ( Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia & Phil Lesh - "St. Stephen").

 One of the most fascinating aspects of the Pesach Seder is that educationally speaking, it provides a wonderful form of instruction. It utilizes props, food, stories of real live heroes, song, as well as mythical paradigms with whom we can all identify. The most famous of these paradigms are the Arbah Banim, the Four Sons, or the Four Children, The Chacham – The wise child, The Rashah, known as the Rebellious child, the Tam, the simple child, and Sheino Yodeah Lishol- the one who does not know how to ask. With four children, each year we can see how they begin to take on different aspects of each category. A question that our family has always struggled with is the answer offered to the Rebellious Child and the answer offered to the Child Who Does Not Know How To Ask.

The Rebellious child (the RaShAh) asks a question. The Haggadah answers using the same words as its answer to The One Who Does Not Know How to Ask (Sheino Yodeah Lishol).  The Rebellious Child asks Mah HaAVodah HaZot Lachem – What does this service mean to you?  The Haggadah’s answer is taken from The Book of Exodus 13:8: Ba’Avur Zeh Asah Hashem Li B’tzeiti Mimitzrayim- Because this is what Hashem did for me when I left Egypt. However prior to the answer the Haggadah issues the following instruction: V’Af Atah Hakhei et Shinav – We set his teeth on edge, V’Amor Lo, then recite to him. The words are not enough, the answer must be delivered with a certain tone. The tone offers context and provides a deeper meaning than just the words from Exodus 13:8. The reason is because when he asked what the service meant to you, he of course excluded himself so the answer we give to the Rashah should be exclusive. The words appear to exclude the Rebellious Child, the tone is exceedingly confrontational to the Rebellious Child. We are to literally “knock his teeth out” with our answer.

Our answer to Sheino Yodeah Lishol is a citation from the same verse Bavur zeh Asah Hashem Li B’tzeiti Mimitzrayim – because of what Hashem did for me. A superficial reading suggests that this answer alienates this child like the same answer alienates the Rebellious child. However the two answers of very different because the questions and the questioner are different. The Child That Doesn’t Know How To Ask, never asked the question. The Haggadah gave an answer to an inquisitive look.  We can understand the Four Children as symbols four developmental categories leading to adulthood. The Child That Doesn’t Know How To Ask is the baby. The Rebellious Child is the teenager or the young adult that is single and not yet settled down. We can also understand these four Children symbolically representing different types of Jews. In either case, The Child That Doesn’t Know How to Ask has no obligation, doesn’t understand the concept of Chiyuv (obligation), nor can be expected to observe anything since the child does not know what to do nor how to do it. The words that constitute our answer should be simple, straightforward, but our tone should be warm, inviting, supportive and demonstrating concern.

Regarding the RaShah, it is important that we have some perspective about the Rebellious Child. The RaShah does not embody complete evil. The word for pure un-adulterated Evil is  RaH, Reish Ayin.  The Shin, the middle letter in RaShah, according to Kabbala, is a “good” letter. The Shin is a representative of God, for example one of the names for God is El Shadai. The Shin is the letter that appears on the Mezuzah and on Tefillin. So, because of the Shin in the word Rashah, we know that there is some hope for this soul. There is Godliness within the Rebellious Child. The RaShah should not be infantilized. Intellectually, The Rebellious Child understands that he is rebelling against something. Therefore, the teenager, or the educated Jew that rebels against Judaism, understand the idea of Chiyuv, religious obligation, and the idea of Jewish peoplehood, of Jewish community and transmitting a tradition. The Haggadah’s answer is designed to break down the RaShah’s arrogant tone. The same energy used for disrupting and negatively influencing others to stray can be channeled for a positive purpose. The Haggadah’s answer is not only for the benefit of RaShah but for those that the RaShah could influence. Of the four children, the most impressionable is One Who Does Not Know How to Ask (Sheino Yodeah Lishol). Words don’t necessarily suffice. This child is influenced by action and by deed. As easily as this child is influence by the RaShah, he or she will be just as easily influenced by the way in which we respond to the RaShah. Therefore when the RaShah has his teeth ground by the answer given, and eventually becomes less rebellious, he becomes a wonderful example to the one who does not know how to ask.

My wife and I are blessed with four children. It is remarkable that each Pesach we are able to gauge where they are developmentally when we discuss Yetziat Mitzrayim, The Exodus from Egypt. It amazes us when one listens and nods, another argues but accepts, another argues and refuses to listen or be bothered and one might not even be engaged but is just too hungry to be bothered. We understand that our words matter. But our deeds matter more.  In celebrating freedom we understand that ultimately we are responsible for our deeds. So when we answer our children’s questions, not only our words matter; and not only our tone matters. Our answers must be consistent with our deeds, and if they are not we have to be able to explain and teach our children.

Peace,

Rav Yitz