In this last week before Passover, I want to wish you and your families a meaningful, spiritually nourishing and joyous Passover holiday!
This morning I attended a wonderful Passover model seder at Solomon Schechter of Greater Monmouth County. What made the seder most enjoyable was that I learned a few new things as the teacher was leading the class in the ritual of the seder. One small insight of many that I found meaningful had to do with the text in the magid that begins with the Hebrew words “v’hee she-amdah.”
The text reads:
This (v’hee) has stood for our parents and for us in good stead. For not just one enemy has stood against us to wipe us out. But in every generation there have been those who have stood against us to wipe us out. Yet the Holy One, Blessed be God, keeps on saving us from their hands.
The teacher asked a question that was obvious, but which I had never considered. “What is the word ‘this’ in the first sentence referring to? There seems to be no noun following the word “this.” Using Hebrew numerology (gematriah), she taught us that the secret can be found in breaking up the Hebrew letters of the word for “this.” (v’hee…). The first Hebrew letter stood for the books of the mishnah (vav) , the second for the five books of the Torah (hey) , the third for the ten commandments (yud), and the fourth for our belief in one God (aleph). She went on to say that it is through our commitment to learning, and to striving to live lives of faith, that we have been kept “in good stead” and have survived to, quite literally, tell the tale.
It is with this in mind that I want to encourage you to remember that you seder is to be an educational experience. Bring your questions, encourage discussion, make the seder personal and relevant, and try not to simply rush to the meal. The seder is designed to be a ritual, filled with sacred learning, personal meaning, in addition to the creation of family memories. Without the learning, the seder is empty. Without sharing questions and insights, the seder is simply another meal. Our commitment to learning, and all that flows from that commitment has been the key to our survival for all of these years. So bring your questions, your insights, and your struggles to the table. Encourage the kids to ask questions and get involved. And remember that it is precisely this kind of ritual, centered around education and collective memory, that has been the key to our survival all of these years!
Wishing you and your family’s a hag kasher v’sameach, a meaningful and memorable Passover!
**For information about the Feast/Fast of the First Born, selling your Hametz, and our synagogue Passover schedule, please click here.