Jewish Power: What we can Learn from the Church’s Mistakes

by Ner Tamid | May 4, 2025 | Sermons

My children tell me I talk about Christianity too often. They tell me that it’s weird for a rabbi to say Jesus from the pulpit as often as I do. They’re probably right. But, in my defense, for the past 1500 years so much of our history has been directly influenced by Christianity that it’s hard to escape. So today, as Catholic leaders are busy negotiating behind closed doors who will be the next pope – a question that has tremendous ramifications to Israel and to the Jewish People, I think it’s a good a time as any to talk about Christianity in general, and Pope Francis in particular. And to my children, just chalk this up as another argument you lost to your father…

There are a number of alleged mentions of Jesus in the Talmud. I say alleged because there is much scholarly debate if the individual or individuals mentioned are actually Jesus or someone else. My favorite story is one found at the end of Maseches Sanhedrin involving Rav Yehoshua ben Prachya. The story goes that Rav Yehoshua ben Prachya, one of the leading sages of his time, was travelling with his students when one of the students made an indecent comment. Rav Yehoshua was shocked by his student’s comment and banished him by putting him in cherem. The student, named Yeshu, which is Hebrew for Jesus, begged his teacher for forgiveness numerous times. Each time he was rejected. Until finally, the student came to ask for forgiveness, and his teacher, Rav Yehoshua, was ready to forgive him, only that he was davening. So instead of speaking, he motioned to his student. Rav Yehoshua meant, hold on a moment. Yeshu understood him to indicate that he should go away. And he did. The Gemara concludes that all the evil that befell the Jewish People at the hands of this man and his followers were caused by the great sage, Rav Yehoshua ben Prachya.

I love this Gemara because it is a perfect example of how Jews are supposed to learn history. We do not point fingers. We do not vlame or play the victim. Instead of highlighting all the things that Jesus and his followers did to us, the Gemara challenges us to ask, what did we do wrong in this situation? How can we grow? How can we change?

I love this Gemara, but the Christian censors in medieval Europe did not. They felt like it was offensive and forced the printers to remove the whole story from the Talmud. If you have an older edition of the Talmud from a Christian country, that section would be missing.

Of course, censorship was the least of our problems for much of medieval history. As James Carroll observes, Christianity was originally a movement that opposed violence and power. And yet, Constantine, the Roman Emperor came along and made Christianity synonymous with power and violence. For the next thousand years, Jews were persecuted for their faith by their Christian neighbors.

In the 15^th century, a decision was made by the leaders of the Inquisition that would have ripple effects all the way to the Holocaust. Until that point in history, Jews were evil because they chose to reject who they believed to be the true messiah. But in the 15^th century this posed a problem. Many Jews, especially in Spain and Portugal, started converting to Christianity. The church was not happy; they had all sorts of incentives, political and financial to continue discriminating against these converted Jews. And so they decided to discriminate against Jews not because of their faith but because of their race, allowing the church to lead a witch-hunt against Jews who converted, who they described as Marranos, literally, pigs. Carrol argues that this shift, from discriminating by faith to discriminating by race, paved the way for the Nazis a few hundred years later, to do the same. The road from Rome to Auschwitz, argues James Carroll, is a straight one.

It’s an intriguing thesis. James Carroll, a former priest uses it to point a finger at the modern church, begging them to introspect and ask themselves if they have don enough to undo the harm they caused.

Following in the footsteps of the story of Rav Yehoshua ben Prachya, I’d like to use this story not to point fingers outward, but inward, and use this story for introspection.

For virtually the entire history of Christianity, Christians were the ones in power and Jews were powerless. The church abused that power to amass wealth and to gain political support. But now, for the first time since Jesus was born, we, the Jewish People have power. We, the Jewish People have a country and an army and the ability to wield that power over others. And now we need to look in the mirror and ask ourselves if we are using this power appropriately.

Let’s be abundantly clear, does the State of Israel need to do everything in its power to defend her people? Yes. Has the State of Israel gone above and beyond in limiting the deaths of Arabs in all its wars, including in the current war against Gaza? Without a doubt. When a nation wages war, there are consequences and people in that nation, even if they are entirely innocent, will die. And the only one to blame, in this case, is Hamas. Have peace deals, the exit of Gush Katif in any way shape or form worked? Have the PA or Hamas been partners in peace? No. Not even close. Full stop.

But there is a growing trend of racism in some of our circles. Jews who deny the notion of tzelem Elokim, of the intrinsic value of every human being, and comfortably describe Arabs as subhuman. There are Jews who argue that we are allowed to take justice into our own hands by firebombing mosques, by terrorizing Arab children, and much worse. None of that is acceptable.

This is not an indictment on any current or past political figure in Israel. It really isn’t. They don’t matter. (See Noam Weissman for a great analysis of modern Kahanism: https://unpacked.media/meir-kahane-jewish-defender-or-jewish-supremacist/.) We’re not talking to them. As the Talmud teaches us through the story of Rav Yehoshu ben Prachya, the only thing that matters is us; what we do and what we think. How do we, Jews who are finally in a position of power, think about that power?

Are Arabs ‘animals’ that must be treated as such by vigilantes, or alternatively, are we in a war, and must do whatever is necessary to protect the Jewish People and fight our enemies through the State of Israel’s military apparatus? Those are not the same.

Are all Arabs ‘bloodthirsty’ and undeserving of peace, or alternatively, must we be exceptionally skeptical of any peace agreements, and yes, entertain idea that may even be politically incorrect to ensure the safety of the Jewish People? Those are not the same.

There is a big difference between those two sides. One is about denigrating other human beings and the other is about personal safety – the ethical imperative to ensure one’s own safety and the safety of one’s family.

We now have the sword and we now have authority. And that is a terrible and complicated responsibility.

Which brings me back to Pope Francis.

I’ll be honest, I was initially very excited when he was elected as pope. I was enamored by the images of him riding that dinky little car instead of a royal entourage. I was moved by the pictures of him caring for the most needy and broken. He exemplified one of the characteristics that the original priests, the Kohanim, were meant to characterize. In our parsha we read how the Metzora, the leper, who is banished from the camp, is visited by the Kohein. The Kohein is there not only for technical reasons, but to give chizzuk, to give support, to give guidance and love to the individual who is an outcast. In this respect, Pope Francis was a model of what a spiritual leader should look like.

But there is another role for the Kohein; he is also the spiritual guide, a person of authority. This week’s parsha goes into overwhelming detail as to how the Kohein assesses whether or not the leprosy is indeed Tzoraas. He visits the Metzora once and then again and then a third time. Each time, he measures, he analyzes, and he weighs. To be a spiritual leader one must be able to be mavdil bein kodesh l’chol, bein hatamei uvein hatahor. Crystal clear guidance is needed.

And in this respect, Pope Francis fell woefully short. He spoke positively about gay unions but outlawed gay marriage. In doing so, he confused his followers and caused confusion to the entire religious world. He spoke out against sexual abuse in the church, and appointed a friend, Victor Manuel Fernandez, as prefect despite his well-known history of sexual abuse. In doing so, he gave false hope and sewed frustration in the hearts of the most vulnerable. And, as he did in his final address, he spoke out against antisemitism – he was undoubtedly opposed to those who discriminated against Jews, and in that same speech, vilified the Jewish state, and in doing so, paved the way for even more antisemitism.

A spiritual guide is an authority, his or her role is to provide clarity. One of the greatest gifts that our Torah presents to us is the knowledge that this is moral and this is not, from the moment of conception until we take our last breath, the Torah clearly defines what we should do and should not do, what is right and what is wrong. Religion is meant to provide clarity in a relativistic confusing world, l’havdil bein kodesh l’chol, bein hatamei uvein hatahor.

Will the church learn the lessons of history and elect a pontiff who will once and for all undo the harm caused by two thousand years of the Christian sword? Will they put into power someone who can provide moral clarity in a world of confusion? I really hope so. But even more importantly, will we?

Israel, the Spectacular, Israel, the Normal

by Ner Tamid | Apr 27, 2025 | Sermons

The other day, Miri, my four-year-old, got on the phone with my mother, her grandmother. “How is Israel?” my mother asked.

“Great!” my daughter replied.

My mother followed up with the classic question, “What was your favorite part?”

I started listening. Would she say it was kissing the kotel? Seeing so many Jews at Birkas Kohanim? Spending so much time with her immediate and extended family?

“The ice cream.”

That’s what she said. “My favorite part of Israel was the ice cream.”

Now there happens to be a really great chain of Israeli ice cream stores called Katzefet, and the ice cream is great. But I was a little disappointed. I packed seven huge pieces of luggage, spent all this time, money, effort, and energy, for my daughter to come home and say she enjoyed Israeli ice cream. Meh.

Kids are a lot more insightful than we give them credit for. I think Mirir was actually onto something when she described the best part of our trip to Israel was the ice cream.

I’ve been to Israel quite a few times over the past few years; each time for either on a mission or to attend a conference. At conferences, I would inevitably meet high-ranking politicians, great rabbis, Jewish leaders. Whether it was in the lectures they delivered, or the conversations I had with them in in the hallways, I would typically walk away from such encounters more educated and inspired and feeling pretty elevated after meeting such special people.

On these missions, we’d typically visit unique places, places like the Nova site, and those tours would be led by people who survived. Moving. Chilling. Inspiring.

Sometimes they’d take you to places that no one else has access to. Thrilling.

Maybe we’d go to some special prayer gathering led by someone with a soul-stirring voice. Transformative.

The trip I just went on with my family from the beginning to the end was the exact opposite. We stayed in Katamon, a predominantly Israeli and Hebrew-speaking community. As a tourist I stood out.

We shopped in the Israeli supermarkets. Which by the way are insane. It’s like someone took all the products in Costco, threw them in the air, and let them land wherever. “Where’s the oil?”

“Ehhhm. The oil is next to the garbage bags.”

Interesting.

We didn’t daven in any fancy, uplifting, unique shuls. We davened in what is known as the Katmon shtiblich. The shtiblich are like Rabbi Eichenstein’s shul. It has better traffic control outside, but inside it is far more chaotic. There is no set nusach in that shul. Whomever gets up to be the chazzan can lead in whichever nusach he wants. It’s like a game. We finish shemoneh esrei and there’s a short pause. Everyone’s guessing, what’s he going to do next? Sefardi one day, Asheknaz the next. Teimani. Hodge-potch of both. I was waiting for some Christian Missionary to get up one day and start leading davening. It was a mess. And was also genuinely Israeli. No games, no performances. Everyone from all walks of Jewish life crowded into a small space with no air conditioning.

There is a book that someone wrote about what he learned from Israeli taxi drivers. These guys, often times with no kippah on their head, spout forth so much Emunah, so much faith, it’s incredible. On our trip, we barely used taxis.

When we arrived, I somehow persuaded my family not to take a taxi. We did what every Israeli does and took the bullet train from the airport to Jerusalem. I made everyone in my family lug this huge piece of luggage with them, even Miri. We got off the train and then we took a bus to where we were staying. Now here they made a mistake by listening to me because I have no sense of direction and I took them – after a stopover flight with seven huge pieces of luggage, after a train ride, on the right bus, going in the wrong direction. We eventually got there. Very sweaty and a little smelly. Again, very Israeli.

We did use one or two taxis when we had to, but there were no inspiring stories, The last taxi I took, the driver – an Arab – told me how has three wives and laughed at me that I only had one. I’m still not sure if he was being honest, just messing with me, or was undercover Mossad agent.

The most famous person I saw on this trip was Natan Sharansky. I walked by him taking a stroll with his wife Avital on Yom Tov. I wished them a Chag Sameiach. They looked at me, shrugged, and walked on.

Again, classic Israeli experience.

So yes, when my little daughter said that “ice cream” was her favorite part of the trip that was a good summary. It was as quiet and normal as can be. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that normal was the best possible Israel experience I could have given my children.

You see, this Thursday is Yom Ha’atzmaut. We will be saying Hallel in our shul as we always do. There will be celebrations next door at Shomrei which we will participate in. And on Yom Ha’atzmaut we get excited about the gift of Israel, how in just over 75 years, a strip of desert-land has bloomed, how a ragtag group of intellectuals and survivors created one of the most sophisticated armies, how kibbutznkim created a tech hub, and how Torah has exploded in our holy land. It’s hard to understand how people do not celebrate the gift of modern Israel.

But in doing so, in focusing on all these near-miraculous developments, we run the risk of ignoring the ice cream. By placing so much emphasis on Israel, the spectacular, we run the risk of losing sight of Israel, the normal.

Do we say a bracha for Hallel on Yom Ha’atzmaut? Do we not say a bracha for Hallel on Yom Ha’atzmaut? Great question. But that overshadows a bracha you will all be saying in an hour or so, a bracha many say daily. In the second paragraph of Birkas Hamazon, Baruch Ata Hashem al ha’aretz v’al hamazon. Thank you, Hashem, for the food and for the land.

That bracha was not composed 75 years ago, it was said by our ancestors in Babylon and Rome as Israel was a burning heap of rubble. The bracha was said by our ancestors in Europe as the Crusaders and Muslims soaked Israel’s soil in blood. The bracha was said when the land was described by Mark Twain as “a desolation… that not even imagination can grace with the pomp of life and action.”

Yes, we need to thank Hashem for the gift and the grandeur of modern Israel. But we also need to thank Hashem “al ha’aretz,” for the land, for having been given a place to call home, whether we were allowed to live in that home or not. G-d gave us a gift that our ancestors knew to appreciate even as it was barren and even as they lived thousands of miles away. And not just any land. Its stones, its dirt-baked streets, are all saturated with holiness. G-d gave us a shared space where He promised to one day meet up with us again.

When we only focus on the overt and extraordinary holiness – the people and places we’re exposed to on missions, then we lose sight of the fact that this land is holy and is ours and is special. Just because. Baruch ata Hashem al ha’aretz. Thank you for the gift of the land of Israel, Israel, the normal.

One of the most important institutions of Israel, the spectacular, is a Yeshiva called Har Etzion or “The Gush.” The story of the yeshiva goes back to 1943 when Kfar Etzion, an area 2 kilometers from Jerusalem was established. In 1948, one day before the declaration of Independence, after a grueling battle with the Jordanians, the people of Kfar Etzion surrendered. Despite their surrender, the Jordanians, with the help of local Arabs massacred over 150 Jews, including women and children. They burned the Kibbutz to the ground. The bodies of those massacred were left to rot until a yar later when Israelis were given permission to bury them. Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s memorial day, was established on the day before Israel’s Independence Day because of this horrific incident.

In 1967, the land returned to Jewish rule. A group of Jews immediately settled the land and a very short while later a Yeshiva opened, Yeshivat Har Etzion. This yeshiva attracts some of the brightest students in the world, and the vast majority of the students serve in the IDF. The yeshiva is a symbol for all that is spectacular about Israel.

With that in mind, let me share with you an observation made by its founding Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Yehuda Amital. Rav Amital points out that one of the most famous descriptions of the Messianic Era is that of Zechariah, the prophet. He does not describe Israel’s military power, or their spiritual greatness. Rather, “Od yeshvu z’keinim uz’keinos birchovos Yerushalayim.” Then, in that future time, old men and women will sit in the streets of Jerusalem. “וּרְחֹב֤וֹת הָעִיר֙ יִמָּ֣לְא֔וּ יְלָדִ֖ים וִֽילָד֑וֹת מְשַׂחֲקִ֖ים בִּרְחֹֽבֹתֶֽיהָ” And the streets will be filled with boys and girls playing in their streets. Playing, I imagine, and also eating ice cream.

Rav Amital, living on land sanctified by the blood of innocents, land that was redeemed by the strength of heroes, teaching in a yeshiva that was pumping out the leaders of Israel, he understood that the real gift of Israel is eternal, and its greatness is found in its simplest form.

Thank you, Hashem, for the gift of Israel, the spectacular. Thank you, Hashem, for the gift of Israel, the normal.

In Defense of Yeshiva University Parshas Pekudei

by Ner Tamid | Mar 30, 2025 | Sermons

This past Thursday night, a rabbi friend of mine texted me, “Watcha got?”

This is what rabbis do when they need an inspiring story, a new angle, or just to get those drasha-juices flowing.

I replied that I am thinking of talking about YU. I was referring to the news that this past week, how Yeshiva University came to an agreement with a group of students who wanted to open an LGBT club in the college. This controversy has been raging on for years in and out of court. There are legal issues at play as the college is officially a public institution, and of course, there are matters of Halacha and Hashkafah that have to be addressed.

My friend surprised me by saying that he was also thinking about talking about YU. “Really?’ I wrote back. My friend’s not the controversial type. He said, “Yes. But it has nothing to do with the club. My message is that no one should ever go to Yeshiva University, club or no club.”

The particular controversy around this club in YU is a very important one, one that I would like to revisit at a later time. Sorry, not today. Today, I’d like to reply my colleague and good friend, who will not be named, who, like many people before him, have suggested that Yeshiva University is intrinsically flawed, that one cannot have an institution that is both a yeshiva and a college, that the merging of the holy and the mundane is a grave mistake.

For starters, let me get this out of the way, I did not go to YU. I went to Ner Yisroel so I have no skin in this game. (Once we’re on the topic of where I did not go, I also did not go to any Chabad yeshivas despite my little beard and my tzitzis hanging out. I get that question a lot. Now that we got that out of the way…)

Yeshiva University was established in 1886. But the controversy around secular studies goes back almost 1000 years. It came to a head in the times of the Rambam, Maimonides, who famously incorporated Aristotelian thought into his worldview. Perhaps more accurately, Aristotelian though guided his worldview. One of the Rambam’s most famous works was Moreh Nevuchim in which he addressed every possible critique against the Torah, using what some would describe as secular logic.

In his lifetime, most people disagreed quietly, but after he died, the controversy exploded. His opponents were concerned that his openness to secular knowledge would suck people into a world that rejected G-d and the Torah. Ultimately, some of his opponents turned to the local authorities telling them that the Rambam’s book, Moreh Nevuchim, was a threat to all religions which led to one of the most tragic moments in Jewish history. In 1232, encouraged by enemies of the Rambam, a group of Dominican monks went through France, confiscated all the copies of Moreh Nevuchim they could get their hands on, and burned them in a public square.

In 1305, the Rashba, the leading Torah scholars of that time, tried to make a compromise between the opponents of learning secular studies and those who embraced it. He suggested that one can learn secular philosophy but only after the age of 25. His attempt at compromise went nowhere. Each side dug in even deeper.

On one side you had those who believed that a deeper knowledge of philosophy, of science, of history, broadens us. By extension, this group of Torah leaders believed that we should embrace and grapple with the world around us. On the other side, there were those who believed that any engagement in the world around us posed too many risks. They believed that worldviews that do not align to the Torah will draw us away from G-d and will distort our understanding of the Torah. The Vilna Gaon, after disagreeing with a ruling of the Rambam, famously quipped: “The Rambam’s engagement in philosophy caused him to err.” (Yoreh Deah, 179:6:3)

***

On Thursday night, I had the great joy of seeing one of my Rebbeim from Kerem B’Yavneh, Rav Mendel Blachman who was visiting Baltimore. He is a towering individual who I credit in so many ways for anything I have learned and accomplished in my life. One specific story is worth sharing in this context:

One Shabbos, our yeshiva, Kerem B’Yavneh, was visited by Rav Hershel Schachter, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva University. After Friday night dinner there was a Q and A session. One of my good friends, a bright guy with zero tact, got up to ask a question. “Rav Schachter, does it bother you that virtually all the Gedolim, all the great Torah scholars of the day, disagree with your worldview?” Among other things, my friend was referring to Rav Schachter leading Yeshiva University, a place where secular studies are explored side by side with Torah study, he was referring to Rav Schachter’s unabashed Zionism. These are positions that many of the great Torah leaders of our time disagree with. Rav Schachter being the humble person that he is, did not answer the question.

Sunday morning, my rebbi, Rav Blachman, came into our class. He opened the Gemara we were learning and then he closed it. Instead of delivering his regular Talmud class, he spent the next hour railing on those who believe there is only one hashkafah, one approach to understanding how a Torah Jew, is supposed to live their life. That is not the Jewish way. There has always been divergent views within Torah Judaism. And yes, there have been views beyond the pale; the Sadducees, the Karites , the Sabbateans, other denominations of Judaism and others. But within Torah Judaism, within a worldview that subscribes to absolute fidelity to the Torah and to the Sages, there has always been more than one way.

There are exceptions, there are Mitzvos that our Sages decided cannot have divergent views. Mitzvos like Kiddush Hachodesh, the sanctification of the new moon, the Jewish calendar. Imagine a world in which there were two views on what day Pesach starts, that would be a disaster. Such a debate would rip us apart as a people and that’s something we cannot allow. The Gemara shares a story in which Rabban Gamliel forced his colleague Rav Yehoshua to travel on the day Rav Yehoshua thought it was supposed to be Yom Kippur based on his interpretation because two calendars would upend Jewish unity. But this story is the exception! For the most part, honest, Torah-driven debate, was the rule. And that’s more than okay. It’s necessary. G-d created us with different temperaments, with different proclivities. Inasmuch as we have different tastes, there are different flavors to Judaism.

Rav Blachman concluded, not only was the question rude, it was wrong. Find yourself a Gadol, find yourself a great Torah scholar (not some guy with the title rabbi before his name who writes well on social media). Find someone who is immersed in Torah, and if his Torah worldview speaks to you, if it resonates with you, follow him. And stop looking over your shoulder, stop worrying about the fact that this or that great Torah scholar disagrees. Find your Torah leader and follow your own path.

Centrist Orthodoxy or Modern Orthodoxy or whatever you want to call it has a complex. Those who subscribe to it are constantly looking over their shoulder, and that’s ridiculous.

Is Rav Yosef Soloveitchik not worthy of following? Is Rav Avraham Yitzchak Kook not worthy of following?

In a world in which there are great rabbis telling people not to support the IDF and there are other great rabbis arguing that IDF soldiers are the holiest people on the planet, I don’t know about you, but that second group is far more compelling to me.

In a world in which all of us, whether you live in Teaneck or in Lakewood, is engaged in the secular world around us, and there are great rabbis pretending the world around us does not exist and there are great rabbis grappling with how to engage, what to keep and what to throw away, I don’t know about you, but that second group is far more compelling.

So no, Yeshiva University is not a bad place. If you are deciding between a college in which there is no Torah learning and a yeshiva college in which there is; if you are deciding between a college where the rate of attrition is sky-high, where a significant percentage of Jewish boys and girls are not remaining committed to their upbringing, which is virtually every secular college, and Yeshiva University, where yes, there may be a club that we will one day discuss, but for the most part, the students are able to live fully immersed Torah lives, the decision is clear. Yeshiva University is a gift.

Yes, our community needs to strengthen itself in its Torah observance. Yes, our community needs to elevate the way we pray, and it needs to step up the level of Torah learning. But do not be embarrassed. Do not be afraid. To walk in the footsteps of the Rambam, of the Ramchal, of Rav Kook, of Rav Soloveitchik, admas kodesh hu, we are on holy ground.

***

We just said the words, Chazak, Chazak, V’nis’chazeik, as we completed the book of Shemos. The Sefer Hamanhig points out that those words, “Chazak, be strong!” were first said to Yehoshua. This is not a coincidence. As opposed to his teacher, Moshe, who led the Jewish People in the desert, sequestered away from the distractions of the world, Yehoshua led the Jewish People in battle, he led the Jewish People into a life of commerce, into a life of worldly engagement, a life that we, our community, believes in. It takes strength to live a life of worldly engagement. So let’s be strong. Chazak, Chazak, V’nis’chazeik.

(Inspired by https://www.ou.org/sacred-and-profane-conflicts/)

Start Here: How to Properly Prepare for Pesach

by Ner Tamid | Mar 18, 2025 | Sermons

Have you started planning for Pesach yet? Are you cleaning? Cooking? Making a menu? Pulling your hair out?

If we were living in ancient Egypt at the time of Yetzias Mitzrayim, the Exodus, we would be chilling right now. Really. We weren’t working for the Egyptians – they had given up on us a few months prior. We did not yet know if and when we were leaving. I honestly don’t know what they were doing. Maybe they were getting camel rides or tours of the pyramids.

We read this morning (from the second Torah) that the Jewish People were introduced to the holiday of Pesach only fourteen days before it took place. That means that Pesach preparation would not start until this upcoming Thursday, Rosh Chodesh Nissan. You probably think that those two weeks were crazy; frenetic activity, getting ready for the very first Pesach seder, and even more so, getting ready to leave Egypt. But I don’t think it was as busy as you imagine.

Were the Jewish People spending their time cleaning their homes from chameitz?

No. The average size of an Egyptian home in 2000 BCE was about the size of a two-car garage. They were far more economical with their food. Hardly anything went to waste. How long would it take you to clean an already fairly clean two-car garage? An hour? Maybe.

Were they cooking?

No. They were only eating one meal at home and the main course, the lamb, was prepared on the eve of Pesach.

Were they packing?

Not really. Most Egyptians in that era, even wealthy ones, had almost no furniture. Poor Egyptians did not use dishes. Eating utensils did not exist. (That’s what we have fingers for.) They typically had a mortar, a pestle, a pot, a pan, and a bowl for storing things.

In terms of clothing, kids under six, did not wear any clothing… The adults had one pair of clothing – which they were wearing. So, when the Jewish People left Egypt there were no U-hauls. It probably took them fifteen minutes to pack.

For those keeping track, we are up to hour and fifteen minutes of prep time.

Perhaps they were borrowing objects from their neighbors, as they were instructed to do. Let’s give them a day to do that.

The men were getting circumcised. I assume they needed a few days to recover.

So, if we were being generous with their time, they needed at most a week to prepare for Pesach. And if that’s so, if my math and history are correct, the Jewish People really had oodles of time at their disposal, so why did G-d inform them about Pesach two weeks before it started? What were the Jewish People supposed to be doing during that time? Was He trying to just get us anxious?! What was that time for?

Clearly, no one was listening to the Torah reading today. Because the answer is right there. G-d says, “Hachodesh hazeh lachem, this month is the first month of the Jewish year.” And then, “On the tenth of the month, you should go a get a lamb to slaughter.” It’s quite clear that the reason G-d tells the Jewish People about Pesach fourteen days before it happens is for one reason and one reason only – to give them a heads up about the Pascal Lamb.

Now of course, this doesn’t fully answer our question. If they were not going to take the lamb until the tenth of the month, and not going to roast the lamb until the 14^th of the month, why do they need to know about this Mitzvah two weeks in advance?

So, if you were listening to the Torah reading… you would know that there is a law about the Korban Pesach – lo sosiru mimenu ad boker, there were to be no leftovers. The entire lamb had to be eaten on the night of Pesach.

How many people could a lamb feed?

According to our good friends at bigroast.com, a regular sized lamb can feed… 45 people!

So, if you needed to make sure that there were no leftovers, and assuming your family size was let’s just say, 8 people, you needed to invite guests. A lot of guests.

I believe the extra week was given to the Jewish People for this reason alone; to invite guests for Pesach.

Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch suggests that this is precisely why we were instructed to make sure there were no leftovers; to ensure that the Pesach Seder would not be experienced alone. The true sign of freedom is a person or a family who are not simply focused on their own survival and wellbeing. The true sign of freedom is a person or a family who care about others.

This is why we begin the Seder with an invitation to guests. How do we begin the section of Maggid? “Ha lachma anya, this is the bread of affliction, kol dichfin, yeisi v’yechol, whoever is hungry, come and eat.”

It’s a bizarre passage. Who exactly are we inviting when we say those words? Our friends and family are already at the table with us when it’s said.

The Avudraham, a 14^th century Spanish Torah scholar, relates that it was a genuine invitation. In his time, people would actually open their doors at the beginning of the seder and call out those words – “If you’re hungry, come and join me.” People in need would be waiting in the streets for these invitations. This practice was a perpetuation of the very first Pesach seder, in which no one ate alone, every person was accounted for. Though we no longer do this, by saying those words at the beginning of the seder, we remind ourselves of this beautiful custom. It’s so central to the night, that it is the opening passage in the section of Maggid. It’s to remind us that sharing, caring, ensuring that we are not just focused on ourselves is the primary feature of a free and dignified person.

The most shocking and devastating section in the book, Night, by Elie Wiesel, describes a German throwing a scrap of bread to a group of starving Jews. Wiesel relates how the Jews, who haven’t eaten for days start fighting viciously over the tiny piece of food. One man is victorious; he proudly holds up the crust of bread after wrestling it away from everyone else. And then he’s pounced upon by another starving man, who beats him, and ultimately beats him to death. Wiesel drily comments that it was a son who killed his own father for a piece of bread.

That’s what starvation does to a person. It turns them into an animal. That’s what a slavery does to a person. They become entirely focused on survival and self-preservation.

And so, on the weeks leading up to Pesach, the Jewish People were told, you are no longer slaves; you are free. You are no longer focused only on survival; you are dignified. You are no longer subject to the rules of our base inclinations; you are a master of your own destiny. You are no longer a taker; you are a giver.

For two weeks the Jewish People went around, checking in on their neighbors, especially those who didn’t have a family of their own, or those who didn’t have an intact family, or those who had less than the other Jews, and invited them to the Pesach seder.

Maybe they were turned down. But I hope that didn’t dissuade them. Perhaps they offered to walk near them as they travelled into the frightening desert to provide some moral support. Perhaps they made a mental note to check in with them at some later time in the year knowing that it wasn’t only Pesach that these people struggled. Perhaps they invited them to a different meal at a different time or take them out for the Egyptian equivalent of a coffee. There are many ways to make sure that those who are lonely feel a little less alone.

I imagine that stuffing 45 people into a home the size of a two-car garage was not so comfortable. Maybe some of the guests made them a little uncomfortable. But freedom is not always comfortable. Doing the right thing is not always comfortable.

We have two weeks and five days to prepare for Pesach – that’s five more days than our ancestors. Cleaning our homes from chameitz is important. Having a delicious Pesach menu is great. But real freedom, the freedom that our ancestors tasted in the days leading up to Pesach, is the freedom to share. Not everyone can have 45 people at their seder. But every single one of us can and must make sure that no one, no one at all, is left feeling alone.