Reflection on Passover in Israel

Seder at my mother-in-law
Mazal Jerbi's home, 2017

All my life I've been celebrating the Passover Seder every year - often twice per year - and ending it with the words:  Next year in Jerusalem!  This aspirational statement, of course, reflects the mindset that the Jewish people, if they're not in their Promised Land, are in exile.  Although 'Jerusalem' is said, it is generally understood to mean the entirety of the Land of Israel - not just the capital built by King David some three millennia ago.  If one celebrates Passover anywhere in the State of Israel, one has fulfilled one's previous years wish.

Until this year, I only celebrated Passover once in Israel, 25 years ago when I was studying in Jerusalem.  I traveled down to Clara's moshav - we were engaged then - to celebrate it with her family.  This year, I once again celebrated with Clara's family in Beit Shikma, although the cast of characters was somewhat different given how many years have passed.  Still, it was a raucous good time!

But the real advantage of celebrating Pesach in Israel is not Seder night, which is a wonderful event no matter where in the world you celebrate it.  Rather, it's the rest of the days of Pesach, when you're still on the hook to eat everything unleavened...

Eyal is home from the army for the initial days of Pesach, so we went out for lunch today, to Sun, a local Asian bistro which opened only a few weeks ago. When they opened, we found a flyer from them in our mailbox, proclaiming that they had sushi and noodle dishes and were certified kosher for Pesach by the local rabbinate.  I said, No way!  But Ashkelon is  definitely a Sephardi town, and many of the Sephardim eat rice...and the noodles being served during Pesach are all rice noodles.  And until I came to Israel and saw it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed soy sauce kosher for Pesach!  As you can see from the picture, Eyal is very much appreciative of the Pesach culinary possibilities here in Eretz Yisrael!

Okay, enough gloating; I know I should say something about the Torah reading for this coming Shabbat.  It's from the 33rd and 34th chapters of Exodus, and in it we find the statement of the attributes of G-d which we sing at the morning services for all festivals that do not occur on Shabbat:  Hashem! Hashem!  A Compassionate and Gracious G-d!  Slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness, extending kindness to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin.  In front of the open ark, with the Torah scrolls held by officials of the congregation, we chant these verses three times.

I'll never forget when, many years ago, a secular Jewish man explained to me why he believed that G-d is merciful and not judgemental.  "Because I'm merciful," he explained. "I try never to judge anybody, rather to give them the benefit of the doubt.  And if I'm this merciful in my imperfection, then G-d must be a thousand times more merciful."

Interesting way to put it, but the man's logic was sound.  If we take any positive quality that we might possess in some measure, imagine that quality presented in a perfect way and you've got G-d nailed.  And this is what Passover is all about, as expressed in the Dayeinu poem in the Haggadah.  G-d brought us out of Egypt, executed judgements against the Egyptians, executed judgements against their gods, slew their firstborn, gave us their wealth, split the sea for us, led us through it on dry land, drowned our oppressors in it, provided for our needs in the desert for 40 years, fed us manna, gave us the Sabbath, brought us close to Mt. Sinai, gave us the Torah, brought us to the Land of Israel, and built us the Temple to atone for our sins.  As the poem says, had G-d blessed us with any one of this multitude of blessings, dayeinu - it would have been enough.  But as we read in the account of the Exodus, He blessed us with all the above, and that should forever be a source of wonderment and awe.

Wishing everybody a kosher and joyous Pesach!