Leaving Narrowness, Pursuing Hope
Passover, which begins tonight, revolves around the single most important narrative that we Jews tell about ourselves: the story of "yetziyat mitzrayim," "the going out from Egypt." Through songs and questions, four cups of wine, and a wide range of props and symbolic foods, we recall this story, probe it, and ingest it into the very fibers of our being!
Our story begins in Mitzrayim, which translates to Egypt but literally comes from the Hebrew word tzar, meaning narrow. Thus, the journey we make out from Mitzrayim is not only a past-tense escape from the land in which our ancestors experienced enslavement, degradation and oppression, but also -- in each and every generation (as the Haggadah reminds us) -- the path we take out from whatever narrowness and confinement may bind us.
This year, given the state of the world, it feels easier than ever to tap into a sense of mitzrayim and constraints. We almost don't need the tears of the salt water or the bitterness of maror to jog our memories... there are countless examples of cruelty, subjugation, and wanton violence all around us, and all we have to do is open our eyes.
And yet, to do so -- to consider and taste the oppression -- wouldn't be enough! Passover calls on us not only to get in touch with the experience of mitzrayim, but also with the experience of journeying forth from that narrow place. The flip side of constraint is the expanse, where we come to taste freedom, release, and relief.
This year, as we sit at our respective seder tables, I hope that we will also be able to tap into the breathing room that the wilderness offers us, and its accompanying gratitude, joy, and hope. Let's recline comfortably on pillows, pour wine for one another to remind ourselves that we are all free people, and expound creatively on the story. For as much as the seder is about tasting bitterness, it is also about sweetness, springtime, and new beginnings. Ideally, there's a playfulness and a live-giving energy in this holiday celebration as we consider what it is to be Jewish, even in -- or maybe especially in -- these harrowing times.
As I hope you already know, Kavana is here for all of it! We believe that meaningful community matters, now and always. This means that we are committed to showing up for one another in tough times, whether that means times of personal struggle, societal/global challenge, or both. We also commit to celebrating together, and to expressing Jewish life with curiosity, creativity and play. For most of all, the story of yetziyat mitzrayim is a collective narrative: one that counts on all of us being in it together, and making this epic journey through life by re-tracing our ancestor's well-worn path, out of constraints and limitations, and towards possibility, liberation and redemption.
Wishing us all a true taste of freedom and hope this Pesach. Chag sameach,
Rabbi Rachel Nussbaum
