HTAA Blog

14 Nisan, 5775 / April 3, 2015

Happy Passover! 

For a host of reasons, this Passover does not come at a most joyous time in my life. Don’t worry, I’m fine. However, I suspect that we all have our own personal “mitzrayims” - afflictions for which we never asked and conditions from which there seems to be no escape. Thankfully, we are not physically imprisoned, but emotional and psychological bondage bring shackles that are no less binding. All of these struggles leave us saying “Dayeinu! Enough already, I can’t take any more.”

Sometimes we are pushed to the brink of what we think we can handle, only to have God rescue and deliver us through perilous times. When every obstacle in life looms larger than the last, we are presented with two choices: to give up or to push even harder and trust that things will work out for the best. 

Recently, we watched the Disney Pixar movie, Finding Nemo (one of my favorites), with our 4 year-old. Although it is an animated film, all of the characters have distinctive personalities and they represent people who we all know in our own lives. More than that, each character represents aspects of our own personalities that come into play when we are faced with various real-life decisions. At times we are like Marlin, the over-protective parent or Crush, the extremely permissive one. We can relate both to the selfish seagulls and to staunchly committed friends and advocates like Gill, the Moorish Idol. But my favorite character in the movie is Dory, the forgetful put lovable Blue Surgeonfish. Whenever Dory found herself in a hairy predicament, she just repeated the mantra, "just keep swimming, just keep swimming."

In a few hours, we will be singing Dayeinu, it would have been enough. Of course, we know that it would not have been enough. If God had led us out of Egypt but not split the sea, or split the sea but did not drown the oppressors… I don’t believe that any of these miracles would have sufficed and I suspect the author of the poem didn’t either. So why say Dayeinu - it would have been enough? Because we have to continually thank God for all of the goodness with which He blesses us - even in small ways. We recognize that our blessings are many and our troubles are great and each time an obstacle miraculously transforms into a blessing, however minute, we say Dayeinu. It’s a statement that we are grateful for the watchful protection of our Creator and know that, come what may, if we do our best to let our principles guide us, God will reveal a path and unbind our hands. That is the meaning of the blessing, matir asurim.

It is said that the evening of the first Seder marks the original Passover celebration and the ensuing exodus from Egypt. Can you imagine in your mind’s eye how daunting it must have felt to march out from Egypt only to be chased by one of the worlds most powerful armies? Our ancestors were faced with a massive sea blocking their escape from Pharaoh’s chariots and certain death.

The talmud teaches that the crossing of the Sea of Reeds took place on the 7th day of Passover. At the final hour, when hope was bleak and freedom seemed so far away, suddenly another miracle happened and the sea split.

The message of Passover, as summarized by Dory the Surgeonfish, is to never give up on hope and trust in God’s love - even against all odds. Just as the sea split for our ancestors at the most dangerous moment, God will continue to watch over you and all humankind as long as we just keep swimming.

Shabbat Shalom & Chag Sameach!

Rabbi Steven Suson