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May 2008

I hope all of us had a joyous and meaningful Passover.

Here’s a reflection that might help keep the Passover spirit with us a bit longer. Rabbi Alan Ullman, who visited with us last month, offered a thoughtful commentary on the third of the Four Questions: “On all other nights we need not dip our herbs even once; why on this night must we dip them twice?” When, however, we look at the original Aramaic, the word “herbs” which does appear in the Aramaic in the second question, does not appear in this third question. What else then could that third question mean, the question about dipping twice? Reb Alan offers an intriguing suggestion.

Jim Levinson, Sh'liach Tzibur
 

In the Exodus from Egypt and the wanderings toward Israel, our ancestors had to cross or “dip” into two bodies of water, first the Yam Sof, the Sea of Reeds (or in common usage, the Red Sea) – separating Egypt from the desert, and then, much later, the Jordan River – separating the desert from the Land of Israel. The first dipping or ritual immersion, was designed to rid us of our “chometz,” to rid us of the experience of slavery in Egypt – to empty us as we entered the wilderness. The second dipping, by contrast, was designed to rid us of our wilderness – of our emptiness, permitting us then to be filled with the sweetness, with the milk and honey of Eretz Yisrael.

What a fascinating concept! And isn’t this an idea that we can carry with us back into the world after the Passover? The concept of the double dipping allows us to reflect meaningfully on the question of our chometz – sometimes referred to as the “extras” in our lives as opposed to the essence. What are the “extras” we are carrying around that need to be washed out, that require some purification of ourselves? (Our Torah portions from Leviticus, at this writing, interestingly, are filled with prescriptions for purification.) Might our chometz have to do with unresolved personal guilt, or perhaps with excessive creature comforts in the presence of deprivation? If yes, an immersion might be in order. And conversely, what that is truly meaningful might fill up the emptiness in our lives, what might replace the wilderness? Of course we always have suggestions for that in our congregation!

And finally, what symbol might keep us conscious of these choices that need to be made continually in our lives? A wonderful symbol is the stream running on our own property, and the opportunity we have to use it as a mikveh, to be able to immerse ourselves periodically as did our ancestors at the Yam Sof and at the Jordan River, to cleanse ourselves of our chometz, and, at times, to cleanse ourselves of our wilderness.Let’s get some volunteers for our mikveh committee and get this mikveh functioning!

B’Shalom,

Jim