Shabbat Ha'Gadol

This Shabbat is a time of introspection, perhaps on par with the days leading up to Yom Kippur. A preparatory time prior to Pesach itself, it commemorates the great miracle that our ancestors in Egypt witnessed when their former taskmasters were left dumfounded at the sight of their gods tethered to Jewish bedposts, being prepared for the slaughter. 

Before big periods in our own lives, it's vital to take a step back and ask what we can learn, and how we can prime or prep ourselves for the emotions that are going to come to the fore. A breather, a reprieve for mental preparation and the like. 

What then, perhaps can we take from this great Shabbat? Shabbat Ha'Gadol is celebratory and commemorative at the same time, celebrating the heights reached, but also commemorating the loss, and pain we've suffered. Many Jews were not freed from Egypt - and that is the message to the wicked son, "Were you there, you would not have been redeemed," i.e. the angel of death would not have passed over your house. 

We all, though, take baggage with us, scars, fears, apprehensions, pain that cannot and should not be erased, and thus the redemptive potential compels one to hold those two realities in his consciousness simultaneously. The Jew reclines on the seder night, though uses bread of affliction to pique curiosity and elicit thought and reflection. 

As we enter this Shabbat, we prepare ourselves to best communicate these messages to our families, and loved ones, through the lens of our own redemption, our own rescue, and the travails we experienced along the way. Were it not for the difficulties experienced, the victory would not be nearly as powerful, poignant, or sweet. 

Shabbat shalom,

Yoav