A Passover Drash

by Renée Ponder

Passover celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and then concludes with the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai. The central meaning of Passover is liberation and this also coincides with spring. The second part of Passover is to recognize that it was God who redeemed us. We are commanded to recall the past, in order to remember the present to know it fully in the light of future redemptions.

The progression of liberation in the last 70 years has certainly been provoking and interesting. In light of the Holocaust we lost a sacred and mystical tradition. Judaism in America got assimilated and watered down to a simplicity without enough spiritual depth and focus. In the 60's and 70's the context and boundaries of Judaism shifted, opened up and other traditions were sought to provide deeper experiences. We opened our boundaries to peace, love and drugs with which to find a new vision of God. Finally out of all this a small Jewish spiritual Renaissance was starting to take hold.

Within the renewal movement are the roots of the Pesach story. As we re-establish our roots, as we look back to where we came from, acknowledge God's unique relationship with the Jewish people, that again God will bring us from barren and narrow Egypt to a land flowing with milk and honey. In acknowledging God we set up a covenantal relationship with God. As a result of re-establishing our roots we see ourselves as the Kabbalistic metaphor of the tree. By planting and watering the roots our branches can reach higher and holier to the sky and to our spiritual selves and God. The essence of being deeply rooted is our true liberation.

For many of us the 70's seemed liberating, but it seemed we took it back in the 80's and set new boundaries for ourselves. In the year 2002 I see becoming more and more rooted in our very own spiritual and mystical essence with the ability to expand in terms of giving, lovingkindness and tikkun olam, bringing the holy sparks to the world. We have such a sweet tradition to give to people coming back to Judaism. We need to study and learn more, practice a few more mitzvot, and share this with others.

In conclusion the Shema speaks to Pesach:

Shema Yisrael, Hear O Israel (Hear me God, as I hear you God -- liberation to have this unique relationship)

Adonai Eloheinu, the Lord our God (this is the God who brought us out of Egypt -- Recognizing our sacred liberation)

Adonai Echad -- The Lord is One (our liberation comes from our being one with God).

—from our March 2002 Newsletter

Site design by BitJazz Inc.