Once again we prepare for the celebration of Pesah. With G-d?s help it will not be long
before we are sitting around the Seder Table surrounded by our dear ones or missing those
who are far away, to celebrate one of our most precious family oriented rituals, the Seder.
There are many rites and customs associated with the Pesah Seder, all of which possess
great importance and symbolism. The best known ritual is the obligation of eating the
Matzah on the first two nights of Pesah. We do so, as we read the Haggada, to recall the
?bread of affliction? that our ancestors ate during their enslavement in Egypt. Another
reason is Shelo hispic batzecam shel abotenu lechachmitz Ki bechipazon yatzata
mimitzravim - For the dough of our ancestors had no time to ferment, for you came out of
Egypt in haste?.
The true and very revealing meaning of this custom is found in the Midrash as follows. Our
Sages explain that during their long stay in Egypt the Children of Israel went down to the
lowest levels of impurity and degeneracy even engaging in the worst idolatrous practices.
The Midrash goes on to say that it was decreed that our ancestors shall spend 400 years in
exile, however they had to leave Egypt after only after 210 years, because they had
reached the 49th of 50 levels of impurity. The situation was so dire that had they remained
in Egypt even one moment longer, any vestige of ?Judaism? remaining would have been
lost. So the true meaning of ?The dough had no time to ferment? is that the Children of
Israel were taken out ?urgently? because the level of assimilation and moral decadence had
jeopardized the identity of our people even before our birth as a nation.
On the other hand we find descriptions of our experience in Egypt that seems to contradict
the Midrash that we have just quoted. One of the explanations for the drinking of the four
cups of wine during the Seder is that each cup represents one of the great merits the
Israelites had during their hard exile in Egypt.
a) They did not change their names
b) They did not change the Hebrew language
c) They did not change their Jewish dress
d) They were highly moral
How do we explain this apparent contradiction? How do we reconcile the idea of our ?four
great merits? with the degeneration and spiritual downfall represented by the 49th level of
impurity? If we analyze the comments made by our Sages, we can reach the conclusion
that there is in actuality no contradiction between the two Midrashim.
In truth, the children of Israel did preserve the four mentioned attributes, unfortunately that
is all that they preserved, discarding the remainder of our sacred heritage. In fact they used
these ?four merits? to justify their nearly pagan behavior so contrary to the values inherited
from the Patriarchs. The Children of Israel?s decadence was evident, but they quieted their
conscience with claims that they had preserved their ?Jewish? identity with these four
visible practices. So too is it is the case in modern times when so many Jews follow some
?hand picked? traditions, deceiving themselves into believing that this is sufficient
.
Then, as today, some Jews defiantly spoke Hebrew or dressed like Jews but left it at that.
Their Judaism was limited to superficial appearances, but in their private lives they had
completely assimilated into the Egyptian majority culture.
True Judaism neither depends on external appearances nor on the language we speak.
These may be important, but what truly counts is to live in accordance to the values of our
Torah, even if these values at times are in opposition to the values of the society at large.
To mimic Egyptian culture while at the same time trying to appear loyal to some of our
traditions is for all intents and purposes an insincere way of life..
By keeping those four external aspects of Jewish life, our ancestors somehow justified
neglecting our rich heritage and tradition. That is why it was considered in Heaven of the
utmost urgency to rescue Bene Yisrael from their ?impurity?. Any further negation of their
true state would have led them to a state of assimilation beyond any possibility of salvation.
When we eat the Matza we are also supposed to reflect on this message and to analyze
how much of it is relevant to each of us and to our environment. Perhaps we will reach the
determination that there is room for improvement. Perhaps we will pledge to secure a
future for our children, a future free of exotic influences and closer to the source of our rich
heritage. This may also be the meaning that Leshana hab?a birushalyim - Next year in
Jerusalem represents for us.