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Chag Samei'ach " SHABBAT SHALOM AND CHAG SAMEI’ACH. Today eager to settle a long account of cruelty. Horrific massacres and tomorrow are the first days of Pesach 5778. On were typical. The brutish drive for vengeance, for Shabbat we daven Yom Tov davening, and include the gratification of the satanic in man, was irresistible. references to Shabbat. We Duchen on both days. Did anything of that kind happen on the night of the Exodus? Were Egyptian babies taken out of the embrace of Please remember that we are responsible to eat a their mothers and thrown into the Nile, as the babies of the Seudah Shlishit on Shabbat and we have to do so later slaves had been murdered just a short while before? Did the in the afternoon, but prior to Minchah. We must enter Hebrew beat up his taskmaster who just several days ago the evening with an appetite for the Matzah and had tortured him mercilessly? Nothing of the sort. Not one Marror. Seudah Shlishit is a Mitzvah on Shabbat and person was hurt, not one house destroyed. not on Yom Tov. The liberated slaves had the courage to withdraw, to defy the natural call of their blood. What did the Jews do at the This Pesach marks the 25th yahrzeit of my rebbe, hour of freedom? Instead of swarming the streets of Goshen, Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik. I offer these writings of the they were locked up in their houses, eating the paschal lamb Rav for our learning of Pesach. and reciting the Hallel. It is unique in the history of [Compiled by Rabbi Edward Davis (RED), Rabbi Emeritus revolutions. “None of you shall go out of the door of his Young Israel of Hollywood-Ft. Lauderdale] house until the morning” (Ex. 12:22) 1. The Talmud (Pesachim 114b) discusses the Would we have blamed the Jews if they had engaged in requirement to place shenei tavshilin, two cooked items, on a few acts of vandalism and even murder on the night of the the Seder plate, commemorating the korban Pesach and the fifteenth of Nissan, killing a few taskmasters who had thrown hagigah offering that were eaten when sacrifices were their babies in the Nile? Still, the Jews, at the command of brought in the Temple. Rav Huna says that this requirement God, said no. They defied themselves and refused to gratify may be fulfilled by using beets and rice. According to Rav a basic need of the human being, the need for revenge. But Yosef, one must use two different types of meat. Rambam by defeating themselves, they also won the greatest of all (Hilkhot Hamez u-Mazzah 8:1) follows the opinion of Rav victories: they became free. Yosef, while the popular custom is to place one item of meat HAFTORAH and an egg on the Seder plate (see Kesef Mishneh, loc cit.). The presence of the egg at the Seder also has another The Haftorahs on both days of Pesach refer to major source. The first day of Passover always occurs on the celebrations of the Festival in Biblical times. The Haftorah of same day of the week as Tisha B’Av, the day that marks the the First Day is the first Pesach observed in Israel, after the destruction of the Temple and the exile of Jews (Orach desert trek when Pesach was not observed. Bnei Yisrael did Chaim 428:3). Accordingly the custom is to eat an egg, a not circumcise their children in the desert; so circumcision symbol of mourning on the first night of Pesach (see Rama, was required. This took place in Gilgal after they crossed the Orach Chaim 476:2). The egg, therefore symbolizes both Jordan River. joy, the hagigah, and mourning, Tisha B’Av. The Haftorah of the Second Day was even more outstanding. King Yoshiyahu’s grandfather was King 2. The Haggadah uses the possessive case of Elokeinu, Menasheh who flooded Israel with gross idolatries. His reign “our God,” in addition to Hashem, the Tetragrammaton. It of 55 years was the longest of the time, and during that time, could have said, “Va-yozi’einu Hashem mi-sham, Hashem the lack of Torah knowledge gripped the land. Yoshiyahu took us out of there.” To understand what is achieved by was 8 years old when he became king. When he was 26 adding “Elokeinu, our God” to this statement, we must years old, the king decided to repair the Temple. During the understand the semantics of “Elokeinu” and that of the restoration a “Book of the Torah” was discovered and read phrase “Hashem Elokeinu.” to the king. According to tradition this “Book” was Devarim In the verse “Shema Yisrael Hashem Elokeinu Hashem (Deuteronomy) and written by Moshe Rabbeinu. It had a Echad, Hear O Israel, Hashem Elokeinu, God is one” (Deut. profound effect on the king and touched off a massive return 6:4), the phrase Hashem Elokeinu expresses the idea that to Torah in the land. The message of Devarim stirred Hashem has been accepted as our God, our Master, our Yoshiyahu to the very depths of his soul because it was new Lawgiver, our King, and our Ruler – He to whom we are to him. How devastating was the message of the Tochechah committed, to whom we are obedient, and whose laws and of Ki Tavo (the Admonition) and how that must have struck commands we are duty-bound to implement. the young king. The effects were astounding. King Contemporary man is an unfree being because he is Yoshiyahu cleansed the Holy Temple and instituted a insecure; he is tied to the moment, never knowing whether massive observance of Pesach in accordance with the disaster will strike the next second. There is only one way teachings of the Biblical text. for man to free himself from all his restrictions, from all his This would help to explain why the Haggadah highlights fears, from all his phobias. Surrender to God frees man from the learning of the section from Deuteronomy (Ki Tavo : the his serfdom to his fellow man. Man rids himself of his fright Bikkurim) as the center most text for the Seder and not the by faith in God and surrender to Him. section from Exodus. (RED) 3. Rav Soloveitchik wrote in Festival of Freedom: A slave upheaval haunted all tyrants of antiquity, as well Sponsored by Edward & Jamie Czinn to commemorate the as those of modern times. Rebellion by slaves meant total yahrzeit of his sister Aliza Czinn Sherman, Leeba bat Bunim Tzvi destruction. History records many bloody and ruthless insurrections of slaves against their masters. The stories about the cruelty of the rebels are blood-chilling. They were " TEN QUESTIONS FOR YOUR SEDER TABLE TO BE DISCUSSED BY RABBI DAVIS BETWEEN MINCHAH & MA’ARIV IN THE SHUL ON THE SECOND NIGHT OF PESACH 1. Do we say Shalom Aleichem and Eishet Chayil on Friday night – First Seder night of Pesach? 2. What is the reason we Recline for certain parts of the Haggadah? Is it a Mitzvah from the Torah or from the Rabbis? Do we recline for a) drinking the wine b) eating Matzah c) eating Maror d) eating the meal? 3. Why do the Firstborn fast on Erev Pesach? What does the Firstborn do if he missed the Siyum? 4. Which is preferable: white wine or red wine? Why? 5. What are the three Mitzvot that are incorporated as Mitzvot which are to publicize the miracles of Hashem: “Pirsumei D’Nisa”? 6. Why do we open the door for “Shfoch Chamatcha”? 7. What does the word Pesach mean? (Two answers!) 8. How do you spill the wine during the recitation of the Ten Plagues? 9. Why do we not drink or eat after eating the Afikomen? (What can we drink after the Afikomen?) 10. The Chida (Rav Chaim Yosef David Azulai - 1724-1806) had the custom of eating Matzah on Shavuot. Why? .
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