Next Year in Israel

Jewish holidays are far more than festive meals and celebrations. They are living reminders to us of what it means to be Jewish. We remember miracles that happened to our ancestors, and we are reminded that there are miracles yet to come. And, if we are really aware, we should also notice the miracles we live every day.

Passover, more than any other Jewish holiday, is truly a time for us to consider our past and, especially, to reexamine the role we Jews were created for. On all of our holidays and in most of our daily prayers we remember the miracle of being redeemed from slavery in Egypt. Why did our G-d take us out of Egypt? The answer to that question is to be found at the end of the Shema Yisrael that we recite every morning and evening and before we go to sleep at night.

“I am the L-d your G-d who took you out of Egypt to be your G-d. I am your G-d.”

We were slaves unto Pharaoh in Egypt. We had no natural way to ever escape. When our G-d performed miracles and took us out, it was for a reason… not simply to set us free, rather to transfer our servitude from the Egyptians to Him. He took us to Mount Sinai and gave us His Torah to show us how to serve Him.The holiday of Passover comes to remind us of our eternal obligation to serve our G-d. The seder we conduct at night around the dinner table is a learning experience, for young and old alike, to remind us that we are an ancient people with a Divine destiny. We recount our history from the time of our Father, Abraham, and realize that we have always been a minority of minorities. Many great nations made the mistake of assuming that we were easy prey and tried to destroy us. Yet our G-d always rescued us from their hands.

Today we are blessed with the opportunity to fulfill that which our ancestors could only dream of fulfilling. I see my own life as a personal fulfillment of that dream. I was born and raised in the United States. Yet as a result of taking advantage of the ability to come home, my wife and I are blessed with the indescribable joy of conducting the seder in our home in Hebron. Our children and all six of our grandchildren will truly be celebrating the Festival of Freedom with us.

Our grandchildren needn’t imagine Jewish history. They are a living part of it. I only wish that my grandparents could know the incredible satisfaction that we have found. In the Exile we could only try to imagine what it would be like to live our lives as complete Jews. In Israel, with all of the problems we still face, being completely Jewish is a natural thing. Serving our G-d without concern for what others might think is the normal way of living.

Passover, more than any other Jewish holiday, is a reminder that we are part of a Divine Process. Our liberation from slavery in Egypt wasn’t the end. It was only the beginning. The Jewish People was created to be an example to all of Mankind that it has a Creator. Only by remembering our past can we recognize our obligation to fulfill our destiny as Jews.

Only when we accept our obligations, to serve our G-d and observe His Law in our ancient homeland, will redemption be complete. This year, when you celebrate Passover in the Exile, take it seriously. Next year you really can fulfill the Commandment to come home and truly observe the seder as proud Jews.