Tag: Pesach

Accuracy!

This past summer we were at an ice cream shop with our grandchildren, and I asked my unbashful grandson Moshe if he would sing us a song. He got up on his chair and began singing loudly, “Pharoh in pajamas in the middle of the night.” As he was belting this out, we were further …

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Wealth!

The last days of Pesach are observed on Wednesday and Thursday. The Torah calls it a day of holy calling. Three days after the Jews were freed from Egypt, Pharoh and his army chased after the Jews. When they caught up with the Jews, G-d protected the Jews by placing His cloud of glory between …

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Lift Up!

As the Jews were getting ready to enter the Land of Israel, they were met with resistance from a few nations that hated them. The Torah tells us that Balak, the King of Moav, feared that the Jews would attack his nation, and hired Billam, a non-Jewish prophet, to use his powers to curse the …

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Split!

On the seventh day after the exodus from Egypt, the Egyptian army pursued the Jews until they reached the Red Sea. G-d performed a great miracle and split the sea sparing them and drowning the Egyptians. The Seventh day of Pesach commemorates this miracle. A few years ago, Rabbi Yaacov Schnaidman, dean of the Milton …

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Compelling!

Although it has been over twenty years since I last participated at a Seder which was majestically led by my father, I must say, the Seder at our home is very much a representation of my father’s Seder. This is the first that year that I can’t call my father erev Pesach to ask him …

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Alive!

The Torah mandates that we observe the Seventh day of Pesach as a holiday. Thus, for us in the Diaspora, we observe the last two days of Pesach on Saturday and Sunday. The first and last days of Pesach serve as bookends to the freedom of the Jews from the Egyptians. The beginning of Pesach …

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It’s Day!

During the Seder, when we recite the ten plagues G–d brought upon the Egyptians, we customarily pour off some wine from our cup with one of our fingers. This gesture shows that we are not completely happy because pain was inflicted upon the Egyptians. We recite the ten plagues to focus on G-d’s power and …

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Current Events!

The seventh and eighth days of Passover commemorate the great miracle G-d performed by splitting the Red Sea for the Jews and allowing them to escape from the pursuing Egyptian army. The Torah relates that after the Jews were freed from Egypt and had traveled three days, Pharoh had a change of heart and pursued …

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Out of the Blue!

Our forefather Yaacov’s entire family came down to Egypt to join Yosef, the viceroy of Egypt, and settled in the section of land called Goshen. This idyllic arrangement lasted for 94 years until Levi, the last of the tribal heads, passed away. During this time the Jews proliferated and became very successful. The Pharoh became …

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State of Timelessness!

In the beginning of the recital of the Hagadah we reveal the Matzos and say, ‘Ha Lachma Ania.’ We refer to the Matzah as the symbol of our slavery and affliction, because Matzah was consumed by our ancestors in Egypt during their enslavement since it takes less time to bake and takes longer to digest …

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