Pesach - a Story of Transformation
There are so many competing things that we strive to teach our children but for me, as a parent and an educator the story of Pesach has always trumped. It is for this reason that so much of what we do at Masada College during the first term revolves around our Pesach celebrations in the ELC, our Demonstration Seder in the Junior School and our Pesach experiences in the Senior School.
Pesach tells the story of hope and faith in a way that no other holiday does. It tells of transitioning from our lowest point in history as slaves, to the beginning of our national rejuvenation as a free people with an identity, a religion and a homeland.
The story of Pesach is the story of the most incredible transformation. At first we were slaves and ‘G-d took us out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm’. G-d's miracles allowed us to cross the Red Sea, showing us that even the greatest obstacles can be removed. G-d gave us the Ten Commandments and gave us the Ten Commandments again, showing us that we can have a second chance. We travelled the desert for 40 years, with G-d there every step of the way, teaching us and shaping us into a confident people with an identity, and finally, we crossed the Jordan River and entered the promised land, to start a new chapter as a Jewish people with a future.
Throughout the Jewish year, we come together to celebrate our festivals and holidays, On Chanukah, we celebrate our victory over the Maccabees and we light the Chanukah candles to show that we were not defeated, that we are still here. On Purim, we stamp out Haman’s name and celebrate by dressing up and feasting. On Shavuot we celebrate the receiving of the Torah by hearing the Ten Commandments and sampling delicious dairy desserts and so on. These are all wonderful holidays and often provide an opportunity for celebration, but Pesach is different. On Pesach we come together as a family. We gather together, youngest to oldest, united as a family and as master storytellers.
When we join together as a family on seder night, we focus on telling a story, our story, the story of our peoplehood. As we participate in the seder, we play the part of educating the next generation on the fundamental story of our heritage, of what defines us and of who we are. We go through the seder step by step, stopping along the way to ensure that our children can actively participate - that they can taste, smell, sing and repeat the key words and passages of our story out loud. Each year, we return to the Pesach table and tell the story again, in the same way, with the same hands-on experiences, so that our children will know, beyond any doubt, who we are, where we have come from and where we are headed.
Rabbi Sacks explains that on the eve of the original Pesach, at the very moment when a new chapter in the life of the Jewish people began, we found out what it means to be a Jew. ‘Being a Jew means being both a student and an educator, and seder night is our opportunity to focus on both these roles’.
In our roles as both student and educator at the seder table, we have the opportunity to learn from our parents while teaching them. We teach our children while learning from them. What a privilege and a blessing for each of us to be in both the role of teacher and student. What a blessing to be able to reflect on the past, apply these lessons to the here and now and build for the future, all at once.
I take this opportunity to wish our families a Chag Pesach Kasher Vesameach. May all our Masada College families and friends be blessed to share Pesach together with family and loved ones. As we sit around the seder table, may we be part of the same story that has shaped us, may we share in the memory of the Exodus from Egypt and may we all draw strength from knowing that we belong to a people.
