What is the entire chag of Pesach really about? Why doesn’t the Haggadah deal with the halachos of chametz? On Tuesday evening, April 2, the community gathered to hear the annual Pesach shiur by Rabbi Herschel Welcher shlita, Rav of Congregation Ahavas Yisroel. The shiur was dedicated in memory of a beloved shul and community member, Mrs. Sherry Rada a”h, who was someone with so much yir’as Shamayim and who encouraged Rabbi Welcher to begin doing this pre-Pesach shiur. She was very meticulous in preparing for Pesach.
Rabbi Welcher began by sharing that we must put this chag in proper perspective. The entire Haggadah doesn’t deal with chametz. Telling the story of coming out of Egypt helps us to understand what Pesach is all about. Chazal say the Luchos were engraved with the words of the Torah. The word charus (engraved) is an allusion to cheirus. The words of Torah were engraved, and through the words of the Torah we achieve freedom.
When we lived in Egypt, we were like chickens always pecking in garbage for food. With the mann, Moshe made set times for us to eat. We learned the idea that our physical needs should be sanctified. Eating all the time is unseemly. So, the mann food came in day and in night. Cheirus is emancipation from values we may have inculcated from Egypt. The establishment of the mann and the slav in the Midbar taught that our physical needs should be tempered with a time and place. Then, we are free to pursue our real agenda.
The House of Brisk asked: How can the Haggadah state that if Hashem had not taken us out of Egypt we would be subjugated to the Egyptians? No empire in history lasted forever. The forces of history bring about change. Brisk teaches that if we left Egypt on our own, we would have felt a debt of gratitude to them and attachment to Egypt would have followed us. So, Hashem took us out meaning we felt no indebtedness to Egypt. So, we no longer feel attachment to Egypt, which would have given us difficult attitudes.
“We absorb attitudes and outlooks from people around us. The only cheirus we can know is through Hashem’s Torah.” Hashem gives us a transcendental view of life. “Torah outlasts all generations. It’s a place for us to touch what is true and correct.”
A king had his own sefer Torah: one he kept in his palace, and the other he took with him to battle. As we go into life, we get influenced by things in the world. In the Haggadah, we learn that in the midst of our servitude, we were uniquely Jewish. Pesach is the reminder that we have eternal values and we connect to Hashem. Pesach is a celebration of connection to Hashem and freedom from values of the world around us. Today, general societal values are opposed to our values. The Torah teaches us that our attitude is formed by Hashem’s Torah.
The essence of the chag of Pesach is connection to Hashem and realizing that we are different from the world around us. Pesach is the most wondrous chag. It is totally on a different plane. We have to prepare to such an extent. It’s a metamorphosis. All of a sudden, everything in the house is treif. We have to bring our service of Hashem to a new level. Rabbi Welcher stressed that “Spiritual advancement can only come through fulfillment of halachah.” Without it, we become assimilated and lose our sense of spiritual direction.
Rabbi Welcher then went into detail of how to kosher the kitchen, and this was followed by a Q&A session.
To hear all the details, this shiur can be viewed on TorahAnytime.com. The community is very grateful to Rabbi and Rebbetzin Welcher for all they do for our community and klal Yisrael. The shiur should be a z’chus for Sherry Rada a”h and her family, and they should be comforted with the mourners of Tzion.
By Susie Garber
