Stopping to tell a Story

Passover Email 2016

Dear Fellow Israelites,

Over the last few weeks I have been repeatedly visited by the phrase “וְלֹא יָכְלוּ לְהִתְמַהְמֵהַּ” /”And [they] could not linger”*. And, undoubtedly, my courtship with this expression is due to the recent arrival of our beautiful daughter Juliana, who gave us our greatest and most joyful surprise when she arrived earlier than expected just a few weeks ago.

But why this phrase? What does the Israelite’s hasty departure from Egypt have to do with the birth of our first born?

There is an element of the haggadah that I have not explored before, and that is the juxtaposition of the story of the Exodus with the imperative to establish rosh chodesh (the announcement of the new month). This is an awesome juxtaposition when one considers that context in which the phrase “And [they] could not linger” is used. Let’s explore why.

A major element of the story of the exodus from Egypt is that the Israelites were in a tremendous rush. In fact, they had so little time that they left with unleavened bread . Yet, you get the sense when reading the narrative that this was the right decision. In fact, you get the sense that leaving in a haste was prudent, setting history on the right course. It was the abandonment of preparedness, and jettison of time as a boundary that enabled the Israelites to flee and fulfill their destiny.

Just a few verses before this iconic scene the Israelites are commanded to take control of time: ‘This month shall be unto you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.’ (Ex. 12:2). It’s as if the Israelites are being told it is time to take control of their destiny. For generations you have been at the whim of Pharaoh, subject to back-breaking labor, but now it is time for your to establish a calendar. It is time for you to take something you seemingly have no control of, the perpetual rising and setting of the sun, and make it fit into a construct of which you will be the guardian.

There is no paradox here. Establishing time and then losing control of it is very real and very true. As Pablo Picasso once said: “Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.” This is exactly what the Israelites were exercising.They had recently become experts, so they knew precisely when it was time to break the rules.

Every year we rush into Passover, pushing down on the breaks as we glide into the seder. We remove ourselves from the constructs of our daily lives to stop and tell a story. It’s a story that teaches us that we can’t always predict how things will play out, even when we know the rules. It’s a story that teaches us that sometimes we put a calendar in place that doesn’t take everything into consideration.

As we head into this redemptive season let us be grateful that we have the capacity to break the rules like an artist and succeed. And let us be proud that we know when to come together to achieve something that doesn’t always go as planned.

Chag Sameach,

Alex

*Exodus 12:39