ON CHAMETZ AND THE FIFTH CHILD

Nisan 15-16, 5782 / April 15-17, 2022

Torah Day 1: Exodus 12:21-51

Maftir Day 1: Numbers 28:16-25

Haftarah Day 1: Joshua 3:5-7; 5:2 - 6:1; 6:27

Torah Day 2: Leviticus 22:26 - 23:44

Maftir Day 2: Numbers 28:16-25

Haftarah Day 2: 2 Kings 23:1-9; 21-25

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PESACH IS COMING!
 
My 5782 Pesach Resources - Pandemic Edition #2 is available at: 
https://rav-rich.blogspot.com/2022/03/pesach-resources-5782-pandemic-edition-2.html 
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This d'var torah is offered for a refuah shleimah for Feigel bat Kreina and D'vorah bat Feigel.

 
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Lunch and Learn meets Tuesdays at 12:30 PM on Zoom and Facebook Live. We’re continuing to read and discuss the Midrashic collection Ein Ya’akov. On April 19, we'll be at page 1  (my pagination) of Chapter 6 of BT Berakhot (35a) - "...כיצד מברכין על הפירות" - "How shall the Benediction on fruit be said...” The reading may be found at: 
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QOGujnXBhbJalQbfp3vPpK7TeeZejXZo/view?usp=sharing 

Rabbi Van Leeuwen has a blog which you should read at: 
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Dr. Steve Pearlman writes up the "Midrashim of the Week", which you can read here: 
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ON CHAMETZ AND THE FIFTH CHILD

Chaverim Yekarim / Dear Friends:

I want to share some thoughts with you as we prepare for the Festival of Pesach.

We should consider the nature of the chametz we are commanded to eliminate from our homes and elsewhere for the duration of the holiday. We generally think of it as bread, yeast, leavening, whisky, beer, and the like, which is correct - at one level. But at a deeper level, our rabbis have taught that chametz is symbolic of pride and an inflated ego. Just as leavening causes dough to inflate with the creation of bubbles of hot air, so do our egos often cause us to fill up with pride and the belief in our own self-importance. Chametz also means vinegar, which is made sour by fermentation - so only certain types of vinegar are permitted on Pesach.

The lesson to be learned is that we need to remove not only the physical chametz, but also the spiritual chametz - the chametz in our souls. We can shrink our souls to their most basic components, reducing bitterness and egos so that we can truly appreciate what it means to be the stranger and to address the needs of others. "For you know the soul of the stranger" - the suffering soul of the alienated. That is why the Seder Shel Pesach opens with the words, "Let all who are hungry, come and eat! Let all who are in need, come and celebrate Pesach!" Pesach is not just about us - it's about us attending to the physical and spiritual needs of the Other.

We know from the Haggadah Shel Pesach that there are four types of children, each of whom is to be taught a lesson at the Seder - the wise one, the wicked one, the simple one, and the one who does not know what questions to ask. We often see ourselves and others in these various models. But there is a fifth child, the one we don't ever consider, because that child is invisible or not even present! At least the wicked one is with us, even as s/he causes trouble - that child can be addressed, challenged, even changed. But the one who is so far removed, whether by personal choice or by rejection, that s/he is not present - that child is one that we need to reach out to and bring back to the community - I believe we are commanded to do so. That effort of keruv, of outreach and bringing close, requires the elimination of chametz from our very selves, because the Other is often feared (and fearful), regarded as unapproachable, undesirable, and unclean.

The Seder Shel Pesach should be more than a formulaic ritual and a good dinner. It should teach us and our children that we are obligated to remove the chametz of hubris. Pesach presents a wonderful opportunity to reconsider and reorganize our lives into a new Seder - a new order, that will improve the world and make us worthy of having Eliyahu Hanavi, Elijah the Prophet, knock on our doors.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Pesach Sameach!

Rabbi Richard A. Flom - Rabbi Emeritus
Temple B'nai Hayim/Congregation Beth Meier
Blogging at: http://rav-rich.blogspot.com/
Visit me on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/RabbiRichardFlom 
"שתיקה כהודאה דמיא"
"Silence in the face of wrongdoing is consent.”
BT Yevamot 88a
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