Moshe Kempinski
The days and weeks after an election in Israel are usually rife with acrimony and accusations. Every political party attempts to create their own fiefdom and power vase. Although the intentions may be pure it arouses a great sense of distrust and ill will. The creation of a government is all in the details. Therein also lies the trap.
To commemorate and spiritually relive the Exodus from Egypt, the Jewish people are commanded by the Torah to celebrate the holiday of Pesach and are prohibited to eat or even to possess any Chametz (leaven) in their home:
“During these seven days no leaven may be found in your homes. If someone eats anything of Chametz his soul shall be cut off from the community of Israel. This is true whether he is a convert or a person born into the nation. You must not eat anything leavened (Exodus 12:19-20).
The word Chametz means fermented or leavened. The grains which can become Chametz are wheat, spelt, barley, oats, and rye. From the fourteenth day of the first month in the evening until the night of the twenty-first day of the month, only matzoth (unleavened bread) are eaten. The leavening and the yeast represent the arrogance and puffed up ego that leads us away from the Divine missions in our life. The yeast is simply the agent that causes the dough to rise and gives the impression that there is more than there really is.
“You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall you eat unleavened bread – matzoth “(Exodus12:20).
Matzah, on the other hand is the only form of flour and water mixture permitted on Pesach. It is baked under very rigorous conditions and strict time constraints to insure that it not become Chametz. Yet Matzah itself can only be made from the five grains that have the potential to become Chametz. The obvious question is – why use the very ingredients that if used incorrectly would invalidate the item?
This becomes one of the powerful messages of Passover and is a message that weaves throughout Jewish thought and ritual. The same leavening and yeast that represent arrogance and puffed up ego is used for a higher purpose.
The underlying message is that the secret to obtaining freedom from the things that enslave us is not to avoid those things but rather to elevate them. The very things that can entrap and enslave us can instead be elevated towards a higher purpose.
The bread we avoid is nothing more than puffed up matzah. Yet it has its own purpose and importance.
Wheat is classically termed the “staff of life” and is considered the staple of mankind’s existence. The creation of bread from wheat is also known as the apex of his creative abilities. As the verse says: He would feed him with the finest wheat (Psalms 81:17).That same fine wheat bread is the result of much effort, planning and yearning. It is in fact the fine wheat gift that we bring to the temple on Shavuot.
If in fact the leavened bread is a symbol of arrogance and pride why bring it to the temple? Why not forbid it altogether?
The truth is both realities are critical in our walk in this world. The Baal Shem Tov teaches that bread represents Mochin DeKatnut (small mindedness) while matza represents Mochin DeGadlut( enlarged mindedness).
Small mindedness focuses on the details and small steps of reality. This is critical for getting things done right but it can easily get bogged down and lose sight of the vision.
The “Enlarged Mindedness” is simplified like the matza and as a result it sees the whole picture and understands its purpose.
That is the reason that the fine wheat offering can only be offered after the experience of the Matza based Passover festival. Only after the corrective experience of eating Matza and contemplating its lessons, will we be ready to bring the gift representing the partnership between the G-d and man with the bread offering of Shavuot. Only when we become simplified like a matza will we develop the vision of Divine purpose and destiny. It is following the acquiring of this broad sense of direction that we can then begin to focus on the small details of building and growing.
Pesach is about rebirth, empowerment and re-finding our purpose. Shavuot is about focusing on the details of our life and aligning it with the vision.
The members of all the political parties would do well to remember the “vision” that brought them to the place they are in. they need to do this before they get bogged down with the difficult details. Only with that broad but simple vision will they free themselves from their own constraints in order to bring this people forward.
Chag Kasher VeSameach leKlal Yisrael
LeRefuat Yehudit bat Golda Yocheved