Shabbat Chol HaMoed Pesach: Freedom–Use It Or Lose It
(A d’var Torah delivered by Student Rabbi Maayan Lev on April 8, 2023)
On this third day of Pesach,we continue to celebrate how we went ,מִעַבְדוּת לְחֵרוּת from slavery to freedom. As we read in the Haggadah on seder night from Deuteronomy 26:
וַיּוֹצִאֵנוּ יְהֹוָה מִמִּצְרַיִם בְּיָד חֲזָקָה וּבִזְרֹעַ נְטוּיָה׃
“And G!d freed us from Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.”[1]
But the Maggid section of the Haggadah also states:
בְכֹל דֹר ודֹר חַיָבִים אֲנַחְנו לִרְאוֹת אֶת עַצְמֵנוּ כְּאִלוּ יָצָאנוּ מִמִצְרַיִם.
“In every generation, we must see ourselves as though we personally left Egypt.”
Essentially, there are two elements to this. We must see ourselves as having been enslaved, and also as having been freed. In evaluating these criteria for ourselves, we can choose to either look at ourselves individually, or as a Jewish people. Certainly, examining this for ourselves individually is an exercise that all should be encouraged to do, but this morning, I want to look at it from the perspective of the Jewish people.
What does slavery look like for the Jewish people today? The source of our people’s slavery today is essentially the same primary source as we’ve had for generations. And that is antisemitism. Antisemitism has certainly changed over the years in terms of how it spreads, and how it is delivered, but it seems that some prejudices can’t ever seem to die.
Ironically, many antisemites are under the impression that we are Pharaoh, that we are the ones running the world, and that they are the slaves. But I won’t waste time unpacking those misconceptions today.
According to the ADL, there were 3,697 recorded antisemitic incidents in the U.S. in the past calendar year, making it the most ever recorded in a calendar year, up 36% from the year before. For reference, they started keeping track in 1979.[2]
Antisemitic harassment is up 29% from the past year, and antisemitic assault went up 26%, and antisemitic vandalism was up 51%. If these percentages sound low to you, consider that this is the third time in the past five years that antisemitic incidents recorded in the U.S. reached an all-time high. They keep setting new records! And yet, only 47% of the general population said they perceived antisemitism to be increasing in this country![3]
The most high-profile antisemitic incidents seem to take place at synagogues. In the first two months of 2023 alone, there were 12 targeted synagogues in the United States, up 71% from that time span in the year before, and transcending the boundaries of Jewish denominations.[4]
We all remember Pittsburgh, Poway, and Colleyville, Texas.[5] Just a few months ago, there were shootings in the Pico-Robertson area. Then there were acts of intimidation, such as the antisemitic banners flying over the 405 Freeway, and Jews in multiple states waking up to antisemitic pamphlets on their lawn.[6] We should all certainly educate ourselves about the antisemitic activities of the Goyim Defense League, which is increasingly active.[7] And though it was less recent, the 2017 rally in Charlottesville wasn’t that long ago, and we remember it clearly.[8]
How is this slavery? Slavery is a mindset. Whether or not the public gives you the right to be free, you are only free if you allow yourself to feel that freedom. When you live in fear, you are not free.
Unfortunately, these events make some people reluctant to participate in Jewish life. Many are afraid to join synagogues. Many are afraid to wear a kippah in public, or tell others that they’re Jewish. According to a survey by the American Jewish Action Committee, between 2020-2021, 40% of American Jews altered their behavior at least once due to fear of anti-Semitism.[9]
Even if it’s legal to be Jewish, when you have the mindset that being Jewish is such a danger that you aren’t able to show it outside the house, then that is operating under the mindset of slavery and oppression.
And one of the sadder consequences of this is that as a necessary reaction to all of this, many synagogues are beefing up their security, turning communities that should look warm and welcoming to onlookers into fortified castles that seem cold and frightening to those who have never been there before.
And before we say, “Next year in Jerusalem,” because it would be much safer to be a Jew if we were living in Israel, it’s worth remembering that the grass isn’t always greener. While it’s probably safer to live as a Jew in Israel than it is here, there are other liberties that we value here in America that aren’t protected in Israel.
And that brings me to the biggest point I want to make: as an ideal, freedom is absolute, but in reality, freedom is always relative!
Yes, freedom is a state of mind. It’s important to recognize that. But the funny thing about our minds, is that for everything that there is to give us reason to fear, we can train our minds to think differently!
No, things aren’t great right now. But I want to ask you: how often have things truly been great for the Jews? It’s happened, but oddly enough, we rarely talk about those times.
If a Jew who was having second thoughts about joining a synagogue out of fear for their safety could travel back in time to the 1940s to discuss their fears with a Jew in Auschwitz, they would probably say, “Certainly, antisemitism is something to be feared. But don’t let your fear of antisemitism blind you from the realization of just how free you are!
“When you go to synagogue, you worry about what is possible though unlikely to happen, instead of what is likely to happen. And at least you even have a synagogue to go to! And not only that, but you do have security cameras, and at many synagogues, armed guards willing to protect you! You also have the police and the government working to protect you! And when people DO strike out at you, it’s they who get persecuted, not the Jews! You are free to choose your own career, own property, and take office. Though the protections are far from perfect, in your day, being a Jew is protected by law. For us, we had none of these things!”
It’s certainly not an easy time to be a Jew in the United States, but there are many people in our country who actually have it worse. There are liberties that are currently under attack in our country. People in this country are robbed of their freedom due to things like voter suppression, racially based police brutality, lack of access to necessary food, water, and healthcare, and government prohibitions to express your identity in public!
As G!d heard our cries in Egypt and reached out to us with an outstretched arm, so too should we hear the cries of those affected by these injustices and reach out to help them![10]
But while our government can debate for years on end regarding what to do about these situations, one thing that never picks up legitimate steam in the government is to remove protections for Jews. In that regard, we are very much free. No, we’re not free from oppression, but we’re allowed to be ourselves! And that is huge! Not everyone can do that!
Freedom is a state of mind, but to the person in literal shackles, the person who has freedom but is too afraid to exercise it is letting their freedoms go to waste.
What good is it to be a Jew, if you can’t let it show? If you can’t let it show, then you have allowed yourself to become truly 100% enslaved. Freedom isn’t the absence of fear. It’s the ability to chart your own course and live with the consequences!
To me, this lesson is best exemplified by Nachshon ben Aminadav. Even after ten plagues, the Jews weren’t willing to risk walking into the Sea of Reeds. For many, seeing is believing, and since the sea hadn’t parted yet, nobody jumped in. The Sea only parted when Nachshon ben Aminadav jumped in and the waters reached his neck.[11]
In most stories, Nachshon is used as an example of a true believer. Today, I actually want to challenge that thought. I would argue that perhaps Nachshon wasn’t a true believer. Rather, he was a person who essentially said, “Whether the sea parts or not, I would rather die a free human being than allow them to bring me back to a place where my rights are trampled!”
Nachshon chose to exercise his freedoms despite his fear, and was rewarded for it.
Freedom is never perfect! Freedom is doing what Nachshon did. Freedom isn’t living without fear, but rather, living in spite of fear!
Instead of asking, “What bad might happen if I express my Judaism outside the house,” we should be asking: “What good will I definitely miss out on if I don’t express it?”
However trampled we may feel our freedoms are in this moment, let us not fail to recognize the freedoms that we do have. And let us not let those freedoms be in vain. We should exercise them, and use them to help others who don’t have those freedoms.
For all of humanity, next year, in Jerusalem!
Shabbat shalom everyone, and Mo’adim L’Simcha, have a joyful, meaningful, and free Pesach!
[1] Deuteronomy 26:8.
[2] “Audit of Antisemitic Incidents 2022.” ADL.org, Anti-Defamation League, 23 Mar. 2023, https://www.adl.org/resources/report/audit-antisemitic-incidents-2022.
[3] Michanie, Yoni. “New Synagogue Threats Highlight The Need For A Proactive Fight Against Antisemitism.” The Hill, 4 Apr. 2023, https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/3927782-new-synagogue-threats-highlight-the-need-for-a-proactive-fight-against-antisemitism/.
[4] Ibid.
[5] “A Call to Action Against Antisemitism in America.” AJC.org, American Jewish Commitee, https://www.ajc.org/call-to-action/report.
[6] Hamasaki, Sonya. “Demonstrators on 405 Freeway Overpass Express Support for Kanye West’s Antisemitic Remarks.” ABC7.Com, CNN Wire, 24 Oct. 2022, https://abc7.com/405-freeay-banners-antisemitic-nazi/12368248/ and Espey, Em. “Antisemitic Flyers Left on Synagogue Members’ Porches in Kensington.” Moco 360, 1 Jan. 2023, https://moco360.media/2023/01/23/antisemitic-flyers-left-on-synagogue-members-porches-in-kensington/.
[7] Young, Robin, et al. “Antisemitic GDL Network Grows Larger As Violence Against Jewish Americans Abounds.” Edited by Grace Griffin, WBUR.org, National Public Radio, 15 Mar. 2023, https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2023/03/15/antisemitic-gdl-network.
[8] Green, Emma. “Why the Charlottesville Marchers Were Obsessed With Jews.” The Atlantic, 15 Aug. 2017, https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/08/nazis-racism-charlottesville/536928/.
[9] “A Call to Action Against Antisemitism in America.” AJC.org, American Jewish Commitee, https://www.ajc.org/call-to-action/report.
[10] Deuteronomy 26:7-8
[11] Midrash Tehilim 76 (and various other accounts)