Passover

Welcome to part 2 of our "Story of Passover" series. In this lesson, we learn how the Almighty chose Moses as the leader of Israel. He sends Moses on a fateful mission to Egypt. There, Moses has a series of dramatic confrontations with Pharaoh, which culminate in the Ten Plagues.

Welcome to our 4-part series on the story of Passover. This series of lessons aspires to give us a deeper understanding and appreciation of the Passover holiday. The more the story of Passover becomes alive in our hearts, the more meaningful our observance and celebration of the holiday, especially Seder night. Our first lesson presents the series of events that led up to Passover, and specifically, how the Israelites became slaves in Egypt.

The 210 years of exile and 116 years of slavery in Egypt ended with on the eve of the 15th of Nissan, 2448 in the Hebrew calendar. This was the year 1312 BCE. Hashem gave a most difficult command to the Israelites. Each family had to slaughter a lamb, which the Egyptians held sacred as their prime deity. This was an act of total dedication to the Almighty, where emuna had to prevail over logic and fear. Such dedication triggered the final exodus from Egypt, in a remarkable chain of events that we learn in todays lesson.

When Moses relayed Hashem's message of "Let My people go" to Pharaoh, the Egyptian monarch snarled back, "Who is Hashem that I should listen to Him? Besides, I've never heard of Hashem before" (Exodus 5:2). With such unprecedented insolence, Pharaoh was begging for punishment. The punishment came quickly. There were ten different plagues. Each one was a precise measure-for-measure response to the suffering that Pharaoh and the Egyptians meted out to the Israelites, as we see in today's lesson.

How did a fierce, proud and independent people like the Israelites fall into slavery in Egypt? Why did they have to suffer unspeakable atrocities? Here, in first of our 3-Part "Story of Passover," we gain a deeper appreciation of the Passover holiday and of true freedom. 

The Passover Seder night is not an evening of reminiscing about what happen to our nation 3,336 years ago. Like everything else that's Divinely inspired, it's timeless. The Haggadah is about us - today - and much more relevant than the daily news. Our future is where our past is; without our past, we can't make sense of the present.

Since the dawn of our history, joy has been our mode of survival. Rebbe Nachman says that the lack of joy in life is the root of all problems, including health. Therefore, to hasten the coming of Moshiach and to be ready for redemption, we must strengthen ourselves in joy. Emuna is the only way to do that...

Emuna Hour this week is all about Passover and particularly a preparation for a meaningful Seder Night, showing how the "Festival of Matzoth", as the Torah refers to Passover, is every bit as relevant today as it was 3,331 years ago when Hashem freed us from bondage in Egypt.