Shabbat Hagadol, the Shabbat before Pesach, is approaching. The Israelites are about to leave Egypt and life, for them, will go from confinement to freedom, from narrowness to breadth. Do they know? If they had been told, would they even believe it?
On the eve of freedom, God tells the Israelites to "take a lamb to a family, a lamb to a household to sacrifice. But if the household is too small for a lamb, let him share one with a neighbor who dwells nearby..." The Torah links freedom with the ability to share. Why is this a sign of freedom? The Israelites are leaving one mentality for another. A slave, who does not know where his next meal will come from, is unlikely to share his portion with a neighbor. Sharing shifts the mentality from confinement to freedom.
It makes me wonder, how we can each find more freedom in our current situation? When this is all over, I can imagine the joy of sharing a potluck or a barbeque. In the meantime, I see people finding ways to share from within their walls. Some are putting rainbows in their windows so that passersby can participate in a scavenger hunt. Others are going shopping for their neighbors. One of our members offered me a mask so that I could stay safe while doing a funeral.
Extending ourselves to others (even from our own isolation) is not only something nice for others; It is also a way to find our own liberation. If you are like me, you are worn down. There is an exhaustion that comes from this, and the idea of doing anything extra is inconceivable. Yet, I hope you will join me in exercising small gestures of liberation. We don't need to wait for ultimate freedom in order to find some pockets of openness.
Wishing you health, safety, and peace, Rabbi Bernstein
*You are invited to have Shabbat candles, Challah (or any bread), wine (or grape juice), and a pitcher of water and a bowl. We will do the blessings together.
Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism