NCYI Dvar Torah Bulletin, Pesach Thoughts for the 1st Days of Pesach

When does the recounting of the Pesach story that we recite every year begin? The Gemara Pesachim 116a brings a dispute between Rav and Shmuel. Shmuel says one should begin the Hagaddah from “Avadim Hayinnu…- We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt.” Rav says one should start with “Mitchila Ovdei avodah zara hayu avoteinu – In the beginning, our fathers were idolaters…”

We can well understand the opinion of Shmuel. Following the principle of “Matchil b’g’nut umesayem b’shvach – one begins with disgrace and ends with glory,” we come to a greater appreciation of our redemption from Egypt by first recounting our years of slavery there.

Rav’s opinion is harder to understand. There seems to be no connection between the time of Terach and the time of the Exodus in Mitzrayim. We rose far from our ancestors’ idolatry through Avraham. When Yaakov and his family went to Mitzrayim, they were all faithful servants of God. Why should the Hagaddah begin with Terach’s idolatry, something they had long left behind? Why is this important for us to remember?

It seems that while the children of Yaakov had actively rejected the idolatrous ways of their forebears, they could not completely uproot the seeds that had been planted. Only through being enslaved in Mitzrayim and then being redeemed by God could these roots be completely eradicated from the Jewish people (Maaseh Nissim).

One who worships idols does not believe that there is a Master of the World. There cannot be more than one master in existence, for the power of one God precludes the power of any others. Rather, he/she believes that there are different powers and forces in this world which one can harness by appealing to the god which represents it.

Avraham realized that this world is far too great and complex to exist in this way. There must be a Master, he reasoned, one who created the world and who is in control of its every aspect. Nothing transpires in the universe that has not been willed by God to happen.

Even though we do not serve idols, we are not always complete in our belief that the entire world is controlled by God. We expend much effort and energy worrying about our livelihood and our future as if we alone are able to bring on our own success and are the only ones who can cause our failure. In reality, however, our success or failure depends on many factors beyond our control. Only the One who manages every aspect of the universe can guarantee that our efforts will bear fruit.

It is incumbent upon us to place our Bitachon (trust) in God. Only by turning to Him for all our needs can we show that we believe that our universe is truly controlled by God. It is human nature to believe that our world is governed by some force. While a lack of faith is not idolatry, it is certainly related to it. If one does not fully trust in God, he trusts in something else, such as his personal power, his abilities or his personal assets (Chovot Hal’vavot).

The slavery in Mitzrayim seems connected to such a shortcoming. When God promised that Avraham’s children would inherit the land of Canaan (Bereishis 15:8), Avraham asked “How will I know that I will inherit it?” God responded by saying, “You should know that your offspring will be a stranger in a [strange] land…and they will serve them…”

The Gemara (Nedarim 32a) explains that Avraham, in asking this question, appeared as if he was expressing doubt in the veracity of God’s promise. As a consequence of this seeming lack of faith, his descendants were fated to be slaves in Mitzrayim.

Yosef had prophesied through his dreams that he would be in a position of authority over his brothers. Nevertheless, the brothers tried to control his fate by selling him as a slave. In the end, the hunger brought them to Mitzrayim to bow at Yosef’s feet and be dependent on him for their daily sustenance.

Once in Mitzrayim, the situation of the Bnei Yisrael rapidly deteriorated. In a generation, they went from being near the highest level of royalty to be subjected to the lowest form of slavery.

The Egyptians acted as if they alone had control over the destiny of their slaves. They could not have treated them in such a wanton, cruel manner if they believed there was a God who watched over all his creations. Rather, they believed that Egypt, with all the “godly” powers it was able to harness, ruled the universe.

At the time, notes the Chasam Sofer, much of the world would have agreed. If Pharaoh was not somewhat of a god himself, he certainly seemed to have the gods on his side. It was he who had received a dream that enabled him to prepare for the great famine and be able to not only sustain Egypt, but to make it the richest and most powerful nation. Even Yaakov, who was known for his belief in one Almighty God, had come to Egypt for sustenance, and his children lived under Egyptian rule.

This experience had a profound impact on the mentality of the Bnei Yisrael. They too began to believe that their world was controlled by Mitzrayim. While this caused them to sink to a spiritual low, it also changed the way they viewed themselves. Whereas the idolatry of their forebears may have left behind seeds of gaavah (haughtiness) and feelings of self-reliance, the tyranny of the Egyptians reduced the Bnei Yisrael to a state of complete submissiveness. Any gaavah a slave may have had is quickly forgotten; his life is completely under the control of his masters.

The Makkot served not only to punish the Egyptians for their evil ways, but to demonstrate to the Bnei Yisrael that evil is punished (Toras Avraham). Through the Makkot, Mitzrayim was shown to be powerless against the decree of God. It became clear that this world is not arbitrarily controlled by any human being or supernatural force. Rather, there is a Master of the Universe who controls its every natural phenomenon and who judges the lives and actions of all His creations.

Having been taken out of Mitzrayim and having witnessed its downfall, the Bnei Yisrael were ready to believe in God and recognize Him as their Master. The same submission and dependence with which they had served the Egyptians would now enable them to fully accept God as their true Master and to depend on Him for every aspect of their existence.

In times of trouble and uncertainty, we turn to God for reassurance and strength. When all is well, however, we often prefer to “do it on our own” and take responsibility for our own success or failure. We view Bitachon as non-obligatory; a nice thought to cling to in moments of despair.

Complete belief in God is not an option, however. It is not sufficient to accept God’s existence in theory. Only through constant Bitachon do we put that belief into practice.

Our very existence as a nation was established through our experience in Mitzrayim, which transformed us into a people who could accept God as their Master. Feeling dependent on God is not a sign of weakness. On the contrary, it is necessary in order to acknowledge the Source of all our strength.