A Jewish grandmother is giving directions to her grown grandson, who is coming to visit for Pesach with his wife and children:
"You come to the front door of the apartment complex. I am in apartment 14T. There is a big panel at the door. With your elbow push button 14T. I will buzz you in. Come inside, the elevator is on the right. Get in, and with your elbow hit 14. When you get out I am on the left. With your elbow, hit my doorbell."
"Bubbe, that sounds easy, but why am I hitting all these buttons with my elbow"?
"You're coming empty handed?"
* * *
On Passover, we express our freedom and joy by drinking of the four cups of wine. These four cups of wine allude to the four matriarchs of Israel.[1] But how does each cup represent each of these four women?
SARA
The first cup of wine is called kaddeish, "to make holy".
We make holiness by reciting the kiddush and proclaiming G-d as
the King of the Universe. It was the matriarch, Sara (and Abraham)
who had a tent which opened from all four sides, encouraging wayfarers
to come in and eat. At the end of each meal, Sara would tell the
guests to thank their true host and hostess-A-mighty G-d, Blessed
Be His Holy Name-because it is G-d who provides us with all of
our needs. Sara was kaddeish- she made holy.
Alternatively, kaddeish also means to separate. Sara was the first to separate from the customs and deities of her family and proclaim to the world that it is the One G-d, blessed be His Holy Name, who creates and vitalizes all of creation.
REBECCA
The second cup is filled before the four questions, and the answers
to all these questions are expounded upon with the second cup.
This second cup alludes to Rebecca. She was the mother, not only
of Jacob - a righteous man, but also of his brother Esau - the
original evil twin. Esau is the wicked son, the second son in
the Haggadah. But why does the second cup, which alludes to the
second son, get all the lime light and fanfare?
The answer is that the second son, the rasha, is only bad on the outside. On the inside, he has the "echad",[2] the G-dly spark that unites him with G-d. However, he has questions, questions about G-d and religious practices. How do you deal with him? Well, fill up a cup of wine and spend an evening or two together and discuss those questions. Questions are important. The Talmud clearly states "a bashful student will not learn." It is only through questions that one acquires new insights.
Furthermore, the entire Talmud, the basis of all Jewish law, is all about questions and answers. So Rebecca, the mother of Esau, pleads with us: If you have a wicked son who has questions, do not shun him. Embrace him, listen to his questions and give him answers.
Rebecca lived over 3600 years ago; yet, she never gave up on her child. Although Esau was a wicked man his mother believed in the "echad" within him. Even today, through the narrative of the Haggadah, Rebecca is talking to Esau, working to bring him home.
RACHEL
The third and fourth cups allude to Rachel and Leah. It was the
custom of the Lubavitcher Rebbe to fill the cup of Elijah at the
same time the third cup is filled and to return the wine of Elijah's
cup to the bottle after drinking the fourth cup.[3]
After pouring the wine into Elijah's cup, we recite,
from the Haggadah: 'Pour out your wrath upon the nations that
do not know you."[4] This psalm
is symbolic of Rachel defending her children like a loving mother.
As it states, "Rachel cries for the security of her children."[5]
LEAH
G-d pouring out His wrath on the evil nations is true at the end
of exile. However, in the final days, at the beginning of Redemption,
the whole world will recognize G-d and return through tshuva.
The theme of return is symbolic of Leah, as it states "her
eyes were dim"-she was crying, doing tshuva.
MIRIAM
Alternatively, the fifth cup-the cup of Elijah-may allude to another
great matriarch and heroine of the Passover miracle: Miriam. It
was Miriam who told Moses's parents that they would give birth
to the redeemer of Israel, and it was Miriam who sang with tambourines
after the splitting of the Red Sea. What Miriam was to Egypt is
what Elijah is to the world today, both heralding the redemption,
getting the world ready for "next year in Jerusalem."
STORY
There was once a wealthy couple named Elkana and Penina who were
generous to the poor and whose large house was always open to
strangers. Their most valued possession was a beautiful Elijah's
cup that graced their seder table each year at Passover.
Then, the wheel of fortune turned for Elkana and Penina and they were forced to pawn all of their possessions to buy food. The only thing of value that they had left was their Elijah's cup, which they agreed never to sell, no matter how desperate they became.
As Passover approached, they discovered that they did not have enough money to buy matzah, wine, or food for the seder.
"Dear Penina," said Elkana with a heavy heart, "I'm afraid we have no choice but to sell Elijah's cup."
"Never!" replied Penina, and nothing Elkana could say would change her mind.
On the day before Passover, Elkana went off to study in the beit midrash. It pained him too much to stay at home and see the empty Elijah's cup sitting in the middle of a bare table. How sad their Passover would be this year! How could they celebrate Israel's liberation from slavery without matzah or wine?
While Elkana was gone, there was a knock on the door. Penina opened it to find an elderly, well-dressed man standing before her.
"I'm a stranger in this town," he said. "May I celebrate the seders with you?"
"We have no money to buy anything for a seder this year," said Penina sadly. "We have nothing at all in the house."
The man handed her a heavy purse and said, "Take this money and go buy what you need. I'll return tonight for the seder."
With a joyful heart, Penina hurried to the market and bought
everything that she needed for the seders. Then she ran home and
prepared a great feast. When Elkana returned, Penina told him
what had happened and asked him to bring their guest home with
him from the synagogue that evening. But Elkana returned from
the synagogue alone. "I looked everywhere," he explained,
"but there was no well-dressed stranger there."
They decided not to begin the seder until their benefactor arrived.
But it began to grow late and, still, there was no sign of him.
At eleven o'clock, they could wait no longer, for the afikomen
-the matzah consumed toward the end of the seder-- must be eaten
before midnight. They recited the first part of the Haggadah and
then began the feast. Right after they ate the afikomen, Elkana
fell asleep. But Penina stayed awake, still hoping that the stranger
would appear. And a short while later, when she opened the door
for Elijah the Prophet, the elderly man walked in.
She ran to wake Elkana, but by the time she succeeded in arousing him from his heavy sleep, the stranger was gone. Elkana fell back to sleep, and Penina finished the Haggadah by herself. . .
| ACTION: Invite a guest to your Seder to participate in the drinking of the four cups of wine each night. |
FOOTNOTES
[1] See Likutei Sichos, Vol. 26, p. 47, fn. 42; see references
there.
[2] See Gutnick Haggadah on the above topic.
[3] Sefer Hasichos 5749, p. 391.
[4] Taken from Psalms, Ch. 79.
[5] See Jeremiah 31:14:16.
|
Ever since I was a child I was amazed by the mysteries
of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. This led me to research
and write my first book, Letters of Light. The following exploration
will G-d willing become part of a sequel to Letters of Light.
It delves into the profound spiritual lessons found in the letters
of the weekly Torah portion. I hope you will find it as exciting
and instructive as I do.
Rabbi Raskin |
Rabbi Raskin invites you to his class for exciting discussions on Torah, spirituality and the modern world. Every Monday evening, 8:00-9:00.
He also offers a special class for women only on the Weekly Parsha, Wednesdays at 9:15am.
