I'm not a big fan of the current trend in some quarters to universalize Jewish holidays, calling Passover the "Festival of Freedom," for instance, and then trying to apply its lessons to, say, gays suffering under the yoke of modern academia. (Put a purple ribbon on your office doorframe so the liberating protestors will know not to molest you.)
Passover is, in fact, the most Jewish-centric of our holidays. It's the holiday that commemorates when, under the pressure-cooker of a midnight escape, we became a people, a nation, rather than a rabble of slaves. It's the holiday where we leave tyranny for the — as yet undefined — servitude to God.
While the promise of our relationship with God is established by the covenant with Abraham, it's during the events of Passover that those promises begin to be fulfilled. (In fact, there's a tradition that the covenant with Abraham had been largely forgotten by the Jews - but not, of course, by God.) It's also the first time we experience events as a nation and not as a collection of tribes, although the tribal affiliations will continue until the present day.
Part of the Haggadah — the script for the Passover Seder — I believe emphasizes this particularism:
It is told of Rabbi Eliezer, Rabbi Yehoshua, Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria, Rabbi Akiva, and Rabbi Tarfon, who were reclining at the Seder in B'nei Brak, and had spent the whole night telling the story of the Exodus...
The irony is that of the rabbis in the discussion, all but one are either converts or descended from converts. The other is a Levi, and tradition holds that the tribe of Levi didn't suffer under slavery the way that the rest of Israel did.
This means that of the rabbis discussing the law, none of them actually had ancestors who were slaves. The fact that we read this story on Passover is significant because it implies that it's the Passover Story that defines us as a people. Having accepted this story, the Passover story, as their own, they (or their ancestors) became a part of the people. Not simply an act of faith, or a belief in the universality of God, but an act of identification with the Jewish people was necessary for them to be accepted. And these men, either converts or descendents of converts, became among the greatest of our Rabbis. (The similarity between conversion to Judaism and immigration to America is striking, but a topic for another day.)
Article comments
1 - Victor Lana
Joshua, as a Christian who has celebrated Passover with Jewish people many times (once in Jerusalem), I have to say that it is just an amazing holiday. Filled with wonder and awe, it competes with Christmas in my book as the most stimulating emotional and mental experience. And that cup reserved for Elijah, well that gives me goosebumps.
2 - gordsellar
Que? It does not follow that none of their ancestors were slaves. Maybe not in Egypt, but I'd be surprised if many people didn't have ancestors who were slaves at some point.
Not a general criticism, just a specific point.
3 - Thomas M. Sipos
I wonder, how many Jews regard the Passover story to be history, and how many see it as myth and metaphor (like the Garden of Eden)?
I ask, because I recall a Newsweek cover story back in the 1990s, which said that the majority of Bible scholars believe that Moses never existed, and that the Hebrews were never slaves in Egypt.
An emerging theory based on recent archeological evidence (according to one History Channel show) is that the Hebrews were poor hill-dwelling Canaanites, as opposed to being the wealthier valley-dwelling Canaanites. The poorer hill people (shepherds as opposed to famers) eventually migrated into the valleys, giving birth to a "conquest of Canaan" military fable.
4 - Nancy
There's also the fact that the Egyptians were maniacal records-keepers, so much so that they just as meticulously recorded defeats & famines as they did the greatest military victories, and kept long, involved, & detailed lists of everybody they met, traded with, and/or conquered. While there are mentions of trading interactions with Hebrews from time to time, there are NO records whatsoever, either Egyptian or archeological, that support the passover myth of slavery or escape therefrom, or any of the so-called plagues; in fact, there's no evidence whatsoever for any significant population of Jews anywhere in Egypt until fairly late in Roman times - and they were not there as slaves, but traders. As usual, sic transit gloria religio.
5 - My Opinion, That's All
There's also another fact: The Egyptians only recorded the events that made them look good. They never recorded their failures.
6 - Thomas M. Sipos
Nancy says: "the Egyptians were maniacal records-keepers, so much so that they just as meticulously recorded defeats & famines as they did the greatest military victories,"
My Opinion says: "The Egyptians only recorded the events that made them look good. They never recorded their failures."
Those two "facts" are contradictory. Which is it?
7 - Nancy
I would take issue with comment #5; Egyptian heiroglyph translations are full of records of failures, including the (losing) wars with the Hyksos, Nubians, etc. & a few disastrous mining expeditions into Syria. MOTA needs to do some deeper reading, preferably in the egyptology sections, and not just religion.
8 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
Nancy,
You wrote,
"there are NO records whatsoever, either Egyptian or archeological, that support the passover myth of slavery or escape therefrom, or any of the so-called plagues;..."
You are flat out wrong. Check out my piece on Passover. You'll have to buy the book and CD I recommended there, but there is proof. If you don't want to order from Amazon, you can order directly from Lightcatcher Productions.
9 - Ruvy in Jerusalem
Josh,
Very nice article.
You pulled out part of the Haggadah quoting,
"It is told of Rabbi Eliezer, Rabbi Yehoshua, Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria, Rabbi Akiva, and Rabbi Tarfon, who were reclining at the Seder in B'nei Brak, and had spent the whole night telling the story of the Exodus..."
Rabbi Riskin wrote a number of years ago that this "telling" of the Exodus was really a debate between the various rabbis as to whether to support Bar Kokhba in his plans to revolt against Rome.
Moadím l'SimHá
10 - gazelle
JS
you bring an interesting point about converts that applies equally to christians and muslims, and still converting, in the far east or the US.
i am fascinated by the process.
best