The Seder night is a time which is universally observed by Jews across the world, affiliated and unaffiliated alike. However there may be a slight misconception as to what this very special night is all about. Yes it is true that there are certain essential things we do, like eating matzah and drinking four cups of wine, but there is an additional crucial part of Seder night. This is the idea that we are coming to teach our children of our special heritage, and to pass down the fundamental make-up of what makes us so unique. I would like to share with you one such thought which is a basic part of Judaism.
We know that Pesach is a holiday that is to remind us of the Jewish slavery in Egypt and to celebrate its freedom. One of the key parts of this is the ten plagues with which Hashem punished the Egyptians.
There is something unusual about the first two plagues, the plagues of the blood and the frogs. Whilst all the rest of the plagues were started by Moshe, the nations’ leader, these two were brought about by Aharon, Moshe’s brother. The reason for this difference is given, that the way that these plagues started was by hitting the water of the Nile and the earth with a stick. Since Moshe’s life had previously been saved both by the water and the earth, he was unable to hit them due to the gratitude he had to them.
There is a very obvious question here. The 21st century has been an unbelievable period of technological inventions. Starting with the Apple iPod in 2001, to the iPhone in 2007, followed by the standard popular smartphone with all the innovative apps and programs that come with it. So if for example, we can now have voice recognition on our devices with which you can demand and instruct what to do, surely Hashem whose ability far surpasses our comprehension, could have made that the click of the finger would bring about the plagues. Why was it so important to Hashem that these two plagues were initiated by the very two actions which Moshe wouldn’t be able to perform?
Says R’ Matisyohu Salamon – a great sage living today in America, of course Hashem could have chosen any way He liked to bring about the plagues. The reason why He choose hitting the sea and the earth was because of the very fact that Moshe wouldn’t be able to do these actions due to the appreciation he has to them. The reason for this was in order for the future generations to learn the importance of ‘Hakoras Hatov’ – recognition of the good. If Moshe had ‘Hakoras Hatov’ to something as inanimate as the sea or the earth, all the more so do we need to look out for the good things people do for us, and to thank them for this.
It’s not always easy to recognise the many things that people do for us in our day to day life. Whether it’s borrowing something small from our neighbour, or the nice greetings we receive from a friend which cheers us up on a hard day, or even as seemingly insignificant as when someone passes us something in the office. We learn from Moshe to recognise even the smallest favour someone does for us, and of course to thank them for this.
This is one of the many fundamental ideas which we can pass down to the next generation. When we discuss such concepts with our children, we are ensuring the continuation of our very special lineage, and there is no better opportunity than the Seder night to do this.
Good Shabbos, Chag Sameach. Shragi