I TORAH PORTION
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One Act Of Defiance
Marks A Thrning Point
RABBI MORTON YOLKUT
Special to The Jewish News
T
he Sabbath before is
known as Shabbat
Hagadol, the Great
Sabbath.
In the grace after meals
every Shabbat is described as
great and holy (ki yom zeh
gadol v'kadosh hu lefanecha).
Why then is the Shabbat
before Passover designated as
the Great Sabbath? Or to
paraphrase the words of the
Haggadah, why is this Sab-
bath different from all other
Sabbaths?
Our rabbinic commentators
suggest a number of different
answers. The most compell-
ing is that a great miracle oc-
curred on the Sabbath before
Mezorah
Shabbat Hagadol:
Leviticus
14:1-15:33,
Malachi 3:4-24.
the original Passover. In the
year of the Exodus from
Egypt, the tenth day of the
month of Nisan fell on the
Sabbath. On that day, the
Jewish people were in-
structed to prepare the lamb,
the chief deity of the Egyp-
tians. If asked for wht pur-
pose they acquired the lamb
the Israelites were to say
point blank that they intend-
ed to slaughter it four days
later — a sacrilegious act no
Hebrew slave would have
dared in the past. In fact, in
an earlier verse, Moses says to
Pharaoh, "It would not be
right to do this (to sacrifice
sheep in Egypt) before their
very eyes, for what we
sacrifice to the Lord our God
is untouchable to the Egyp-
tians. Will they not stone us?"
(Exodus 8:22)
Just days before the Ex-
odus, the Israelites are com-
manded to do just that — to
publically purchase lambs for
the Passover sacrifice and to
mark their upcoming • libera-
tion from Egypt. When the
day came, the Israelites stood
the test; the people disregard-
ed the mortal danger involv-
ed in executing this com-
mandment. They accepted
the dictates of a higher
authority, of obeying His word
rather than cowering before
the Egyptians.
This act of defiance on the
last Sabbath before Passover
Morton Yolkut is rabbi of
Congregation B'nai David.
marked a major turning point
in Jewish history. It was the
moment our ancestors stop-
ped fearing the Egyptians
and demonstrated their belief
in God's liberation. It was the
first time in our history when
Jewish people openly
declared their faith in God
despite the threats of the
world without.
The Shabbat on which this
occurred is designated as
hagadol, the Great Sabbath,
as it marks the real beginn-
ing of the liberation and a
crucial miracle whose focus
was human, not divine.
God's ability to perform
miracles is not unexpected.
God's greatness is apparent to
all — none compare to Him.
This Shabbat becomes great
not because of His miraculous
intervention, but because of
the courage and self assertion
of the Jewish people. They
demonstrated their devotion
to God through risking their
lives in defying their Egyp-
tian masters. This one
courageous act attuned the
Israelites to the frequency of
liberation and redemption.
The rest of the story is found
in the annals of Jewish
history. El
I SYNAGOGUES I
Temple Kol Ami
Music Service
Temple Kol Ami will hold
its annual Jewish Music
Season Service 8 p.m. April
28. The service will be
dedicated to the remem-
brance of the Holocaust, this
being the Shabbat before Yom
Hashoah.
The "Sermon in Song" will
include music from many
countries and songs written
in the ghettos and concentra-
tion camps. Avra Weiss and
Carol Ferrero will perform
the music for the service and
program. Donna Sklar will
narrate. The public is invited.
Beth Achim
Holds Siyyum
Congregation Beth Achim
will mark the pre-Passover
service exempting the first
born from fasting the day
before Passover on Wednesday
with the conclusion of a
treatise of the Talmud.
Joseph Baras will conduct
the siyyum after the 7:15 a.m.
service. All bechorim, male
first born, are invited.
Breakfast will be served after
the program.
— Select One or Both Programs
—
Sponsored by
The Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit
r
MIN ISOM INNIS WM MIMI
=III
I I Deadline to Sign Up
I
Mon., April 17
L
Limited Space Available
ONE IMO IME MIN
n "
"um am am
For more details or an application,
mal
contact the JCC, 661-1000, ext. 294 or 267.
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