As we approach the last few days of Passover, we also approach the culmination of the many miracles that brought our people to freedom. Beginning with the marvelous story of Joseph in Egypt, of his remarkable dreams and his ability to save Egypt from famine, we witnessed the enslavement of the Israelites, the birth of Moses and his extraordinary upbringing in Pharaoh's palace. Upon discovering his true nature, Moses revolts against the stifling cruelty of Pharaoh's power, fleeing to Median where he encounters a bush that burns yet is not consumed. As if this wonder weren't enough, Moses perceives the Presence of God amidst the bush, summoning him to return to Egypt to demand the freedom of the Israelites from the new Pharaoh. This he does, accompanied by his brother Aaron, and they perform wonders and miracles - rods turning into snakes, rivers into blood, pestilence, locusts, boils, hail, culminating in a night of waiting as the Angel of Death passes over the land, slaying the firstborn males of all the Egyptians. Only then does Pharaoh relent and permit the Israelites to go free.
Yet that moment of consent is fleeting, and Pharaoh quickly regrets his momentary open-mindedness. Harnessing his chariots and mustering his troops, he pursues the ragtag Hebrews to the brink of the sea, and then Moses wades into the waters with his rod held high, and the waters part on either side, allowing the Jews to walk to freedom on the other shore. Still in hot pursuit, the Egyptian troops pursue the Hebrews, but once the Hebrews reach safety, Moses again holds out his rod over the waters, and they return to their normal state, drowning the murderous Egyptian military.
Overwhelmed by their own miraculous salvation, the Israelites burst into song and dance. First Moses and the men sing a song of praise and gratitude, and then, in the Torah's words: Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after her in a dance with timbrels. And Miriam chanted for them: Sing to the Lord, for God has triumphed gloriously; Horse and driver God has hurled into the sea (Ex 15:20-21).
The last two days of Pesah celebrate our arrival by the shores of the sea, the mustering of courage to make the waters part, and our arrival to the difficult challenges of Freedom on the other side. Passover is made of many, many miracles, but my favorite miracle of Passover is seldom noted, but is repeated over and over in our own daily lives.
The greatest miracle of Passover took place just after Moses informed the Israelites to pack in haste for their own impending flight. As Hebrew families ran through their homes, hurriedly stuffing a few necessities into a cloth so they could carry it on their backs as they fled to freedom, women in the households were making anguished choices about what was necessary and portable, and what was not necessary, hence dispensable.
And the women chose to pack their timbrels!
Picture what that must have looked like, as Hannah and Esther and Elana were rushing through their meager possessions, deciding what their families would absolutely require in the new unknown ahead. And they stumbled upon a timbrel, on a shelf, in a sack, on the floor. And each woman paused and thought, "We are going to become free. I've never been free, and my grandmother couldn't even remember freedom. But I think we might need to dance, so I think I will take this with us."
Woman after woman, these bold Israelites took their timbrels and packed them away, knowing that bleak misery would someday give way before joy and justice. They knew, in their bones, in their feet, that soon they would need to dance.
So they packed their timbrels even though they were still slaves, even though Pharaoh remained in power, even though they could barely imagine what freedom would feel like.
And because of those myriad acts of faith, Miriam was able to dance with the women, and our people were able to taste the heady intoxication of liberty!
All of us live lives interspersed with suffering and pain. All of us face challenges, disappointments, tragedy and sorrow. But the darkness does give way to the light, and joy comes in the morning. That is the message of the last two days of Pesah - don't despair. Better times are possible, and they will come. God liberates slaves and destroys despots. To be free, we must dance.
Don't forget, in your sorrow and your isolation, to pack your timbrels. You are going to need them soon!
Hag Sameach and Shabbat Shalom!