This Shabbat, the Shabbat immediately preceding Pesach, is customarily given a special name, “Shabbat HaGadol” – the Great Shabbat. Indeed, on this Shabbat HaGadol, we read a special Haftarah ending with the verse, “Behold! I send you Eliyahu HaNavi, before the great (gadol) and awesome day of Hashem.”
The Midrash offers another rationale which may explain this unique appellation given to this Shabbat before Pesach. A great miracle, explains the Midrash, occurred on that Shabbat before Pesach. It was the “Shabbat of a Great Miracle.” Like our Pesach, the exodus from Egypt occurred on the 15th of Nissan. The exodus occurred on a Thursday. Thus, the Shabbat prior to the exodus from Egypt occurred on the 10th of Nissan. The Jewish People had a unique obligation on that 10th of Nissan – the year of the exodus. Each family was commanded to take the lamb that they would be slaughtering for the korban pesach and to tie it to their bedpost in anticipation of that upcoming momentous night. Beginning on that 10th of Nissan, the Jews would lie in bed listening to the sound of the sheep “baaaing”.
The Egyptians worshipped cattle and viewed them as divine. For the Egyptians, this act of tying up the sheep in anticipation of slaughtering them as a sacrifice was a great religious affront. If they would have had their way, the Egyptians would have attacked the Jews and killed them on the spot for this affront to their object of veneration. The Midrash explains that Hashem protected the Jewish People from the Egyptians’ wrath for these four days beginning on that Shabbat, the 10th of Nissan. In commemoration of this great miracle, the Shabbat prior to Pesach is called Shabbat HaGadol – the Great Shabbat.
Participating in this commandment demonstrated unbelievable commitment by the Jewish People to their belief in Hashem. The whole Egyptian society professed the divine quality of cattle – these Jews, in adherence to Hashem’s command, prepared to slaughter a sheep. The Jewish People did not shy away from breaching the norms of Egyptian society and exposing themselves to this existential threat. For this dedication, they merited Hashem’s protection with the miracle of the Great Shabbat.
These Jews are special role models for us and our children. Like Egyptian society, twenty-first century Western society is a very advanced society, offering its citizens many, many benefits. While our society has also advanced morally and philosophically, there are beliefs and mores in our society that contravene the Torah approach. In areas such as the primacy of thinking and education, modesty (in thinking and action) and morality, Torah and Western society do not see eye-to-eye. Our children are often caught in the middle, being pulled by two sets of expectations – Jewish and Western. As an example, I regularly speak to students who are uncomfortable living their values by going “into the street” wearing a kippah and tzitzit or in a modest outfit. It is incumbent upon us as parents to uphold our ancestors as models of commitment and dedication to our Torah values. We can communicate this lesson best by teaching our children about these heroes and by consistently exhibiting our own dedication to our Torah values even when they contravene the ambient culture.
The Midrash offers another rationale which may explain this unique appellation given to this Shabbat before Pesach. A great miracle, explains the Midrash, occurred on that Shabbat before Pesach. It was the “Shabbat of a Great Miracle.” Like our Pesach, the exodus from Egypt occurred on the 15th of Nissan. The exodus occurred on a Thursday. Thus, the Shabbat prior to the exodus from Egypt occurred on the 10th of Nissan. The Jewish People had a unique obligation on that 10th of Nissan – the year of the exodus. Each family was commanded to take the lamb that they would be slaughtering for the korban pesach and to tie it to their bedpost in anticipation of that upcoming momentous night. Beginning on that 10th of Nissan, the Jews would lie in bed listening to the sound of the sheep “baaaing”.
The Egyptians worshipped cattle and viewed them as divine. For the Egyptians, this act of tying up the sheep in anticipation of slaughtering them as a sacrifice was a great religious affront. If they would have had their way, the Egyptians would have attacked the Jews and killed them on the spot for this affront to their object of veneration. The Midrash explains that Hashem protected the Jewish People from the Egyptians’ wrath for these four days beginning on that Shabbat, the 10th of Nissan. In commemoration of this great miracle, the Shabbat prior to Pesach is called Shabbat HaGadol – the Great Shabbat.
Participating in this commandment demonstrated unbelievable commitment by the Jewish People to their belief in Hashem. The whole Egyptian society professed the divine quality of cattle – these Jews, in adherence to Hashem’s command, prepared to slaughter a sheep. The Jewish People did not shy away from breaching the norms of Egyptian society and exposing themselves to this existential threat. For this dedication, they merited Hashem’s protection with the miracle of the Great Shabbat.
These Jews are special role models for us and our children. Like Egyptian society, twenty-first century Western society is a very advanced society, offering its citizens many, many benefits. While our society has also advanced morally and philosophically, there are beliefs and mores in our society that contravene the Torah approach. In areas such as the primacy of thinking and education, modesty (in thinking and action) and morality, Torah and Western society do not see eye-to-eye. Our children are often caught in the middle, being pulled by two sets of expectations – Jewish and Western. As an example, I regularly speak to students who are uncomfortable living their values by going “into the street” wearing a kippah and tzitzit or in a modest outfit. It is incumbent upon us as parents to uphold our ancestors as models of commitment and dedication to our Torah values. We can communicate this lesson best by teaching our children about these heroes and by consistently exhibiting our own dedication to our Torah values even when they contravene the ambient culture.
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