The Miracle of Freedom

April 8, 2020 at 2:54 AM , ,

“…Who redeemed us and redeemed our ancestors from Egypt…” (The Haggadah)

אֲשֶׁר גְּאָלָנוּ וְגָאַל אֶת אֲבוֹתֵינוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם – הגדה של פסח

The Torah instructs us to relate to our children in every generation that, “G-d acted on my behalf when I went out of Egypt” (Shemos 13:8). This indicates that our freedom today is not only the result of G-d’s redemption of our ancestors; rather, it is as though we have experienced the exodus from Egypt ourselves. As explained in the teachings of Chassidus, this is because the miracle of our exodus from Egypt is constantly recurrent, since it constantly defies the natural order of existence.

The Miracle of Freedom

Indeed, the exile of Bnei Yisrael in Egypt was the most difficult exile of all; as the Arizal taught, all subsequent exiles of the Jewish people are mere derivatives (spiritually) of the exile in Egypt (Likutei Torah, Ki Seitzei). With the Exodus, however, Egypt’s spiritual source was entirely vanquished (see Zohar, vol. 2, p. 52b), meaning, that the Jewish people will never be subjugated again in a manner as extreme as the Egyptian bondage. We therefore continue to celebrate the holiday of Pesach and the exodus from Egypt even though we have been subsequently exiled in other lands, for our existential freedom from an “Egyptlike” exile can never be undone.

This eternal freedom from the possibility of another “Egyptlike” exile transcends the natural order of existence with which G-d created the world. For by definition, the natural structure of the world is orderly and restricted,whereas the Exodus guarantees a perpetual freedom from the restrictions and constraints of any “Egyptlike” exile. Hence, the eternal freedom enjoyed by Bnei Yisrael continuously defies the natural possibility of enslavement that is allowed for by physical existence. Thus, we can truly say, in the words of the Haggadah, “not only our ancestors did G-d redeem, but rather also us He redeemed with them.”

—Likkutei Sichos vol. 5, pp. 175-178

 

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