Holy Rabbi once asked, “how do you burn the chametz? With the fire of your heart, with the fire of serving the Holy One, blessed be He.” And the fire goes one burning all through Pesach.
The holy Rabbi continued, “I once learned how to serve Holy One, blessed be He from the knights that serve the king, especially in the cold winter. I was once passing by a training camp filled with squires and young knights when I saw a number of the young knights beating one of their own as a punishment. I asked them, ‘what terrible thing did this knight do that he deserved such punishment?’ One of the young knights stepped forward and answered, ‘last night he was standing guard, and in the morning we found him half frozen.’ I thought this was strange and said that the knight who stood guard should be given honor and respect, since despite the cold he stood by his post. The young knights laughed and said, ‘you don’t understand! If you’re really serving the king, everything you do gets done with so much fire, it keeps you warm.’ “
We learn that “The soul of man is a lamp of G‑d” (Proverbs 20:27). In today’s society that is dominated by science and technology it is easy to forget that man is a very complex mixture of heaven and earth, spirit and matter, fire and wick. Like the lamp, man, too, is comprised of three elements which determine the direction of his actions. The candle’s wick, flame and oil resemble man – mind body and soul – the very source of Torah and its mitzvos.
As we prepare for Pesach/Passover would look forward to conducting the Seder. Just as Passover represents freedom – of body and soul – so it is today that we must remember that slavery is more than just physical bondage. The lessons and messages we share at the Passover Seder remind us of yesterday and today and prepares us for tomorrow. The stories eternal, just as the Jewish spirit has endured through the ages.
As we look into the holiday candles and see the flames dance as we recite the story of the leaving of Egypt we become the everlasting light. We know this because it is written in the Torah, “A continuous fire shall remain on the altar; it shall not be extinguished” (Lev. 6:9).
As we gather around the Seder table that is filled with meaning and holiness let us allow it to fill our hearts to strive to the beauty and wonder that happened so many years ago and is still happening today to give us the strength to turn away from the glowing screens of cell phones and computers and focus when the fires of our souls there ignited during the Passover Seder. Let us allow ourselves to remember the miracles that brought us from Egypt to this very day and remember that the “… Fire will renew the righteous….(Saadia Gaon, Emmunos v’Deos 9:3)
