Chol HaMo-eid Pesach – חוֹל הַמֹּעֵד פֶּסַח (Exodus 33:12-34:26)

Chol HaMo-eid Pesach – חוֹל הַמֹּעֵד פֶּסַח Summary: On the Shabbat during Passover, we are reminded of the age-old desire to know God. Moses implores God to let him see God. While God will not allow Moses to see God’s face, God tells Moses, “I will make My goodness pass before you…” Perhaps we experience the divine presence through the goodness we create in the world. The Torah then sets forth the thirteen attributes of God, among them that God is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger and abounding in kindness. By emulating these very attributes, we create the goodness which allows us to know God. Passover is the greatest story we have in our tradition. We argue whether Judaism is a religion, a People, or a culture. More than all Judaism is a story. A story we pass on from generation to generation. The most important Mitzvah of Passover is to tell the story, and we tell our story with words, music, and food, yes we eat the story, and digest the story. The story is about our history, the traditions we keep, and most important of all, our values. We remember time and again that we were oppressed and persecuted, and we shall always side with those who are being oppressed.