We have no shortage of enjoinments concerning the Yom Tov of Pesach. We are often reminded to remember the Exodus from Egypt. Indeed, it is a daily part of our Shema Yisrael and a component of our Tefillah. On the night of Pesach, things change when we engage in an exclusive and intensified zeicher l’yetzias Mitzrayim, remembrance of the Exodus. The commentators distinguish between the sippur, relating, the story of yetzias Mitzrayim. On Pesach night, in a family setting, we relate and explain the story, allowing for everyone at the seder table to listen, add and be a part of this seminal experience.
I think we often overlook another aspect of the Seder. The Seder night is not an isolated experience, but the culmination of ongoing preparation. One who lives with awareness of redemption throughout the year can truly experience its power on that seminal night.
I would like to expand on this concept, focusing especially on the idea that it affects other areas of a Jew’s avodas hakodesh. A well-known question concerns Shevet Levi’s time devoted to the service of the Leviim in the Bais Hamikdash and its inconsistency with regard to their not receiving a portion in Eretz Yisrael. Leviim served in the Beis HaMikdash a total of two days each year. There were forty-eight mishmaros, rotating every two weeks, allowing each individual Levi his brief opportunity for avodah. Yet, despite this minimal annual service, the Levi did not receive a portion in the land. The Torah intentionally relieved the Levi of involvement in mundane, physical pursuits.
One may ask: What would have been so terrible had the Levi worked like everyone else throughout the year, and simply taken a week – or even a few days – off to prepare himself for his sacred service in the Sanctuary? In Kohelles Yaakov, Horav Dovid Tivoli (HaSefardi) (early seventeenth century Tivoli, near Rome) offers a profound explanation. In order to serve in the Beis HaMikdash for those two days, the Levi had to be on a consistently elevated spiritual level during the entire year. Avodas Hashem is not something one turns on at will. One cannot descend into the mundane for eleven months and twenty-eight days and then suddenly ascend to holiness on demand. Kedushah requires continuity. Likewise, in order to celebrate Shabbos properly, one must be thinking about Shabbos all the time. Shabbos is not merely a day that arrives once a week; it is a state of mind cultivated continuously. As Chazal teach, Mi she-tarach b’erev Shabbos, yochal b’Shabbos; “Only one who prepares throughout the week can truly partake on Shabbos.”
Holiness — whether in the Beis HaMikdash, on Pesach night, or on Shabbos — is not episodic. It is a way of life. V’atem ti’heyu Li mamleches Kohanim v’goy kadosh; “You shall be to Me a kingdom of Priests (ministers) and a holy nation” (Shemos 19:6). Our nation is enjoined to be different from all other nations. We must live with a purpose, a mission to be dedicated towards leading the people to a deeper and better understanding of Hashem. Goy kadosh – a holy nation. Being “good” does not suffice for us. We must be holy, abstaining from the behaviors which contemporary society accepts as normal and even commendable. Every Jew is charged with living by the standard of Kehunah. A Kohen does not become holy at the moment he performs the avodah. His avodah is valid only because he lives as a Kohen at all times. Kedushah is not created at the moment of service; it is revealed at that time.
The same applies to the role of the Levi. Although he served in the Beis HaMikdash only two days a year, his entire life had to be conducted on a plane of kedushah. The Torah, therefore, removed him from land ownership and full immersion in material pursuits, not as a privilege, but as a safeguard. His brief avodah required a constant spiritual identity.
The same principle applies to each and every Jew. One cannot live an ordinary, generic life throughout the week and then suddenly enter Shabbos with kedushah. Running in, changing clothes, and putting away the car keys and cell phone does not prepare one for Shabbos Kodesh. Shabbos does not create holiness – it encounters it, when we meet and embrace its sanctity. Likewise, Pesach Seder night is not meaningful because we speak of the Exodus, but because we have lived with its awareness beforehand. Thus, the Torah commands daily remembrance of the Exodus. Without constancy, the annual commemoration becomes an exercise in futility.
Our Jewish identity never fully disengages from kedushah, even when we are involved in the mundane. If kedushah is not maintained, it cannot be accessed. If we forget our identity, our service becomes devoid of meaning.
