Passing Over

The blog posts are off this week in celebration of Pesach.

Follow @davenspot on twitter for recommendations for interesting articles or the latest and greatest in tefilla news (even during Pesach).  Chag Samech חג שמח!

Passover is in the Air

I knew that Passover is around the corner when the pediatrician today, prior to checking on my daughter's throat, asked her to recite the 4 Questions.  Since it is already the month of Nisan, I thought I would get the readers in the mood with a rousing rendition of והיא שעמדה by Yaakov Shwekey and Yonatan Razel (composer) - originally sung in Caesarea in 2009.  Words are from the Haggadah:

וְהִיא שֶׁעָמְדָה לַאֲבוֹתֵיֽנוּ וְלָנֽוּ. שֶׁלֹא אֶחָד בִּלְבָד, עָמַד עָלֵיֽנוּ לְכַלּוֹתֵנֽוּ. אֶלָּא שֶׁבְּכָל דּוֹר וָדוֹר, עוֹמְדִים עָלֵיֽנוּ לְכַלּוֹתֵנֽוּ. וְהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מַצִּילֵנוּ מִיָּדָם

And He that has kept our fathers and what keeps us surviving. For, not only one arose and tried to destroy us, rather in every generation they try to destroy us, and Hashem saves us from their hands.

The song is amazing, IMHO, and I think rings especially true today, especially for me as I live in Israel.  Putting aside the rhetoric of the Iran threat, I think we must always capture the message and story of Pesach - our determination to keep the tradition alive and help it thrive.

This song always makes me think of the Israeli soldiers, past and present who are sitting at uncomfortable places and during a pivotal time in their lives that allow me the comfort to sit in my living room and educate and enjoy my family.  May our prayers be answered and we not have to rise in defense but rather only in celebration of freedom.