Defining a “Kosher Passover”

Uh-oh, Passover is coming! I hear this all the time. Sometimes I even say it myself.

We think of Passover as spring cleaning time—-sort of a mixed bag of matza (the good) and chametz (the bad) or allegorically speaking, focusing on humility (good) and avoiding arrogance (bad). Yet we cannot deny that cleaning out the bad is foremost on our minds. Maybe it’s time to change that perspective even though it’s hard to deny that preparation for Pesach means it’s time to clean and clean some more and then re-clean what we already cleaned. How is this attitude affecting our outlook? Well, to be honest it has skewed our perception from the joy to the –oy at least a little bit. It’s good, though, to realize what we may unknowingly be doing to this amazing holiday. We inject it with an energy that we would do well to push away.

So, to get rid of the negativity around cleaning, the solution is to start early and do a little at a time. It’s called time management, which, if you are a woman, you may not be too good at. I know for me personally I struggle with the clock, so my solution was, in the past, to not look at it, hoping it would go away. However, the clock doesn’t go away, and the time still flies by, and I am usually worse off than when I began because I ignored the clock. So my attempt at a solution did not work.

Then I made a conscious decision to plan ahead. Making lists helps tremendously. Even if I inadvertently load up a single day with too many things to accomplish, I can always transfer a few goals to the next day if I’ve planned ahead. At least I do not get overwhelmed, provided I start early enough. That is the key to success and tranquility. By making the choice to start early, organize my tasks, and keep to the plan, I have not only chosen Hashem but I have also prepared the way for joy, fulfillment, and a greater sense of calm.

Think of Passover as a test given to us by G-d in the area of managing time. Hashem created time for us human beings, so He, of course, disapproves of wasting this precious commodity. As with any test, cramming is not a good idea and rarely results in success. When we treat the month prior to Passover as a test of time management, we’ll begin early, increase our chances of passing the test, and relate more strongly to the theme of freedom. It helps to keep in mind that failing to plan results in planning to fail. This will help us commit to scheduling the tasks we need to complete before Pesach arrives.

What are the objectives of this holiday? They are:

1. To have a kosher Passover;

2. To rid our physical surroundings of any traces of chametz, which represent arrogance or haughtiness;

3. To celebrate freedom from limitation and constriction (our personal Egypt or mitzrayim) so that we can arouse our spiritual side, our souls, in the service of Hashem;

4. To retell the story of our Exodus from Egypt and apply it to our lives today; and,

5. To keep our cool and remain happy, calm, and free.

These are our objectives for Passover.

What does it mean to have a kosher Passover? A kosher Passover really means that the physical and the spiritual do not contradict but rather mirror each other and align in oneness. Let me explain what that means:  If we are conscientious in providing only kosher-for-Passover food and displaying a very clean house (not a speck of chametz anywhere), but in the weeks leading up to Passover, we were yelling at our husbands and our children if they dared to bring bread or any prohibited food into the areas that were already cleaned, acting worse than Pharaoh, our Passover is not kosher. Why? It is because spiritually we have not rid ourselves of the chametz. We have acted impulsively with frustration, impatience, and condescension (otherwise known as arrogance). We have upset the emotional balance and peace (shalom bais) in our home. So physically our house looks good, but our home is a wreck, if you know what I mean.

While it’s important to follow the halachas (laws) of Passover and sell all our chametz, use only products that are kosher for Passover, and clean thoroughly on a physical level, we must take care that we do not forget the true reality (the 96%) of what all our physical efforts represent. That reality is the love, the joy, the beauty, the values of a loving Jewish home that is prepared to invite G-d and Elijah the Prophet to join in celebrating our freedom from all negativity and darkness so that we move forward in our united goal of “Next Year in Jerusalem” for all the Jewish People. It is not just the destination that counts but no less significant is the spiritual growth that takes place along the journey.