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by Rabbi Michel Schlesinger,
Rabbi of Congregação Israelita Paulista (CIP),
São Paulo, Brazil.
In his book, How to Cure a Fanatic, Israeli novelist Amos Oz tells that his “wise grandma” explained the difference between a Jew and a Christian. “Look,” she said, “Christians believe the Messiah had been here and will certainly come back someday. Jews claim that the Messiah is yet to come. There already was,” she continued, “so much rage, persecution, bloodshed and hatred about it ... Why? If the Messiah will come and say ‘Hi, it’s so good to see you again’, the Jews will have to acknowledge their mistake. But if otherwise, the Messiah comes and says ‘Nice to meet you’, the whole Christian world will have to apologize to Jews. Between our days and that moment to come, just live and let live”.
One of the most awaited for moments of the Pesach Seder by children is when Eliahu Hanavi enters. At a specific point in the dinner, we open the doors to our homes and welcome Prophet Elijah. We find the origin of this custom in a Talmudic discussion. The sages differed on the number of cups that should be at a Pesach Seder. While some believed that there should be only four glasses, others argued that we should drink five glasses of wine. The source of the disagreement is a dispute about the number of biblical verses that deal with the Exodus from Egypt. They solved the dispute by establishing a fifth cup which we do not drunk. This cup was known as Elijah’s Cup because according to tradition he will return one day to solve all disputes, including this one about the number of cups that we must have at the Pesach Seder.
The prophet’s arrival is a symbol. Elijah was a mystical figure who had not died, but ascended to heaven in a chariot of fire. This magical personality who visits us on the night of the Seder is received with great joy.
A question draws our attention: Why do we need to open the door for the entrance of Eliahu? After all, a magical figure such as he is could easily enter through the window. He probably could also pass through the walls. What is the meaning of leaving our seats and opening the doors?
Originally, the door was opened at the beginning of the Seder when we say “all who are hungry come and eat” and remained open throughout the dinner. Later, in the 18th and 19th centuries, this practice became dangerous due to religious persecution. Thus, we established the tradition of opening the door for a moment near the end of the ceremony. Some claim that the door was opened just to check for an enemy outside.
Messianism is a movement that emerged only in post-biblical Judaism. At the time of the Torah, the Messiah is not mentioned even once. During the time of the Prophets, the use of the word Mashiach (Messiah) referred to the people’s leader, the anointed one. The etymological origin of the word alludes to the ritual throwing of oil on the head of the leader as a form of coronation.
Over the years, the concept of a flesh-and-blood redeemer, who would come to save mankind, was developed. This man, according to the classical view, would go through the gates of Jerusalem sitting on his white mule and announcing the arrival of peace.
With the advent of liberal Judaism in the 19th century, this classical view of the Messiah began to be vigorously challenged. The German Reform Judaism was bothered with the idea that we should await passively for the arrival of a savior. Instead, the pluralistic religious movements advocated the idea of a messianic age instead of a messiah. According to these movements, besides those who saw the Haskalah (Enlightenment) itself as the messianic era, rather than waiting for a redeemer we should actively work for the building of redemption. As subtle as this difference may seems, it is, in fact, significant. To await the arrival of the messiah can mean a passive attitude toward the challenges of the world. On the other hand, to work for building of a messianic era means leaving our comfort zone and taking full responsibility for the ways of humanity.
Maybe this is just the symbol of the door that we open in the Passover’s Seder. Metaphorically, we abandon our comfortable armchairs and take action. To open the door on Seder night can represent a symbolic choice for building a different world.
May God grant us the ability to leave the comfort of our armchairs in such a way that we could open the door for the arrival of a messianic era. Until there, we will follow the pluralistic advice from Amos Oz’s grandmother: “Live and let live”
Chag Sameach
Rabbi Michel Schlesinger, Rabbi of Congregação Israelita Paulista (CIP), São Paulo, Brazil can can also be contacted through Twitter @rabinomichel |
