Voices of WRJ: Parashat Shabbat Chol Hamoed Pesach

by Diane Frichol This Shabbat, we celebrate Shabbat Chol Hamoed Pesach, the Shabbat that falls in the middle of the Pesach week. This is a time where we break from the normal cycle of the Torah and we enjoy three special readings, one that is a reading from Exodus 33:12-34:26, which covers the period immediately after the sin of the Golden Calf. There is also a special Haftarah portion that we read and at this time, we also chant from Shir HaShirim–Song of Songs, one of the five Biblical scrolls known as the Megillot. The Haftarah portion is from the Prophet Ezekiel and it is about the famous prophecy of the “Valley of the Dry Bones.” God explains to Ezekiel that the bones represent the entire House of Israel. Whilst in the land of exile, the people have dried up and lost hope. Ezekiel is commanded to tell the people that God will take them out of their spiritual graves, and breathe hope and life back into them by bringing them to the land of Israel, their own land. We might ask what is the connection of this prophesy to Passover. During Passover we celebrate and retell the story of Israel’s redemption from slavery in Egypt and similarly, this Haftarah, detailing Ezekiel’s prophecy, promises another redemption from exile and talks about a revival and a second opportunity at life. Furthermore, both Ezekiel’s Valley of Dry Bones vision and God’s message to the Israelites enslaved in Egypt are of hope and breathing life back into the people at a time when they had possibly given up hope. It is not these texts that I want to focus on today but on Shir HaShirim–Song of Songs. We read or chant Shir HaShirim because another name for Passover is Chag HaAviv–the spring holiday. The words from Song of Songs include references to lovely fragrances and flowers that bring to mind thoughts and pictures of spring. After the harsh winter that a lot of us have dealt with, these are very welcomed thoughts. Spring is a time of renewal as the flowers start to bloom and the animals are born. The literal words of Song of Songs is a beautiful love poem but we are always challenged in reading the texts to search for something deeper. Perhaps the love poem is not the “Niglah,” the revealed meaning, but rather what is the “Nistar,” the hidden meaning. The notion that Shir HaShirim should be understood in its “Niglah,” revealed or plain sense, has been resisted by many Jewish interpreters. The allegorical or “Nistar” of a hidden beautiful spiritual message that exceeds the revealed earthly love poem. The interpreters understood the text to be the love between God and the people of Israel. I chose to focus on Shir HaShirim because during Pesach we are reminded of and celebrate receiving the freedom to love and to serve who we want. The real challenge is after Pesach to widen our responsibility to serve and expand our circle of love. Many years ago I sat next to a longstanding sisterhood member during the Sisterhood Shabbat and she told me what sisterhood and WRJ meant to her. The conversation was not about the “Niglah,” what people know about sisterhood and WRJ, but rather the “Nistar,” the hidden or concealed things she received from sisterhood and WRJ. It was the circle of love and the enjoyment she received from being part of and serving her sisterhood and the wider organization of WRJ. As I reminisce about the conversation we had many years ago it was the “Nistar” or hidden meaning that enticed me to become part of this organization. As a member of my sisterhood and WRJ, I have accepted the challenge to widen my responsibility and circle of love after Passover and hope that you will to. Diane Frichol is a WRJ Board Member, WRJ Area Director (MN and SD), and Sisterhood Auditor at Mount Zion Temple in St. Paul, MN.