Kiddush, Kadesh and Naming our Potential

Pesach is the quintessential holiday where we celebrate the birth of our nation. Our  collective voices were heard and, as a people, we were liberated from the oppression of Pharaoh.

And yet, as we begin this evening of the celebration of liberation, the first command and the first word is given to the individual.  We are not told, kidshu, in the plural, we are told kadesh, you, as an individual must sanctify.  

This command hearkens back to the verse in Vayikra,  קְדֹשִׁ֣ים תִּהְי֑וּ כִּ֣י קָד֔וֹשׁ אֲנִ֖י יְ-ה אֱלֹהֵ-יכֶֽם׃, “You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy” (19:2).  

Rabbi Eli Sadan shares this idea in his Haggadah as he writes,   “There is no service of God, there is no free will at all and there is no value.. without the recognition that human beings are free, free to go after the will of God. That is the foundation of the holiness of our lives, the holiness of the individual and of the collective as a nation.

The individual and collective do not always know how to actualize this power; sometimes individuals give in to outside or internal pressure. The beginning of everything and each individual is to go free, to feel free to actualize our core personal independence.

On this night we serve a unique holy service which is to shine the light of freedom in every aspect of our lives. Kadesh, Sanctify! That is the claim and that is why God took us out of Egypt,--- in order to sanctify our personal lives to bring them to the fullest potential.”

It has been a year when we have seen once again the power, yes, of people but even more, we have seen the power of individual persons---the impact of that front line worker, that medical provider, that caregiver who has helped each of us to continue in these toughest of times.

As we begin our Seders this year, each of us should name those individuals in thanks and also in commitment to reaching that holy potential that we each have.  When we say, kadesh we should each keep in mind to make our individual lives as holy as possible and to bring the world just a little bit closer to Paradise.  

This piece is in memory of my beloved Aunt, Shulamith Elster, who sanctified her life and the lives of countless others. Her shloshim ends on Pesach.  To read my reflections on her impact on my life click here and to learn more about her incredible communal work click here.