I Want to See Miracles
After the earth shattering miracles of the Exodus, history forgot the Sea Splitting wonders that occurred a mere seven days later. Our Rabbis did not wish that event to sink into oblivion like Pharaoh’s chariots, so they created a ritual to remember our Water Adventure. In addition to the Biblical reading which details the Egyptian plunge, they established a custom that we stay up that night as our ancestors did on their Sea crossing.
There is another aspect to these last two days of Pesach. Rather than raising the ghost of “Redemptions Past” they are a celebration of future freedoms still to come. More specifically, the ultimate and eternal emancipation of the Messianic revelation.
We have a tradition that the Messianic miracles still to be experienced will be as wonders in comparison to the “magic tricks” G-d displayed in Egypt. With such surprises still in store, everybody I know is angling for a front row seat.
Why does everyone get so excited about a miracle? Because when we see one, we see G-d. This stands in stark contrast to our present lives which are conducted in a spiritual darkroom. We know we’re holding the undeveloped film. But like the child who has no patience, we won’t be satisfied till we see the pictures. Similarly, we’re told to believe that we’re already holding all the pieces to the Messianic puzzle, but it all boils down to blind faith.
In the meantime - and it’s been a long time - Hashem is hidden from us. True, we’re expected to demonstrate (or am I just pretending) that we grasp Him with every mitzvah we do. But a life limited by materialistic blinders can be hard. This sometimes leads to doubts, even questions; such as “What are we here for? Is there really a G-d? Have I been duped?”
One might even feel like the employee who works and never gets paid. One can exist on, “I will get paid someday,” but after a while it wears a bit thin. Like the Hebrew slaves stuck in bondage we may wonder if there’s really someone behind the door of the Boss’s corner office.
And then it happens. We see Him. He struts His stuff and Hand-delivers an entire meal consisting of ten Plagues. And for desert, there’s Egyptian ‘Crumb’ cake rolled in seaweed.
Our ancestors were so excited then, they composed a Song right there on the seashore. Because when you see G-d, the His power of infinity (what Kaballah refers to as the Ohr Ein Sof) gives you a shot of adrenaline. “It’s true! No one is making it up! I just saw Him!”
Revealed miracles of this magnitude don’t happen every day. In fact, a revelation on this level happened just two times in our history: Once at the Splitting of the Sea, and then at the Giving of the Torah. And look how these revelations have affected us. It’s more than thirty-three centuries later and we’re still talking about it! We cling to this experience with everything we’ve got. It’s food for a starving body and soul. It’s payday for the working Jew.
But 3,300 plus years is a long time to wait. So what do we do in the meantime? We try to experience the Ohr Ein Sof in other things. You try to find the miraculous in what we call coincidence: / A missed bus or a wrong number that uncovers a long, lost friend. And then there’s the constancy and wonder of nature.
But these don’t compare to the Splitting of the Sea. We have to apply our intellect and meditate on them. Even then, it’s no fun. Not like seeing Elijah the Prophet or manna falling out the sky. It doesn’t overwhelm or fill you. So we continue to live in the hope of another revelation, one we can see, and not just understand.
Life in Golus -exile is craving something we can’t have. In the future however Ohr Ein Sof /will be an all day experience. We will see it, feel it, taste it, and breathe it. It won’t matter if the Ohr Ein Sof /splits the sea, spins the earth on its axis, makes a parking space for you on a busy street, we will see Ohr Ein Sof everywhere. We won’t have to meditate on it, we won’t have to believe it, and we won’t have to convince ourselves. A veil will be lifted and we will actually absorb it.
Remember when we saw Ohr Ein Sof at Mount Sinai and our souls left our bodies because it was too much for us? Well, it won’t happen this time. Not only will we see it, we will withstand it and become one with it. But even that will be nothing compared to the discovery that G-d’s miraculous infinity was here all the time. And there’s one way to see it now. On the 7th night of Pesach stay up, on the 8th participate in Moshich’s Seudah. Oh…and take off your blinders and open your eyes.