Rafah and the Ten Plagues - opinion

• Published date: 02 April 2024
• Author: NOLAN LEBOVITZ
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

The Haggadah, the script of the Seder, is not a story of our freedom from Egypt in the past. It is the blueprint for our continual struggle for a greater sense of freedom from harm, intimidation, and constriction. It is also the blueprint for us to understand the tactics of our enemies. The Haggadah claims that new enemies arise against the Jewish people in every generation, but their strategies feel familiar. Even in the most extremely horrifying example of October 7, our enemies continue to perpetrate infanticide against the Jewish people

Perhaps the most significant message of the Seder this year is that the Haggadah teaches that an overwhelming punishing response is the only appropriate action against such villains.

As I study the Haggadah in preparation for Passover, I find myself pausing at the section in which we spill wine as we recite the 10 plagues that God inflicts on the Egyptians. Increasingly severe, each plague brings with it a greater sense of suffering for Egypt until the shackles of our slavery are finally broken.

We spill out wine as we recite, "Blood, frogs, lice, wild animals..." We take the progression of the plagues for granted. There is a false ease in which we effortlessly move through the plagues without honoring their message.

Imagine calls for a ceasefire between each plague

Due to the recent turn in America toward a state of absolute moral confusion, I now imagine calls for a ceasefire between each plague. Worst of all, I imagine Jewish leaders in Egypt lobbying for God to stop the plagues. "Blood – humanitarian aid, frogs – ceasefire..." Could you imagine the different narrative had Egypt survived the first three plagues, won public support for a ceasefire, and then been emboldened to increase Jewish suffering? As absurd as that story sounds, it is exactly our current trajectory today.

Israel must rid Gaza of Hamas.

Israel needs an unambiguous victory, not only for its own sake, but for the sake of the world at large. Every success in on the part of terror breeds greater support for terror. Take New York City as an example. New York has become a hub for pro-Hamas demonstrations. Less than 25 years after September 11, after two failed war efforts, New Yorkers no longer have any trepidation advocating for terrorism.

How can New Yorkers allow pro-Hamas demonstrations to fill their streets? How can New Yorkers have forgotten so quickly the savage results of unchecked terror networks? It's simple. New Yorkers lack a September 11...