Rabbi Knopf's Blog

The Talmud teaches that 30 days before Passover, we should start learning about the festival and its meaning. In that spirit, over the past several years, I have offered "30 Days of Liberation," a brief message on each of the 30 days leading up to Passover, drawn from the wisdom of the holiday and the Exodus story. I am thrilled to announce that I am in the process of completing my first book, which will be a compilation of those messages from years past. This year, for “30 Days of Liberation,” I will be sending out brief selections from the book. I look forward to sharing the book with you all in its entirety when it is completed. Meanwhile, I hope you find these messages meaningful and inspiring. Please feel free to share/forward.


Day 4: Confidence Enables Redemption
The Chernobyler Rebbe teaches that, the night before the Israelites left Egypt, they had a Seder; the same that we do today. An audacious statement! Our Seder celebrates leaving Egypt, and those Israelites were not yet free! While historically unlikely, this teaching offers powerful wisdom: The Israelites could not leave Egypt until they believed they were destined to. And redemption in our lives cannot happen unless we are first confident that it will.