{"id":1573,"date":"2025-04-19T12:04:27","date_gmt":"2025-04-19T19:04:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/?p=1573"},"modified":"2025-04-19T12:04:32","modified_gmt":"2025-04-19T19:04:32","slug":"seeing-war-a-passover-drash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/2025\/04\/19\/seeing-war-a-passover-drash\/","title":{"rendered":"Seeing War: A Passover Drash"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Drash for\u00a0Congregation Ner Shalom<\/a>\u2018s Shabbat service, April 18, 2025, for the start of the 7th night of Passover.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

by Cyndi Norwitz<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you were on Zoom for Shabbat last week, you heard Rabbi Irwin<\/a> tell us that, while all Shabbatot are special, that one\u2014Shabbat HaGadol, the Shabbat before the start of Passover\u2014is extra special.\u00a0 This week, the Shabbat in the middle of Passover\u2014is special too.\u00a0 Because in lieu of our usual Torah readings in order, for these two Shabbatot, we instead go to some out-of-order (out of seder) readings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But first, let\u2019s set the stage.\u00a0 Last week Shabbat happened to fall one day before Passover.\u00a0 That\u2019s the last normal night the Israelites in Egypt spent together, to the extent that you can call being a slave normal.\u00a0 They knew they were leaving; they\u2019d known for two weeks, since the new moon of the 1st of Nissan.\u00a0 But they\u2019d been told they were leaving before and each time Pharaoh changed his mind.\u00a0 This time they packed up, but they weren\u2019t yet sure if they were unpacking again soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now it all seemed more real though.  On the 10th<\/sup> of Nissan, each household went and chose a lamb, lambs that now stayed nearby baaing and waiting.  As night fell on Shabbat last week, we entered the 14th<\/sup> of Nissan.  For the Israelites, that was the last uninterrupted sleep they were going to get for a while.  Rabbi Irwin told us Shabbat HaGadol was called the \u201cTerrible Night,\u201d because of the terrors that were to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the Hebrews, nothing was the same afterwards.  When they awoke on the day of the 14th<\/sup> of Nissan, they got right to work.  The waiting lambs met their fate and went to roast for dinner.  Their blood painted on the doorways, top and sides, outsides and insides too.  By the end of that day, before the sun set, every Hebrew was indoors with their lamb and bitter herbs, not allowed to venture outside for any reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 15th<\/sup> of Nissan began at sunset, with everyone cooped up.  Soon they were uncomfortably full, the remains of a huge meal around them.  Perhaps they tried to sleep.  At midnight, the 10th<\/sup> plague began.  By morning, every firstborn child born to a mother\u2014whether a human mother or an animal one\u2014was dead, except for those inside the blood-stained huts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the Hebrews left Rameses on the morning of the 15th<\/sup> of Nissan, they ran to Succoth.  Only then did they sit down to plan the rest of their route.  And that brings us to this week\u2019s out-of-order Torah portion, beginning with Exodus 13:17-18.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Now when Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although it was nearer; for God said, \u201cThe people may have a change of heart when they see war, and return to Egypt.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So God led the people round about, by way of the wilderness at the Sea of Reeds. Now the Israelites went up armed out of the land of Egypt.<\/em><\/p>\nExodus 13:17-18<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The Way of the Philistines maybe sounds like a metaphor.\u00a0 But it\u2019s actually a road.\u00a0 An ancient trading route that was quite active during the time period when the Exodus supposedly took place.\u00a0 The Romans\u2014who came much later\u2014called it Via Maris<\/a>, or Way of the Sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now is the time to break out the visual aids.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Modern borders of Egypt, Israel, Palestine, and surrounding areas. Blue dots are my added navigation aids tracing the route of the Exodus.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Looking at the closeup map photos below, on the left is the eastern side of Egypt proper.\u00a0 With the Nile flowing north into the Mediterranean, up top.\u00a0 The Nile Delta is just before the sea and the eastern side of it is said to be where Rameses was, where the Hebrews lived.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Nile, Nile Delta, and supposed location of Hebrew villages known as Rameses (or Goshen).<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the upper right is Canaan, or what is today Israel and Palestine.\u00a0 The shortest path between them is along the coast, the Way of the Philistines. This route would be around 250 miles.\u00a0 At the bottom is the Red Sea, with two narrow horns which cut off much of the Sinai Peninsula from the surrounding lands. (Please note that from the town of Suez at the top of the Gulf, leading up north to the Mediterranean Sea, is a waterway in the satellite photo, but the Suez Canal did not in fact exist in Biblical times.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Way of the Philistines.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What most people may not realize is that, all of this is Egypt.  At the supposed time of the Exodus, Egypt controlled the Sinai Peninsula itself, which contained at least two copper and turquoise mines, and miles of well-maintained roads.  Egypt also occupied Canaan and surrounding areas.  For the Hebrews to go from slavery to the promised land was in reality moving from one part of Egypt to another.  So they needed to exit Egypt altogether and wait for regime change.  Which took perhaps as long as 40 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hebrews did not go the Way of the Philistines because it was filled with Egyptian soldiers.  Soldiers who wouldn\u2019t just take their word for it that Pharaoh had let them go without changing his mind.  If they went on the coastal road, they\u2019d have to fight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the middle of the Sinai Peninsula and on into West Asia\u2014from Africa to\u00a0Mesopotamia\u2014is another popular trade route, the King\u2019s Highway<\/a>.\u00a0 Parts of this road are mentioned in Torah, in Numbers.\u00a0 Through Sinai, it was a more difficult mountainous route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
The King’s Highway through the Sinai Peninsula.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Instead, the Hebrews went around by way of the wilderness, which could only mean south.  The coastal path is wide and flat all the way down to the southern tip, and for a short time after heading back up the other side.  Then it\u2019s mountains.  This is quite controversial, but some people, myself included, say this is where the Hebrews turned around and then crossed the Red Sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Author’s thought as to the most likely route from Rameses to Mount Sinai, which needed to be outside of Egypt.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Three different paths.  Three different ways to escape slavery.  Three different approaches to dealing with a cruel and capricious ruler. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although it was nearer; for God said, \u201cThe people may have a change of heart when they see war, and return to Egypt.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

I hear this and think about what it takes to stand up for what is right in an unjust society, like our very own is quickly becoming.  It\u2019s terrifying when we hear of people being disappeared, ending up in what basically amounts to concentration camps, for as little as leading a demonstration or writing an editorial or having a tattoo.  We who are citizens have a bit more protection for now but, ultimately, we just don\u2019t.  Without the ability to challenge an arrest, to be able to prove who we are, we are potentially as helpless as those without papers at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s so much easier to keep my head down and stay silent.  I don\u2019t want war.  I don\u2019t want to go it alone, to stand out, to be a target.  The faster and more direct path comes with greater dangers.  How many of us look at that and have a change of heart? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Certainly, the universities have capitulated (though that is changing, go Harvard!).  Federal agencies have changed policies fast enough to give us all whiplash.  Leaders of other counties are in many cases backing down and making concessions.  Majorities in Congress and courts roll over and show their bellies.  Everyone hoping to keep their funding, their people, their jobs.  Or they focus on saving a single prisoner instead of challenging the legitimacy of the new system.  They \u201csee war\u201d and are retreating to the modern equivalent of Egypt, a place they feel safe, though they are far from secure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Way of the Philistines is scary.  What am I marching into?  Will I have the courage to take this path?  To stay the path?  I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

So God led the people round about, by way of the wilderness at the Sea of Reeds.  Now the Israelites went up armed out of the land of Egypt.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Somehow this seems more doable, though it\u2019s a longer and arguably harder path.  Marching with my compatriots.  Armed with law and reason and tactics and righteousness.  In it for the long haul. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We need to take the long way around, through the wilderness, outside of Egypt entirely, away from its influence.  I don\u2019t know what analogy that gives us in our modern resistance, but it will become clearer as the days pass.  None of this is easy.  None of this is without risk.  But together we can stay true to our hearts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note: for more information on my fantasy novel, The Boat Children, set during the Exodus, check out my other blog, Barberry Lake<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Drash for\u00a0Congregation Ner Shalom\u2018s Shabbat service, April 18, 2025, for the start of the 7th night of Passover. by Cyndi Norwitz If you were on Zoom for Shabbat last week, you heard Rabbi Irwin tell us that, while all Shabbatot are special, that one\u2014Shabbat HaGadol, the Shabbat before the start of Passover\u2014is extra special.\u00a0 This […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1577,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[93,18,4,19],"tags":[137],"class_list":["post-1573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-judaism","category-passover","category-holidays","category-shabbus","tag-synagogue"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Sinai-South.png","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1573"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1579,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1573\/revisions\/1579"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/norwitz.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}