Freedom is a word packed with a lot of different meanings. It might imply the independence we attain as we get older. It can refer to the choices we make throughout our lives. The notion of freedom may also lead one to think about slavery and the complete lack of freedom that people experienced.

When I think of freedom from a Jewish perspective, I can’t help but think of survivors from the Holocaust. Today, our liberties permit us to choose to honor the holidays of our heritage or not to. Stories that have prevailed from the Holocaust tell how many people in concentration camps would do anything to make matzah during Passover. They often put themselves in dangerous situations in order to fulfill the mitzvah. Their faith – so strong – they found a way.

Today, our faith is so diminished that even when we believe we are adhering to Jewish practices, we often realize we do not know the deeper meanings behind our religious rituals and philosophies. Freedom has so many connotations in today’s world. Passover reminds us that we are no longer slaves. Passover reminds us that we are still slaves – to things which continue to entrap us. Passover urges us to embrace our freedom and make choices that reach deep into the core of who we are. We have the freedom to learn, to learn as deeply as we possibly can. We have the freedom to make choices – but those choices should be made – not in ignorance but with wisdom.

After our Exodus from Egypt, we were faced with a freedom this generation had never experienced. Literally, we went out into the great, wide open. Even as we were led by G-d, through the leadership of Moses, there were still choices facing us at every step of the way. Our physical needs were taken care of – the manna fell from the sky each day and the cloud that traveled with us protected us from the environment. A well of water kept us well hydrated. With the physical essentials being provided for, there was a lot of time to focus on the spiritual freedom we had also been gifted upon our Exodus from Mitzrayim (Egypt).

It is this freedom that is often the most difficult to master. In the desert and after entering the Promised Land, G-d has provided us with guidelines by which to master the physical and use it to flourish in the spiritual. At Passover, we celebrate our physical freedom and begin to prepare (seven weeks later) for Shavuot, a time of spiritual liberation and our receipt of the Torah on Mount Sinai.

May we seize the moment and truly cherish the freedoms which have been bestowed upon us – from being able to choose how we express our Judaism, to living a quality of life we are accustomed to, to being able to make choices that will impact the future Jews of this world.