Ta’anit Beḥorot
2023-Apr-05, Wednesday 06:37![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dorchadas
Insomnia and waking up before dawn--not a good combination.
Today is תענית בכורות ta’anit beḥorot, the Fast of the Firstborn, in commemoration of the innocents who died in Egypt as part of G-d's work to free the Children of Israel. It's a reminder that even in a righteous war, sometimes bystanders suffer, and that freedom from oppression almost always comes with a cost in blood. The story mentions that "G-d hardened Pharaoh's heart" but people often forget that this happens after Pharaoh hardens his own heart multiple times, and when Pharaoh pursued them to the Sea of Reeds, all G-d did was tip Pharaoh over into vengeance since he had already changed his mind about having let the Children of Israel go (Exodus 14:5). And in modern times, it takes no divine prodding for oppressive structures to remain in place. The message of the plagues is that the struggle against oppression is worth fighting, even if it leads to blood, and the message of ta’anit beḥorot is that those who die in the fight should be remembered.
I'm definitely glad that I'm hosting Second Seder this year, not first, and don't have to cook today.
The house is clean! As the prayer goes, may any ḥametz that remains in my house be as the dust of the earth, but hopefully there isn't much because I vacuumed multiple times, put the oven and toaster oven on self-cleaning, washed the counters and tables with boiling water, scrubbed the floor...and yet, I'm sure Laila found some way to secrete some ḥametz somewhere because babies are chaos. I remember seeing a tweet from an archeologist who talked about how they have a specific word for the layer of garbage that often exists in the corners of houses and wondering how our ancestors could ever have let things get so bad, and then it ended with "Now I have a toddler and now I understand." Laila's very cute but she certainly does work against any kind of schedule.
Tonight we're going to First Seder at![[instagram.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/profile_icons/instagram.png)
britshlez's and then tomorrow I'm spending most of the day cooking and then hosting Second Seder. The last time I hosted there were fifteen people in attendance. There won't be nearly as many people this time, but hopefully it will be just as lovely.
Alright, time to get ready for work.
Today is תענית בכורות ta’anit beḥorot, the Fast of the Firstborn, in commemoration of the innocents who died in Egypt as part of G-d's work to free the Children of Israel. It's a reminder that even in a righteous war, sometimes bystanders suffer, and that freedom from oppression almost always comes with a cost in blood. The story mentions that "G-d hardened Pharaoh's heart" but people often forget that this happens after Pharaoh hardens his own heart multiple times, and when Pharaoh pursued them to the Sea of Reeds, all G-d did was tip Pharaoh over into vengeance since he had already changed his mind about having let the Children of Israel go (Exodus 14:5). And in modern times, it takes no divine prodding for oppressive structures to remain in place. The message of the plagues is that the struggle against oppression is worth fighting, even if it leads to blood, and the message of ta’anit beḥorot is that those who die in the fight should be remembered.
I'm definitely glad that I'm hosting Second Seder this year, not first, and don't have to cook today.
The house is clean! As the prayer goes, may any ḥametz that remains in my house be as the dust of the earth, but hopefully there isn't much because I vacuumed multiple times, put the oven and toaster oven on self-cleaning, washed the counters and tables with boiling water, scrubbed the floor...and yet, I'm sure Laila found some way to secrete some ḥametz somewhere because babies are chaos. I remember seeing a tweet from an archeologist who talked about how they have a specific word for the layer of garbage that often exists in the corners of houses and wondering how our ancestors could ever have let things get so bad, and then it ended with "Now I have a toddler and now I understand." Laila's very cute but she certainly does work against any kind of schedule.
Tonight we're going to First Seder at
britshlez's and then tomorrow I'm spending most of the day cooking and then hosting Second Seder. The last time I hosted there were fifteen people in attendance. There won't be nearly as many people this time, but hopefully it will be just as lovely.Alright, time to get ready for work.
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Date: 2023-Apr-05, Wednesday 22:13 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-Apr-06, Thursday 03:22 (UTC)