Pesach Sheni – פסח שני
Pesach Sheni (Hebrew: פסח שני, trans. Second Passover), in the times of the Biet Mikdash (the Temple), all those who were unable to offer the Passover sacrifice at the proper time, on the 14th of Nissan, were permitted to bring it in the second month, on the 14th of Iyar. This special sacrifice was initiated during the second year of the children of Israel wandering in the Sinai desert, a year after the first Passover had been celebrated in the wilderness. This teaches us that our God is a God of Second opportunities. To read more about Pesach Sheni read: Bamidbar / Numbers 9:6-12
Moses announces that the Passover sacrifice (Korban Pesach, or Passover lamb) may only be eaten by people who are ritually pure. Men came to Moses, complaining that as people who have come into contact with the dead, and therefore ritually unclean, they are unable to fulfill the mitzvah of Passover. Moses consults God who responds by announcing that anyone who is unable to sacrifice the paschal lamb on the 14th of Nisan, either due to defilement or inability to journey to the place of sacrifice in time, is to perform the sacrifice on the 14th of Iyar, a full month later, and eat the paschal lamb along with matzah and maror. In modern times, after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and because of lack of access to the Temple Mount, Jews are unable to perform the Passover sacrifice, either on Passover or on Pesach Sheni. It is customary to eat a piece of Matzah.
In Chassidic philosophy, especially as expounded upon by Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, Pesach Sheni is about second chances, since the original Pesach Sheni was in response to people who had been unable to be included in the Pesach observance and were granted another opportunity exactly one full moon after the first Pesach.
The Second Passover thus represents the power of teshuvah — the power of return. Teshuvah is commonly translated as repentance, but it is much more than turning a new leaf and achieving forgiveness for past sins. It is the power to go back in time and redefine the past.
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Tags: bamidbar, children of israel, consults, defilement, full moon, god is a god, matzah, mitzvah, observance, paschal lamb, passover, passover lamb, passover sacrifice, pesach, pesach sheni, proper time, rabbi shlomo carlebach, repentance, second chance, second chances, sinai desert, temple mount, teshuva
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