In looking around for a good dvar Torah to give today, I found AMAZING resources at Hillel's web site. I cribbed together some separate thoughts from them (mostly following the dvar Torah they published at http://www.hillel.org/NR/rdonlyres/B08F7A68-37BD-40EA-BA08-90FC263E2381/0/serach_bat_asher.pdf).
This lunch is in honor of Rosh Chodesh, which is a holiday specifically for women. In that vein, we're going to talk about women and our role in the Pesach story.
When we talk about Pesach, we're alsways hearing about the men in the story - Moshe, Aharon, Paro. Little mention is made of the women who allowed the events of the story to unfold, specifically Yocheved, Miryam, and Serach.
Serach is first mentioned in Breishit, in the census taken as they went down to Mitzrayim
בראשית פרק מו Genesis Chapter 46:
יז וּבְנֵי אָשֵׁר, יִמְנָה וְיִשְׁוָה וְיִשְׁוִי וּבְרִיעָה--וְשֶׂרַח אֲחֹתָם; וּבְנֵי בְרִיעָה, חֶבֶר וּמַלְכִּיאֵל. 17 And the sons of Asher: Imnah, and Ishvah, and Ishvi, and Beriah, and Serah their sister; and the sons of Beriah: Heber, and Malchiel.
She is next mentioned in the census leaving Egypt, over 2 centuries later
במדבר פרק כו Numbers Chapter 26
מו וְשֵׁם בַּת-אָשֵׁר, שָׂרַח. 46 And the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah.
If this is the same women, she is VERY old.
A Braisa in Seder Olam Rabba, Chapter 9, page 27 (accessed at http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.hwmntd;num=31;seq=62;view=1up):
םרח בת אשר היתה מבאי מצרים ומיוצאיה ׳ מבאימצרים דכתיב (בראשית מו) וםרח אחותם • ומבאי הארץ שנאמר(במלבר כו) ושםבת אשר םרח •
makes clear that the Serach mentioned in the first pasuk and the Serach mentioned in the 2nd pasuk are the same person - "Serach bat Asher came down to Miztrayim and was one of those who left Miztrayim."
Batei Midrsahot, volume 2, Eshet Chayil (which I have not seen myself):
Piha patcha b'chakhma, zo Serach bat Asher - shelo t'ama ta'am mita.
Mishlei/Proverbs 31:26
כו פִּיהָ, פָּתְחָה בְחָכְמָה; וְתוֹרַת חֶסֶד, עַל-לְשׁוֹנָהּ. 26 She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and the law of kindness is on her tongue.
"She openeth her mouth with wisdom" - this refers to Serach bat Asher, who never tasted death.
So - that's cool and all, but why did she merit never dying?
Midrash HaGadol Genesis 45:26 (accessed here: http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nc01.ark%3A%2F13960%2Ft4pk19d5v;page=root;seq=370;view=image;size=100;orient=0):
יגדו לו לאמר 'עוד יוסף חי'" (בר' מה:כו) רבנן אמרו אם אנו אומרים לו תחלה יוסף קים שמא תפרח נשמתו. מה עשו? אמרו לשרח בת אשר, "אמרי לאבינו יעקב שיוסף קים והוא במצרים. מה עשתה? המתינה לא עד שהוא עומד בתפלה ואמרה בלשון תימה:יוסף במצרים/ יולדו לו על ברכים/ מנשה ואפרים. פג לבו כשהוא עומד בתפלה. כיון שהשלים ראה העגלות, מיד "ותחי רוח יעקב אבינו"
[The brothers said:]If we tell him right away, "Joseph is alive!" perhaps he will have a stroke [lit., his soul will fly away]. What did they do? They said to Serah, daughter of Asher, "Tell our father Jacob that Joseph is alive, and he is in Egypt." What did she do? She waited till he was standing in prayer, and then said in a tone of wonder, "Joseph is in Egypt/ There have been born on his knees/ Menasseh and Ephraim" [three rhyming lines: Yosef be-mizrayim / Yuldu lo al birkayim / Menasheh ve-Ephrayim]. His heart failed, while he was standing in prayer. When he finished his prayer, he saw the wagons: immediately the spirit of Jacob came back to life.(Translated by Avivah Zornberg in Genesis, the Beginning of Desire, p.281).
What does telling Yaakov that Yosef was alive have to do with death?
Otzer HaMidrashim, Eisenstein, page 35 (which I have not seen myself):
אמר לו ''מפני מה מלאך המוות שולט בכל הבריאות חוץ מדורו של מלחס העוף''. אמר לו ''ולא דורו של מלחס העוף בלבד... יש אומרים אנשים מבני אדם נכנסו בחיים בגן עדן. חנוך, סרח בת אשר...'' סרח בת אשר בעבור שאמרה לעקב ''יוסף חי.'' אמר לה יעקב ''זה הפה שבשרני על יוסף שהוא חי לא יטעום טעם מוות.''
There are those who say that some people who are children of Adam entered Gan Eden alive. Hanoch, Serach bat Asher... Serach bat Asher in return for telling Yaakov that Yosef was alive. Yaakov said to her "This mouth that tod me that Yosef ia alive will never taste death."
So - Serach is alive from the time that Yaakov went down tot Mitzrayim until his offspring were liberated. As the only one who was there to give testimony from the beginning of their time in Egypt, she was in a unique position to help when Moshe came forward as a self-described leader to salvation:
Yalkut Shimoni, Genesis, Chapter 12, Remez 64:
ואשר בן יעקב מסר סוד גאולה לסרח בתו וכשבאו משה ואהרן אל זקני ישראל ועשו אותות לעיניהם הלכו זקני ישראל אצל סרח בת אשר אמרו לה בא אדם אחד ועשה אותות לעינינו כך וכך א"ל אין באותות הללו ממש א"ל והלא אמר פקד פקדתי א"ל הוא האיש לגאול את ישראל בא שכך שמעתי מאבא ף"ף מיד ויאמן העם:
And Asher son of Yaakov gave the secret of redemption to Serach, his daughter. And when Moshe and Aharon cam to the elders of Israel and did signs before their eyes, the elders of Israel went to Serach bat Asher. They said to her "Someone can and did the following signs before us." She said to them "Those signs have no meaning in them." They said to her "And he said Pekod Pikadti." SHe said to them "He is the man who will liberate Israel, because I heard from my father that the sign is פ"פ - PP." And the nation trusted him.
Serach knows the sign given to her by her father of the person who will be sent to take them out of Egypt,and verifies for the elders that Moshe fulfilled the secret.
Yalkut Shimoni, Deuteronomy, Chapter 34, Remez 965:
אחר שנתיגע הרבה פגעה בו סרח בת אשר אמרה לו רבינו משה למה אתה יגע כל כך, אמר לה [שלשה ימים ושלשה לילות סבבתי את העיר] לבקש ארונו של יוסף ואיני מוצאו, אמרה לו בוא עמי הוליכו לנהר נילוס, אמרה לו במקום הזה עשו ארון של עופרת של חמש מאות ככרים ונתנוהו בתוכו וחתומוהו והשליכוהו בתוך הנחל, שהחרטומים אמרו לפרעה רצונך שלא תצא אומה זו מתחת ידיך עשה שלא ימצאו עצמות יוסף ולא יצאו מכאן לעולם שכך השביען, מיד עמד משה על הנחל ואמר יוסף יוסף אתה ידעת היאך השבעת את ישראל פקד .יפקד תן כבוד לאלקי ישראל ואל תעכב גאולתן של ישראל
מיד התחיל ארונו לפעפע ועולה מן התהום כקנה אחד, נטלו על כתפו וסבלו וכל ישראל אחריו מסובלים כספם וזהבם
After he (Moshe) was very troubled, he met Serach bat Asher who said to him "Rabbeinu Moshe, why are you so upset?" He said to her "3 days and 3 nights I have circled the city to find Yosef's casket, and I can't find it." She said to him "Come with me!" and led him to the Nile. She said to him "In this spot, they made a coffin for Yosef that weighs 500 kikarim, placed him inside it, and dropped it in the river because Paroh's magicians told him that if he wanted this nation to stay, make sure they can't find Yosef's bones and they will never leave, because so they swore in an oath." Moshe immeediately stood at the river and said "Yosef, Yosef, you know that you made Israel take an oath Pekod Yifkod. Give honor to the God of Israel and don't delay the redemption of Israel." Immediately the coffin began to rise; he took it on his shoulder and carried it, and all of Israel followed, carrying their silver and gold.
Serach now adds to his list finding her uncle's bones, both fulfilling the oath that was made to him and allowing her people to leave Egypt. Moshe's diligance in caring for Yosef's remains, according to the Yalkut Shimoni, was rewarded by God personally burying Moshe after his death.
It should be clear at this point that the journey to and from Egypt, allowing our people to flourish, grow, and establish a homeland, would not have been possible without women: Miryam, who convined her parents to get back together and procreate and then stood watch over her baby brother; Yocheved, who bore Moshe and wrenchingly placed him in the river in hopes he would survive; Serach, who told Yaakov that Yosef was alive, leading her family to go to Egypt to weather the famine, then identified Moshe as our leader, and finally found Yosef's remains, which enabled us to leave Egypt having fulfilled our promise to him.
So... how do we remmeber these women at the seder?
Excuse me as I tangent wildly for a moment:
Charoset. Charoset is not mentioned in the Torah. Or even the text of the haggadah. So why does everyone have charoset on their seder plate?
A mishnah in Pesachim (http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Mishnah/Seder_Moed/Tractate_Pesachim/Chapter_10/3)
הביאו לפניו.
מטבל בחזרת, עד שמגיע לפרפרת הפת.
הביאו לפניו מצה וחזרת וחרסת ושני תבשילין,אף על פי שאין חרסת מצוה.
רבי אליעזר ברבי צדוק אומר:מצוה.
ובמקדש היו מביאים לפניו גופו של פסח.
They brought it before him. He dips the lettuce before he reached the bread (matza). They set before him matzah, lettuce, and charoset and 2 dishes, even though charoset isn't a mitzva. Rabbi Eliezer ben Tzadok says: It is a mitzva.
The gemara asks - if charoset is not a mitzva, why bring it? To neutralize the poisonous effects of the maror.
So then why charoset?
Charoset symbolizes the bricks we made as slaves.
Okay - so, we've all heard this before. But here's a quick question - why does everyone make their charoset from apples? We all have slightly varying recipes, but they all are apple-based.
It alludes to Shir HaShirim, 8:5:
ה מִי זֹאת, עֹלָה מִן-הַמִּדְבָּר, מִתְרַפֶּקֶת, עַל-דּוֹדָהּ; תַּחַת הַתַּפּוּחַ, עוֹרַרְתִּיךָ--שָׁמָּה חִבְּלַתְךָ אִמֶּךָ, שָׁמָּה חִבְּלָה יְלָדַתְךָ. 5 Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? Under the apple-tree I awakened thee; there thy mother was in travail with thee; there was she in travail and brought thee forth.
The women of Israel would meet their husbands in the orchard tree after a long day of work. They would return to the orchards to give birth:
"What is this tapuach we are remembering? Rashi says it is based on Shir Hashirim (8:5) and refers us to Sota 11b: "R. `Avira expounded: It was because of the merit of the righteous women of that generation that the Jews were redeemed from Egypt...." He goes on to recount how the women would go to their working husbands and bathe and feed them, then would conceive children between the fields. When the women were ready to give birth, they'd leave their houses out of fear of the Egyptians. There they would lie underneath the apple trees and give birth. Here he quotes from Shir Hashirim: "Underneath the apple tree I aroused you." Rashi's explains: God aroused the Jewish children to come out of their mother's wombs. He continues to develop how God acted as the midwife and how the children were miraculously protected from the Egyptians." (http://www.vbm-torah.org/pesach/charoset.htm)
R' Eliezer ben Tzadok believes every ingredient has symbolic meaning, and as such the charoset symbolizes an aspect of our story that would otherwise be absent from the seder - the story of the women who enabled our survival.
As we enter the month of Nissan, the month of Miryam's yarzheit (the tenth of Nissan), we bring with us a new appreciation for the mighty charoset, and the mighty women who allowed our nation to flourish and multiply.
Rosh Chodesh Sameach!
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