After the Norwich weekend in January, some of you know that we went to Ipswich to lead a session with the fledgling community there. Sadly, while we were all chatting about Liberal Judaism, some contemptible person was smashing through an upstairs window in our house, and turning our home upside down in search of precious jewels. Unfortunately for them, we don't (didn't) have all that many, but most of what we had, they took and every piece, of course, has great sentimental value for us. They pulled out everything, threw it all over the place and trampled over it. My study (in which there was absolutely nothing of value to a robber, except a computer which, thank goodness, they didn't take) was totally ransacked. Apart from the violation and the feeling of insecurity that go with having your house burgled, you are left with the most unbelievable mess. I expect that some of you will have had similar bad, or worse experiences, and will empathise

One positive out of all this is that we have had to sort through much of our 'stuff', rearrange it and clear it out. It's amazing how much you accumulate over the years, and unless you occasionally have a clear out, whether by choice or not, it really can pile up

Clearing out some of the extraneous 'stuff' in our house made me think of the removal of chametz, leaven, from our houses at Pesach time. Each year, when I clear out the chametz, I am struck by how much of it there is in our regular diet. It is in many of the products that we eat, often quite unexpectedly. I am always amazed at how empty the cupboards seem by the end of this process. But I feel lighter, and less weighed down, and wonder why I will fill the cupboards up again after Passover (which I always do)

A word about chametz… The substances used to make (both matzah and) chametz are listed in the Mishnah as wheat, barley, oats, spelt and rye. Made into flour and mixed with water under conditions that prevent leavening, they become matzah; made into flour and mixed with water and allowed to leaven, they become chametz. Intriguing that the essential ingredient of chametz and matzah are, and must be, precisely the same. It is only the process of manufacture that is different

In rabbinic thought, writes Francine Klagsbrun, in her book Jewish Days (p. 124), 'chametz stands for instability and corruption – the corruption of Egypt, the corruption that may come from too easy a life. The sage Rabbi Alexandri equated the yeast in dough with the evil impulse, the leaven that interferes with the purity of heart and mind. And the first-century Jewish philosopher, Philo of Alexandria, saw in the prohibition against leaven a warning against overweening pride, a 'puffing up' with arrogance that gets in the way of goodwill and humanity'. In that sense, Passover calls for some inner searching as well as the external search for chametz. And coming exactly half way in the year from one Yom Kippur to the next, it acts as a sort of checkpoint for the essentials in life, a week to look to the extraneous, puffed up parts of our lives that get in the way of what is truly important

In the words of Arthur Waskow, chametz is 'what lifts us up throughout the year – leads to our working harder, searching deeper, loving more. It is the yetzer, or swelling-impulse, of the soul. But allowed to swell and grow without restraint, it becomes yetzer ha'ra, the evil impulse. It impels us not only to productivity, but to possessiveness; not only to creativity, but to competitiveness; not only to love, but to jealousy and lust. So once a year we must clean out even the uplifting impulse; we must eat the flat bread of a pressed-down people'. (Seasons of Our Joy, p. 144)

It's good to have a clear-out now and then, and Judaism provides us with two excellent opportunities to do that every year. Judaism recognises that chametz is a staple of life, just as it recognises that the yetzer ha'ra, the evil impulse, is a necessary part of our make-up. (The yetzer ha'ra is what gives us ambition, drive, the need to build houses and have families.) At Passover, we physically clear out the chametz from our houses, and over the High Holy Days, we spiritually clear out our inner lives. We need chametz and the yetzer ha'ra, but we should be aware the danger of an excess of either of them. Examining them from a different 'place', where we remove them for a period of time, gives us an opportunity to appreciate their value, to try to keep perspective on their place in our lives

I am very sorry that I won't be with you this year over Passover, and will miss the very enjoyable Seder we shared last year. This year, I will be with my community in Woodford. I know that Philip and Jenny will lead an excellent Communal Seder, as they did the year before last, and I look forward to hearing all about it. At our next Engaging with Judaism, we will be devoting the session to preparing for Passover, going through the Haggadah and looking at the background and meaning of some of the Pesach rituals. Please join us to get a head start!

Let me take this opportunity of wishing you all a good and happy Pesach.

— Rabbi Rachel Benjamin