Excerpt from Mirrors in Time

by Joel Ziff

"The liberation from slavery in Egypt marks the birth of the Jewish [or Israelitish] nation; it also serves as a symbol for all periods of exile and redemption in Jewish history. The exodus represents deliverance, not just from oppression in Egypt but from all exiles in the past, present, and future. It speaks both to the inevitability of oppression throughout history, as well as to the trust in an equally inescapable liberation. The event serves not only as a marker of turning points in the development of the Jewish people; it is also symbolic of critical moments in our own lives.

For this reason, we read in the Haggadah that 'each of us is obligated to consider ourselves as coming out of Egypt.' The coming out of Egypt is an archetypal image of life transition. It embodies every narrow passage we traverse as we give birth to ourselves: leaving home, career changes, marriage, divorce, birth, sickness, death, addiction, and recovery from trauma.

"If we view these experiences solely as oppressive events, we find ourselves also enslaved in Egypt and unable to escape. The stress can destroy our will, energy, and capacity to respond constructively.

The story of slavery in Egypt offers us a different possibility: the Israelites not only overcome the adversity; they develop into a nation. Viewing our lives through the mirror of the Israelites' experience, we may be able to envision a similar outcome for ourselves in which we not only overcome difficulties but also develop new capacities in the process.