This is the week of Easter and Passover which coincide most years. For many Jews all round the world, we celebrate the first night of Passover, partaking in the Seder. The evening is filled with ritual, ceremony, a delicious meal (well that depends on who’s cooking) and reading the story of the Jewish exodus from Egypt: a trip toward freedom. We read from the Haggadah, a collected work of blessings, prayers and excerpts from the Bible, and other Jewish sources.

Essentially the story celebrates freedom, referring to the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved. I am reminded how we often take our physical freedom for granted in stable societies. We wake up each morning and can choose how to spend our day. Yet in so much of the world, war, despotic rule and instability dictate a life focused on survival.

What does freedom mean to you?

What does freedom mean to you?

Psychological and spiritual freedom

I feel so fortunate that here in the United States, we can openly hold the seder and consider another level of freedom: the psychological and spiritual. We can personally “go out of Egypt” every day to escape the limits, temptations and obstructions that we place on ourselves. Passover with its practices are symbols of a struggle that reminds us of the ongoing process of self-liberation and redemption.

After the latest chemical weapons attack released by the despot in Syria on the general population, I feel so helpless to stop heinous acts. What I can do is find a way to have more inner peace and freedom in my own life. If one by one, we each find more inner serenity and harmony, then collectively the world becomes a safer, more accepting and freer place to be our true loving selves.

The Four Freedoms

I am reminded about my recent visit to Roosevelt Island, in New York City with friends. As we strolled around the island, we discovered a beautiful Franklin Roosevelt memorial. Etched in stone are the Four Freedoms, from his State of the Union address in January 1941. These seem particularly pertinent today. He proposed four fundamental freedoms that people “everywhere in the world” ought to enjoy: freedom of speechfreedom of religionfreedom from want and freedom from fear.

Here are some important questions to consider about your own sense of freedom.

What is freedom to you?

Are there ways you stop yourself from being free?

What are some ways that you feel coerced or constrained?

How can you find your way to live in our world filled with such good and evil?

Are you living up to your potential?

What would you want your loved ones to say about you when you are gone?

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