The Pesach offering - we all remember the Pascal Lamb, don't we? or is Abq Jew putting Descartes before the hoarse? - had a strict time limit.
It had to be slaughtered bayn ha’arbayim (at twilight) - and it had to be totally consumed by midnight. Which naturally raised the question:
What to do if the 14th of Nisan falls on Shabbat?
The Mishna says: The following acts necessary for the sacrifice of the Pesach offering supersede the due observance of the Sabbath: The shechting, the sprinkling of its blood, the removal of its kishkes, and the burning of the fat with incense.
The Gemara tells us: The rabbis taught: The Halakha in the Mishna was not known to the Religious Authorities. It once happened that the 14th of Nissan occurred on a Sabbath, and they did not know whether the Passover sacrifices superseded the due observance of the Sabbath or not. In other words:
Zevachim before Pesachim, or vice versa?
The rabbis looked around for a man who knew the Halakha, and they were told that there was a man who had recently come from Babylon, called Hillel of Babylon, and who had learned under the two greatest men of that generation, Shemayah and Abtalyon. Hillel would probably be able to solve the problem.
They sent for Hillel and asked him: "Do you know whether the Passover-sacrifice supersedes the Sabbath?" and he answered: (condensed version) “Sure it does.”
But they insisted upon his basing his assertion upon some actual text. Which Hillel promptly provided, showing how the Torah's use of the word biMoado (at its appointed time) proved that Zevachim and the Passover offering may supersede the Shabbat offering.
When the rabbis heard this, they immediately put Hillel in charge.
Whereupon Hillel began to reproach them, and said:
Why have you put me in charge?
You should have been taking advantage of
the learning of the two great men of
your generation, Shemayah and Abtalyon.
Everyone knew that Passover Pilgrims were forbidden to carry their slaughtering knives to the Mikdash on Shabbat. So the Religious Authorities asked Hillel:
What is the law if a man forgot to bring the
shechting knife on the day before the Sabbath?
Hint: No carrying knives or anything else in public on Shabbat.
Hillel not-so-famously answered:
I have heard the Halakha but have forgotten it.
And famously continued:
Leave this, however, to the Israelites themselves,
for if they are not prophets they are descendants
of prophets, and they will know what to do.
The next day, Hillel saw that those who brought sheep as a sacrifice had the knife thrust in the wool of the sheep, and those that brought goats as a sacrifice had the knife stuck between the horns.
Hillel then (amazingly) remembered the Halakha covering the case and exclaimed:
Thus is the tradition which I have received
from my masters Shemayah and Abtalyon.
But Hillel's remembering brings up the much larger question:
How Could Hillel Or Anyone Else Forget?
How was it possible that, among the thousands of Passover Pilgrims who had assembled for the holiday, they could not find a single person who remembered what had been done the last time Passover followed Shabbat?
Answer #1: Blame it on God. The Talmud says: God caused the people to forget in order to make Hillel's achievement appear more impressive, and to facilitate his rapid rise to leadership.
Answer #2: Let’s do the math! Pesach on Saturday Night. How often, one wonders, doesn't one, does this happen?
Abq Jew first became aware of this question in 1977, when he was privileged to study Talmud at the Jewish Theological Seminary with now-Rabbi but then 'only' Professor Judith Hauptman.
Back then - there was, you will recall, no Internet and no Google, although there was now-Rabbi Burt Visotsky, the genius who lived down the hall - Abq Jew did the research using a [printed hardcover of the] 150-Year Jewish Calendar.
And discovered that there were regular intervals of 3, 4, 7, 13, and 20 years between instances of Pesach on Saturday night. As Wikipedia tells us today:
While the coincidence of the Eve of Passover and Shabbat can occur as often as three times in a decade, it is also possible for as many as 20 years to pass between two instances.
The percentage of the Eve of Passover on Shabbat occurring is 11.5%.
During the 20th century, the Eve of Passover fell on Shabbat 12 times: in 1903, 1910, 1923, 1927, 1930, 1947, 1950, 1954, 1974, 1977, 1981, and 1994.
In the 21st century, it has occurred three times: in 2001, 2005, and 2008. Future occurrences in the 21st century include 2021, 2025, 2045, 2048, 2052, 2072, 2075, 2079, and 2099.
So ...
Do you remember where, when, and with whom you celebrated Passover in 2008? In 2005? How about in 2001? Which version of the Haggadah did you use? And whose child, now likely Married With Children, asked the Four Questions?
Taking ancient life spans and 20-year gaps into account, it seems entirely reasonable to Abq Jew that living memory of what to do when Pesach begins on Saturday night might fade.
Which brings us to:
The Fourth Thing
You've Always Wondered About
You will find the Fourth Thing You've Always Wondered About right there in the Passover Haggadah. On page 25.
It's in the blessing right before the second cup of wine, which is based on a Mishnah in Pesachim.
Blessed are You, G-d, our G-d, King of the universe, who has redeemed us and redeemed our fathers from Egypt, and enabled us to attain this night to eat Matzah and Maror.
So too, G-d, our G-d and G-d of our fathers, enable us to attain other holidays and festivals that will come to us in peace with happiness in the rebuilding of Your city, and with rejoicing in Your service [in the Bet Hamikdash].
Then we shall eat
Note: if the festival is on any day except Saturday night say:
of the sacrifices and of the Passover-offerings;
if the Seder is on Saturday Night say:
of the Passover-offerings and of the sacrifices
whose blood shall be sprinkled on the wall of Your altar for acceptance; and we shall thank You with a new song for our redemption and for the deliverance of our souls. Blessed are You, G-d, who redeemed Israel.
In other words: Through the liturgy, we recognize that
The Passover-offering supersedes the Sabbath.
You know - just like Hillel said.
Here, Hillel. Have a sandwich.
