As my children grow, I am spending more time with them playing sports. On one such recent exercise, I found myself coaching them on some football skills. One element I taught them was that the quarterback sometimes will throw the ball past the current location of the receiver in order that the ball will arrive at the destination at the same time as the receiver does. Throwing ahead is actually throwing on target. It also encourages the receiver to give it his best, knowing that he has to run with precision and speed to make the catch.
As we celebrate Passover, I am reminded of the need to “throw ahead.”
The reason that the festival is called Passover – even though it was but one detail of the Exodus – is because G-d’s passing over the Jewish homes during the Plague of the Firstborn was not merely an act of saving the Jewish firstborns, but a demonstration of the theme of Pesach. Indeed, the entire notion of redeeming the Jewish people, enslaved – in body and spirit – to the might and culture of Egypt, was a quantum leap.
G-d took that leap, investing in the Jewish people, because He believed in them. And He expected them to step up and receive the Torah, dedicate themselves to its ideals and instructions and be a light unto the nations.
Ultimately, G-d’s leap was just the beginning. It must be followed by our leap.
And today as well, we relive the Exodus when we take the leap of commitment to Judaism.
With G-d at quarterback, we can confidently leap forward to make the catch.