ABSTRACT
Rav Zadok (1823–1900) was a Hasidic master in Lublin, Poland. In this passage he strengthens the conception of the people of Israel as impoverished. He sees the ritual of blessing of the moon and the ritual of eating the matzah (unleavened bread) on Passover as proof of the centrality of poverty in Judaism. The link between Israel and the moon has a long tradition. Israel is connected to the moon (rather than the sun), because they calculate their festivals in relation to its appearance (as opposed to the Georgian–Christian cycle). This creates a special link between the people of Israel and the impoverished light of the moon, which “has no light of its own.” Moreover, in Jewish liturgy, one recites blessings of the moon at the start of every month, including the recitation of the statement “Jacob the small.” This emphasizes the idea of lowliness and vulnerability of Israel compared with other nations.
