They cried out there: God created our physical world such that material reality feels itself to be real and everything that cannot be sensed physically to be non-real. This state of alienation from Divine consciousness is connoted by the word "there." As opposed to being "here," i.e., in God's presence, we are all somewhere over "there," lost in the fan- tasyland governed by the illusion of self-sufficient existence. Nevertheless, it is specifically in this material world as opposed to even the most sublime spiritual world - that we can bond with God's essence, through fulfilling His commandments. This is the import of the verse "you will seek God from there, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and soul. Similarly, this verse can be interpreted to teach the same lesson: "They [the Jewish peo- ple] cry out from 'there' [i.e., from their material existence

in this physical world, where] Pharaoh king of Egypt [i.e., the dominant culture of materialism] makes a loud noise, [drowning out the voice of Divinity in the racket of mass distraction, on account of which the Jewish people] have exchanged [the joy of] the appointed times [for rejoicing, i.e., the Jewish holidays, for the empty mindlessness of unending diversions]."

We are thus promised that if we remain aware of the spir- itually debilitating context within which we live and actively seek to overcome it - and especially if we work to elevate and refine it - God will allow us to find Him and restore our lost Divine consciousness. The cumulative effect of our repeated efforts toward this end will be the ultimate elevation and refinement of reality in general, which will usher in the final, messianic Redemption."