Jewish World Watch's Blog

Jewish World Watch's Seder Matzah Set
- Posted on 04.03.09
According to the midrash, it is Nahshon ben Aminadav, not Moses, who is the true hero of the Exodus. While the Israeilites stood at the banks of the Red Sea and wailed with despair, Nashon entered the waters. As the water reached his nose, the sea finally parted. Nashon did not wait for a miracle, but rather took action which led to the redemption of the Jewish people. This Passover we ask you to continue to stop the mass atrocities in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Learn from the below "JWW Matzah Set" - use it on your Seder table and use it as a tool to discuss the symbolism of each Matza - the Matzah of Affliction, the Matzah of Redemption and the Matzah of Action. Ask your guests to share their stories and amswer the questions posed. Invite them to use the "afikomen" phone script and postcard. Encourage them to go to http://www.jewishworldwatch.org and follow the Passover link for more opportunities to engage. By doing so, you will be encouraging them to be a "Nashon" - oen who does not stand idly by.

Lehem Oni - Bread of Afflicion
Suggested Use: At the beginning of Magid - the retelling of the Passover story
We begin the Seder by lifting the Matzah and naming it Lehem Oni, which means the Bread of Affliction. We remember what it means to be afflicted, enslaved, and powerless. That memory, seared into the Jewish soul, cultivates our empathy for those who are powerless today. The Haggadah teaches us that each Jew must assume personal responsibility to fulfill the mitzvah of compassion for the powerless and undertake the struggle for freedom, rather than relying on angels or intermediaries.

Afikomen
Suggested use: When breaking the Middle Matzah
During the Seder we break the middle Matzah to recall the brokenness of the world, and indeed our own lives. We hide away a piece called the Afikomen. The Seder cannot be complete until the Afikomen is found and brought back to the table. Our lives, indeed our world, cannot be made whole until we act to repair our broken world.

Lehem Ge'ulah: Bread of Redemption
Suggested Use: When we point to the Matzah at the end of Magid - the Retelling of the Passover story
The story of the Exodus begins in slavery and ends in redemption. As they left Egypt, the Israelites chose to bake the unleavened matzah instead of waiting for the bread to rise. The story teaches us that God requires our partnership in the process of redemption. To be a partner with God is to be an agent of change. The Matzah is Lehem Ge'ulah - the bread of redemption - which reminds us of those opening moments f our people's freedom, when we acted as partners with God.

Lehem Pe'ilut: Bread of Action
Suggested Use: When we point to the Maror at the end of Magid - the Retelling of the Passover story
Why do we spend an evening or two every year studying the story of the Passover? It is no academic exercise. The rabbis state, "The study of Torah is great because it leads us to action." We explore our past to guide us to action in the future. The story of the Exodus inspired Abraham Joshua Heschel to join Martin Luther King Jr. to march in Selma where he "prayed with his feet." The Matzah serves not only as a reminder of the past, but as the Lehem Pe'ilut - the Bread of Action - that reminds us to work actively towards redemption in our own day.

Related causes: Human Rights

Tags: seder, matzah, jewish world watch