Passover

ByMorgan Folger

This week is Passover! Every Passover we tell the story of the Jews' escape from slavery in Egypt during our seders. This week, we are going to focus on a peculiar detail in the story that has given way to an important tradition in the Passover celebration: Matzah.

The verse below is from the story of Passover in Exodus. It comes as the Jewish people are leaving Egypt after the Pharoah told Moses they could leave:

שמות י״ב:ל״ט

(לט) וַיֹּאפ֨וּ אֶת־הַבָּצֵ֜ק אֲשֶׁ֨ר הוֹצִ֧יאוּ מִמִּצְרַ֛יִם עֻגֹ֥ת מַצּ֖וֹת כִּ֣י לֹ֣א חָמֵ֑ץ כִּֽי־גֹרְשׁ֣וּ מִמִּצְרַ֗יִם וְלֹ֤א יָֽכְלוּ֙ לְהִתְמַהְמֵ֔הַּ וְגַם־צֵדָ֖ה לֹא־עָשׂ֥וּ לָהֶֽם׃

Exodus 12:39

(39) And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had taken out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, since they had been driven out of Egypt and could not delay; nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.

Questions:
1) What does this tell us about what that moment was like for the Jewish people? How might they have felt?
2) They had just been freed, why did they leave in such a rush?
3) What does it tell us that they didn't prepare any provisions for themselves?

שמות י״ג:ג׳

(ג) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֜ה אֶל־הָעָ֗ם זָכ֞וֹר אֶת־הַיּ֤וֹם הַזֶּה֙ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְצָאתֶ֤ם מִמִּצְרַ֙יִם֙ מִבֵּ֣ית עֲבָדִ֔ים כִּ֚י בְּחֹ֣זֶק יָ֔ד הוֹצִ֧יא יְהֹוָ֛ה אֶתְכֶ֖ם מִזֶּ֑ה וְלֹ֥א יֵאָכֵ֖ל חָמֵֽץ׃

Exodus 13:3

(3) And Moses said to the people, “Remember this day, on which you went free from Egypt, the house of bondage, how the LORD freed you from it with a mighty hand: no leavened bread shall be eaten.

1) Of all the ways we can commemorate the Jewish people's freedom from slavery, why do you think we eat matzah?
2) How is eating matzah a reminder for us? What does it remind us of? How can it be meaningful to us?

We begin the Passover Seder by lifting the Matzah and naming it Lehem Oni, which means Bread of Affliction:

הגדה של פסח, מגיד, הא לחמא עניא ג׳

הָא לַחְמָא עַנְיָא דִּי אֲכָלוּ אַבְהָתָנָא בְאַרְעָא דְמִצְרָיִם. כָּל דִכְפִין יֵיתֵי וְיֵיכֹל, כָּל דִצְרִיךְ יֵיתֵי וְיִפְסַח. הָשַּׁתָּא הָכָא, לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בְּאַרְעָא דְיִשְׂרָאֵל. הָשַּׁתָּא עַבְדֵי, לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בְּנֵי חוֹרִין.

Pesach Haggadah, Magid, Ha Lachma Anya 3

This is the bread of affliction/poverty that our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt. Anyone who is famished should come and eat, anyone who is in need should come and partake of the Pesach sacrifice. Now we are here, next year we will be in the land of Israel; this year we are slaves, next year we will be free people.

1) What does the Haggadah mean by "bread of affliction"?
2) Why would we eat the "bread of affliction" after being freed from Egypt?
3) What significance does this verse have today? What can it teach us?

רש"י על שמות י״ב:י״ז:א׳

(א) ושמרתם את המצות. שלא יבאו לידי חמוץ מכאן אמרו תפח, תלטוש בצונן רבי יאשיה אומר אל תהי קורא את המצות אלא את המצוות, כדרך שאין מחמיצין את המצה כך אין מחמיצין את המצוה אלא אם באה לידך עשה אותה מיד:

Rashi on Exodus 12:17:1

You must be vigilant regarding the matzos. So that they not come to be leavened… Rabbi Yoshiah said do not read it as "matzos", but rather as "mitzvahs". Just as we do not allow the matzah to leaven, so we do not allow a mitzvah to leaven. Rather, if the opportunity comes to you, do it immediately.

1) What do you think of Rashi's interpretation of Matzah?
2) How is the story of Passover and eating Matzah connect to performing Mitzvot, or good deeds for others?
3) What are some ways you can celebrate Passover by performing mitzvot?