Why do we eat matzah on Pesach? ?

This question is one of four posed by the Pesach Haggadah to open the discussion at the Pesach seder.

The traditional answer given is that the matzah represents the bread of woe that our ancestors ate as slaves in Egypt. By eating the dry and tasteless matzah, we re-experience the physical servitude and hardships our ancestors endured.

On the other hand, matzah is also known as the bread of redemption. When the time came for Moses to lead the Jews out of slavery, they did not have time to allow the dough to rise into bread. In their haste to flee, they hastily took to the floor, ready to eat matzah as a provision for the long journey ahead. By eating matzah on Passover night we can re-experience and internalize the taste of freedom.

However, there is another Kabbalistic interpretation of why we eat matzah on Pesach eve. And while the answer dates back hundreds, if not thousands of years, its meaning seems more modern and relevant today than ever.

Matza is occasionally referred to as “the healing bread”.

What is the connection?

The answer is best expressed by the Hasidic master, Rabbi Yerachmiel Yisrael Yitzchak of Alexander, in his classic work “Ismach Yisrael” (Rejoice, O Israel). According to the Alexander Rebbe, we eat matzah on Pesach eve, to rectify and correct any act of eating that may require “repair.” In Hebrew this is known as “tikkun.”

A fundamental belief of the sage is that all our actions must be done with thought and intention. The highest goal of eating, as of all physical activities, is to serve our Creator.

if we have eaten without thinking, unconscient As for our highest goals, unconscient as to the ultimate source of our nourishment, such eating needs repair.

Therefore, by eating matzah on Pesach night, with the proper intention, we have the ability to make a “tikkun” or correction for all the times we have eaten carelessly, thoughtlessly, like an animal.

Eating in a more spiritual frame of mind would be a first step in achieving a “heal”. A rectification to reconnect with our Creator and the world around us.

Hence the reference to matzah being a “healing bread.”

But we have to go deeper.

In light of this teaching, I would like to suggest four questions that we can ask ourselves each time we sit down to eat this coming year. Although they are probably not the same questions that Alexander Rebbe had in mind, these questions are nonetheless intended to help us increase our awareness and eat more mindfully.

1. Is the food I’m eating nutritious?

According to leading nutrition expert Dr. Joel Fuhrman, author of “Eat to Live,” 51% of our caloric intake comes from refined and processed foods. These are foods that lack nutritional value. They are often called “empty calories.” They include cakes, cookies, crackers, white bread and pasta, soft drinks, ice cream, vegetable oils, etc.

Such foods do us more harm than good.

Another 40% of our caloric intake comes from animal products. This includes meat, dairy, poultry, eggs, and fish. Study after study from respected medical institutions clearly show the direct link between an animal-based diet and disease.

The sad part is that only about 5% of our caloric intake comes from fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, and nuts—foods that are nutrient-dense and life-giving.

We must choose our foods wisely and go back to basics. If not, we will kill ourselves with our forks and knives..

2. Is the food I eat respectful of my environment?

Water conservationists have pointed out that more than 50% of all water used in the United States goes to raising animals for food.

It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce one pound of meat and 750 gallons of water to produce one gallon of milk. However, it only takes 25 gallons of water to grow a pound of wheat.

If that same water were used to grow grain to feed people, instead of raising food for livestock, it could go a long way toward eliminating world hunger.

Technological advances have allowed us to transport food around the world overnight, but is it prudent or necessary?

Does a resident of the northeastern United States need to eat kiwis or strawberries in the dead of winter if the cost of fuel and natural resources is prohibitive and exploits our environment?

This would be a violation of the Biblical commandment of ‘baal tashchit’, using items in an inappropriate and wasteful manner.

Other discussion-worthy topics about diet and our planet include the dangers of growing and consuming genetically modified foods, the use of chemical pesticides and herbicides, the physical abuse and pain inflicted on animals destined for slaughter, the destruction of our rainforests for grazing animals and the resulting global warming.

What is required of us is to simplify our diet and return to eating locally grown organic foods in season.

3. Am I eating because I’m hungry or because I’m bored?

Too often we just sit down to eat because we lack something better to do. We have forgotten, or never knew, what real hunger is. The United States today faces an obesity epidemic. We are overfed but undernourished.

According to current statistics, more than half of all Americans will die of heart disease or stroke. One third will die of cancer. This does not include those who suffer from diabetes or dementia.

The tragedy is that all of the above are diet related diseases and need not occur.

The good news is that by switching to a plant-based diet we can heal ourselves and restore our health.

4. Am I expressing gratitude for the food I eat?

Many families have a tradition of reciting a blessing before and after a meal. Such action allows us to pause and focus our appreciation on the source of our nourishment.

Equally important is to express gratitude to the person who cooked and prepared our food. No matter what we eat, food that is prepared with love and eaten in a warm and caring environment always nourishes us.

Have we given thanks to the farmers, gardeners, growers and marketers who grow our food and help bring it to our table? Too often children are brought up to think that food comes from the supermarket and are unaware that it grows from the ground and requires the physical effort of someone to work the land and bring it to fruition.

And last but not least, we have taken steps to ensure that the poor and needy in our own communities do not go hungry.

If we strive to follow the path of the Alexander Rebbe by eating more mindfully, then hopefully when we sit down at the seder table this festive season and wonder why we eat matzah on Pesach, matzah will fulfill its ultimate promise. to truly become a “bread of healing”.