Matzah Saved Is Matzah Earned
By RABBI MARK COHN
At the very beginning of the
Pesach seder, right after we have
completed Kiddush and drunk the
first cup of wine, the head of every
seder lifts the middle matzah, (the
Levi), and breaks it into two uneven
parts, this procedure is called
Yachatz. The larger of the two parts
is called the afikomen, and is
wrapped up and not eaten until the
very end of the Pesach meal. Many
families have the custom of hiding
the afikomen, only to be found after
the meal by some lucky youngster,
who will be generously rewarded
after the yom tov for finding the
afikomen and allowing the seder to
proceed.
What a strange custom! The first
time my eldest son, Elie, saw this
ritual, he said "Aba, why are you
playing with food?" Is that all this is?
To understand this custom, and
maybe even shed some light on
other parts of the seder, we must
ask two fundamental questions.
Firstly, why do we break the middle
matzah in two, and save the larger
of the two pieces? Secondly, why do
we then hide the afikomen for the
youngsters?
Before answering our two
questions we must point out one of
the most fundamental reasons for
the entire seder. It is incumbent
upon each generation to view
themselves as if they themselves
have actually come out of slavery
from the land of Egypt. Every part of
the seder, therefore, is an
opportunity for the participants to
experience some element of what it
was like to be a slave.
The commentaries on the
Haggadah explain that at the time of
Yachatz the middle matzah is
broken in two in order to save the
larger part because at the time of
Yachatz we are still slaves in Egypt,
we have not yet told the narrative of
our leaving slavery. As slaves we
can never be quite sure of where
our next meal will come from.
Therefore, even though we have so
little, just one piece of matzah, we
break it in two, and save the larger
part for a time where we might not
have any food. What an idea! What
an incredible concept! Save a little;
plan ahead; don't use it just
because you've got it. Yes, we know
you're hungry; we know you're tired;
we know you want to eat, blit wait,
hold off your gratification!!
This idea is sometimes difficult
for those of us in America to
understand. After all, we seem to
have so much of everything. And so
much of what we have we simply
must have. We must have just the
right furniture in our just perfect
home. We must go on vacation
every year. We must have a color
TV, VCR, camcorder, mini van, CD
player, the latest fashions, a
gardener, a snow removal service,
central air and, of course, all the
latest Barney accouterments for our
kids! And not only must we have it,
we must have it now.
Maybe, just maybe the Haggadah
is telling us not only what it was like
to be slaves, but maybe, the
Haggadah is teaching us how to
learn from our past. Not every trick
of survival we learned as slaves in
Egypt should be forgotten!
Delayed Gratification
Continued from Page L-1
makes sense, once it is agreed
upon, must be administered firmly
and consistently.
The Afikomen teaches us the
faca frim
THE JEWISH NEWS
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March26, 1993
Associate Publisher: Arthur M. Horwitz
68
Adviser: Harlene W. Appelman
value of denying ourselves instant
pleasure. It's time to put the brakes
on accumulating and live within
appropriate boundaries. Deferring
rewards is a more adult-like
approach to living. A disciplined
person applies self-control and lives
moderately within sensible
boundaries. That's the same lesson,
many adults recognize, of dieting
and it also underlies the concept of
fasting on Yom Kippur — exercising
discipline over our creaturely
passions. And that's the lesson, too,
of the Afikomen.
Julian I. Cook is associate rabbi of
Temple Beth El.
Perhaps, we should think before
we spend every penny, every
month. Yes, we must have many
things, but we also must provide a
future for our children.
Every Jew sitting at the seder
table understands that the greatest
resource we have as a people is our
children. It is a cliche, but true
nonetheless; our children are our
future. Yet, very often, we seem to
Save a little, plan
ahead, don't use it just
because you've got it...
We know you want to
eat, but wait, hold off
your gratification!
neglect this very precious asset. We
don't have time for our kids because
we are so busy providing them with
everything we think they must have.
The seder provides us with an
opportunity to spend valuable time
with our kids. Not just talking to
them, or listening to them, but being
involved with them.
At the seder we teach our kids to
get up and search for the lessons of
life they will need to survive as
Jews. We teach them that we as the
adults in their lives have hidden
treasures of Jewish survival all
around them. If they are sharp, and
pay close attention, they too can
find the secrets to being a Jew. The
afikomen is not a game but an
analogy to the very life of a Jew,
past present and most important,
future.
This year, when little Moshe,
Danielle, Devorah, David, Arielle or
Alexis, find the afikomen, maybe
before we offer them the latest prize
of a new Nintendo, or trip to Disney,
or a bike that glows in the dark, or a
new Lexus, (for the older kids), we
should take a moment and let our
youngsters just enjoy what they
have, and allow them to be thrilled
with the simple yet beautiful feeling
that comes with just being the one
who finds the special secret of the
afikomen.
Rabbi Marc Cohn is the Regional
Director of the National Conference
of Synagogue Youth for the
southern part of the United States.
He lives with his wife, Shira, and
their six kids in North Miami Beach,
Florida. Prior to moving to Florida,
Rabbi Cohn and his family lived in
Oak Park where he was the regional
director of the Central East Region
of NCSY.