Afikoman GLI
The silence before the breaking of the middle matzah and before the eating of the afikoman suggests that something secret is expressed in the ceremony. We know that the idea of a Messianic era was considered a threat to regimes for whom there was no messiah but the Emperor, no redeemer but Rome. To dream of an era of peace, an end to slavery, is a revolutionary critique of the status quo. Jews disagreed among themselves as to who the Messiah will be or when the Messiah will come, but one thing they all knew. This was not the Messiah, now was not the fulfillment of the Messianic era. In silence, without benediction–for one does not bless that which has not yet occurred–they broke the matzah hidden between the two whole ones, anticipated its recovery, and eating it affirmed their belief in the Passover of the Future.
-- Rabbi Harold Schulweis
When we broke the middle matza, we discussed brokenness. Now, we as we find and eat the afikoman, we bring some kind of wholeness back to the table. The afikoman is broken and can't be unbroken, but by breaking it into even smaller pieces and distributing them to everyone, we heal some of the pain of that brokenness. We dined like royalty tonight, but the taste of the afikoman is meant to be what lingers on our tongues through the conclusion of the seder.
Think about the brokenness in your life and your world. What hopes do you have for that brokenness?
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As liberated people, we can dream, and choose to live our lives in accordance with our dreams. What would it mean to live your life in the hope of repairing the brokenness of the world?
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