Yachatz
We take a piece of matzah and break it in half. One half we eat during the seder. The other - the Afikomen - is eaten after it is found. The bread that didn't have a chance to rise, because the Jewish people were fleeing for their lives, is still so much a symbol for so many today. As we sit here, people are running for their lives in countries we can't relate to, because we're comfortable, now in this moment. Their homes have been bombed and the only thing they seek is to survive. And also, as we sit here, people are running for their lives - right here in the United States. Immigrants are being put in jail for days, weeks, months and more; their families wondering - at this very moment - whether they'll see them again. And still others are running from modern day slavery, from sex trafficking, from abuse by a family member or people in their communities. So that first half of matzah is symbolic. It says human beings are still looking for safety, to be able to live - to survive - another day; some for acceptance; and some simply for calm and quiet.
The Afikomen is also symbolic. It represents hope. A time when food will be plentiful, safety and acceptance will be commonplace. We look for the Afikomen, and we look for that time to come. It won't be handed to us. We'll have to search and work hard to find it.
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