Breaking the middle matzah | Yachatz | יַחַץ

There are three pieces of matzah stacked here. Earlier, we broke the middle matzah into two pieces and hid the larger piece. That piece is called the afikomen, literally “dessert” in Greek. After dinner, y’all will have to hunt for the afikomen in order to wrap up the meal… and win a prize.

We eat matzah in memory of the quick flight of our ancestors from Egypt. As slaves, they had faced many false starts before finally being let go. So when the word of their freedom came, they took whatever dough they had and ran with it before it had the chance to rise, leaving it looking something like matzah.

Leader u ncovers and holds up a piece of matzah and all say together:

This is the bread of poverty which our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt.

Leader

We are mindful tonight of the hardships they suffered and the cruelty they endured. Because of our history, we understand the plight of the poor; we know what it is to suffer. So, we pray with them and for them, that the coming year will bring with it the promise of a better life, and we are reminded of our obligation to work towards eliminating poverty and discrimination throughout the world.


haggadah Section: Yachatz
Source: Original