Rabbi’s Message – March 30, 2023
As many are preparing for Passover that might include using up the chametz (leaven bread products) in our homes, others gathered Tuesday night to watch Dayton-born pizza chef Miriam Weiskind compete on Food Network’s Chopped in a special pizza-themed showdown episode. I have to wonder if it was intentional that this episode aired the week before Passover (or at least be grateful it did not air during Passover). The description for the episode, according to Dayton.com, read: “From toothsome toppings to delicious dough, every bite matters when making pizza magic.” Essentially, it’s all about balance.
As we enter into Pesach (Passover) and set aside pizza and other carb-loaded deliciousness for a week that does not contain chametz, or more specifically, foods that contain one of the five grains (wheat, oats, rye, barley, and spelt) that have come into contact with water for more than 18 minutes, in which time they may have become leavened. Regardless of whether one keeps the traditional dietary laws for Passover for all, part, or none of the holiday, Rabbis over the generations have used the notion of leavening as a symbolic teaching at this time of year.
In one explanation of chametz, it is described that it may stem from the starter dough that was made anew each year in the spring. That by allowing the dough to newly ferment each year it guaranteed a type of freshness to that year’s dough. I don’t know enough about bread-making to say whether new starter dough would yield fresher tasting bread than one that’s been sitting in the back of the fridge since the sourdough trend of 2020, but it seems a reasonable practice to me to ‘start fresh’ in the spring, as perhaps many do in other ways with spring cleaning.
There are also rabbinic traditions that we should pay attention to and remove the chametz in our spirits – the puffiness of our selves. These interpretations play with the idea that when we puff ourselves up, we actually inhibit our ability to rise spiritually. Or perhaps that just as bread dough can over-rise and ruin the loaf, if we allow our egos to inflate too much, it too becomes a negative aspect in our lives. In this sense, the goal of bread-making is to find that sweet-spot in rising that leads to the perfect loaf – too little or too much negatively impacts the bread; and for us we too should strive to find the sweet spot between letting ourselves rise and shine, while not over-rising.
So, whether you watch(ed) the Chopped chefs as they try to balance their mystery ingredients and flavors, or perhaps as you try to balance the role of chametz in your life, may your preparations for Passover and the holiday itself be joyful and meaningful.
An early Chag Sameach (Happy Passover) from our family to yours!