Lessons learned from a box of matzoh

Matzoh (Photo: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt)

Matzoh, the Jewish bread of affliction, has a historical narrative that dates thousands of years. In our haste to leave Egypt, the land where we were slaves, the Israelites gathered their children, animals, belongings, and bread dough before it had a chance to rise, and before the hard hearted Pharoah changed his mind. The people headed for the Red Sea, unaware of the miracles about to happen. (As someone who grew up watching Charlton Heston receive the Ten Commandments, images from the film pop into mind.)

While shopping for Passover, I was delighted to find matzoh for two dollars a box at Trader Joe’s. But as an avid label reader, it was disappointing to learn the matzoh was made in Jerusalem, Israel. I asked a passing store clerk, “Are they referring to east or west Jerusalem? Was this matzoh prepared on the west side of the internationally recognized boundary, known as the Green Line, in the Occupied Territory (OT)?” The confused clerk quickly realized here was no helping me. He had no idea what I was talking about but I continued anyway.

“You need to know that there is an international boycott against buying goods grown or manufactured in the OT.” Israel, the strongest military in the Middle East, with nuclear capabilities, is promised more than 30 billion American tax dollars over the next ten years. We support Israel even when they break US law (the Arms Export Control Act and Foreign Assistance Act). We support them when they break international law by building settlements in the West Bank including East Jerusalem. We support Israel, even when they goad us into entering a war on their behalf against Iran.

‘I’m sorry, but I’ll have to report this matzoh breach to the national offices of Jewish Voice for Peace,” I dutifully declared. The clerk asked if I would continue to shop at the store, a moot point since my cart was quite full.

Boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) is a non-violent plea from Palestinian civil society to heed their suffering. They want the forty-seven year occupation to end; they want the right to return to their land and be given restitution for losses, and they want equal rights of citizenship for Israeli Arabs. Many European Jews came to Palestine as refugees escaping the Nazi Holocaust. They were desperate enough to ignore the fact that the land was populated. As one rabbi metaphorically stated, “The bride is beautiful but she is married to another.” Palestine never was an empty land.

Another brand of matzoh, Osem, admonishes Jews to plant trees in Israel out of concern for future generations. “Trees hold back the desert, prevent soil erosion and improves air quality.” Nowhere does the label mention that Israeli national parks hide scars from 1948 when over 500 Palestinian villages were destroyed. As a child, I raised enough money to plant lots of trees. I could be excused on the grounds of youthful idealism and ignorance, but now I know that Judaism demands social justice for all people.

The matzoh made in Jerusalem, Israel (was it east or west?) violates the basic tenet of Judaism. It also carries a heavy carbon footprint––the wheat and water traveled across the world to reach my seder plate.

Alan Adler, owner of Streit’s Matzo store (Photo:Bryan Smith)

Thank goodness Streit’s matzoh, sold in Whole Foods, had the wisdom to let me know their family has been baking matzoh with the finest kosher ingredients since 1925, when they opened their first bakery on Rivington Street in the Lower East Side, only blocks from where my grandparents lived.

Passover is about freedom. In its infinite wisdom, the Hagadah, read during the seder in various versions by Jews across the world, tells the story of how slaves became free men and women. We are warned that freedom must be guarded and renewed constantly. Freedom is a yearning felt by all oppressed people, those in bondage, captivity or under occupation. Read labels. Make sure your bread of affliction is not causing greater affliction.