Passover is the holiday where, among the opening words of the seder, lifting up the matzah, we chant the Aramaic words as follows, הָא לַחְמָא עַנְיָא דִּי אֲכָלוּ אַבְהָתָנָא בְאַרְעָא דְמִצְרָיִם. כָּל דִכְפִין יֵיתֵי וְיֵיכֹל…
“This is the bread of destitution that our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt. Anyone who is famished should come and eat.”
But there is a problem with this proclamation.
As the journalist Jefferey Goldberg points out, these words come too late! “By the time we read this passage,” he writes, “we are seated, our hands are washed, the wine is poured, the table is crowded with fine dishes. And only now we invite the poor to join us?”
Preparing for Passover in advance allows us to remind ourselves of this passage, with the hope that when we chant it at the Seder, even if we recognize it’s a more symbolic call than a literal one, that we have been living the values it espouses.
Hunger is no less a challenge two thousand or so years after these words were probably composed. News reports this week weighed in on the death toll from drought, compounded by global warming, in Somalia last year—43,000, at least half of whom were children under age 5, with concerns that the first six months of this year could bring another between 18,000 and 34,000 deaths. Reports say that a”boost in funding from donors and the quick response by aid agencies and local authorities to reach those in need” limited the impact of the drought, which could have been worse. “But the United Nations said the situation remains catastrophic, and put out an appeal for $2.6 billion to assist the millions of people in need.” One NGO that works in drought affected areas of Africa can be found here.
Of course, we know hunger is no stranger here at home either. Between the recent expiration of supplemental Food Stamps as part of the end of a pandemic emergency response program, and the ongoing rise of food prices—10 percent over the past year—hunger and poverty was on the rise in 2022, following a decrease in 2021 thanks to increased government supports during the pandemic (a sign that those have been helpful programs that should be extended. Here at Society Hill Synagogue we are working to reduce food insecurity here in Philadelphia. Sign up to volunteer or donate as you are able in preparation for Passover. Let all who are hungry come and eat.
