From the Desk of Jennifer Lorch Selco | Sr. Director of Jewish Life + Engagement
Jewish tradition teaches that as the Israelites were preparing to leave Egypt, there was no time for the dough to rise and become bread. Therefore, we eat matzah (made of just flour and water) throughout the holiday in place of leavened bread. Part of the text we read this Shabbat mentions, “You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread—eating unleavened bread for seven days, as I have commanded you—at the set time of the month of Aviv, for in the month of Aviv you went forth from Egypt (Exodus 33:18).”
Matzah is both the bread of slavery and also the bread of freedom. Matzah was eaten as the Israelites journeyed toward freedom and was symbolic of the small amount of food given to them by their task masters in Egypt. Rabbi Irving Greenberg, in The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays teaches, “The halakha [Jewish law] underscores the identity of hametz and matzah with the legal requirement that matzah can be made only out of grains that can become hametz–that is, those grains that ferment if mixed with water and allowed to stand. How the human prepares the dough is what decides whether it becomes hametz or matzah. How you view the matzah is what decides whether it is the bread of liberty or of servitude.”
As we make our way through the second half of the Passover holiday, I invite you to consider how matzah for you is both the bread of slavery and freedom? What might you be enslaved to and wish to be free from? What freedoms you are celebrating? How is the matzah a reminder to both appreciate freedom and to work towards a more just and freer world? And, as we journey, both as individuals and a collective people, from celebrating Passover to Shavuot when we will celebrate receiving the Torah, what are you hoping to take away from this journey?
Shabbat Shalom and Chag v’Kasher Sameach (Happy Passover)!
As we celebrate Passover, a time rooted in the journey from the narrow place to a space of possibility, we are reminded that freedom is not simply given—it is something we work for and help create for one another. The story of liberation calls us to build spaces where every person can show up fully, with dignity, belonging, and joy. That spirit lives at the Tucson Jeach day, inherent in our mission and service pledge to create community based on Jewish values by providing the highest quality programs and services in a safe and secure environment for all people of all ages. This season invites us to reflect on and recommit to ensuring freedom from oppression for all, but the freedom to learn, to grow, and to be ourselves in a community where everyone truly belongs.
This week, our youngest learners in Early Childhood Education engaged with curiosity and wonder as they explored the meaning of Passover with their own Seder. They dipped parsley, tasted bitter lettuce, delighted in the sweetness of sticky charoset, and raised their glasses full of grape juice led by ECE’s Jewish Culture + Curriculum Coordinator, Jenn Greenberg. Check out our favorite PJ Library books for Passover to keep the learning going at home here and find more holiday resources here.
Disability Program Services participants bring their whole selves to the Tucson J every day and enrich our community by being here. Under the leadership of Bianca Caruso, DPS Vocational Program Coordinator, the department has evolved this year to offer more vocational programming. We proudly celebrated another graduating cohort of Vocational Program interns who completed 48 hours of working at the JShop and Coffee Cart. This group was the largest yet, with eight incredible interns who learned customer service, point of sale, inventory management—and how to make the best cup of matcha around. Mazel tov to Antonio, Heidi, Michael, Nichole, Christian, Rachel, Brooke, and Adam, and the entire DPScommunity who exemplify the value of belonging by empowering and supporting one another daily.
With temperatures rising, Camp J just around the corner, and the SplashPad officially open, it’s beginning to feel a lot like summer here at the J—there’s so much to explore at the J this season. What does summer at the J feel like? You decide! Build a wellness routine that excites you, try out a sport to keep moving, get inspired in an arts and culture program, or beat the heat with our state-of-the-art amenities. If you’re not already a member, check out our Summer Sale happening NOW!
May this Shabbat and Passover season renew our sense of purpose and our commitment to the sacred work of creating a more just, compassionate, and inclusive community and world. As we remember our journey to freedom, may we be inspired to be our full selves and to help widen the path forward for all. Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach!
Reminders, Resources + Learning
Each week we share resources for more learning:
This week’s resources:
- The 13 Middot: God Is Ethical and So Are We by Rabbi Lance J. Sussman (Reform Judaism)
- Shevi’i Shel Pesah: Living at the Frontier by Rabbi Lauren Hederson (Jewish Theological Seminary)
- 10 Passover Customs from Around the World by Abby Seitz (My Jewish Learning)
Last week’s resources:
- Violence and the Sacred by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
- Transparent Leadership by Rachel Farbiarz (My Jewish Learning)
- Can We Sanctify Incivility? by Gordon Tucker (Jewish Theological Society)
Is there a topic you’d like to learn more about? Email Jenn Selco with requests.
