by hate and deep mistrust are bleeding Jews and Palestinians to death , in different yet equally poisonous ways . The chametz of anger and hopelessness is bloating our two peoples to the point where we risk exploding .
How can we cool this rage and bring peace – the ultimate exodus from Egypt – to our peoples and even to our angry planet ? We lack the power of international leaders to change things globally . Yet taking our cue from the Oheiv Yisrael , we recognize that the personal is global . Deflating destructive anger on a world scale begins with each of us , who are microcosms of humanity . For examples , we have control over how we speak to each other , especially when talking about polarizing topics such as Israel and Palestine . We have control over how we treat each other , as enemies whose opinions are seen as weapons , or as friends who love each other while agreeing to disagree . We have control over whether we approach others in the community with courtesy and curiosity or with our fingers on the proverbial trigger . We decide what to put into the world .
At this point in the seder we lift the matzah and ask : “ What is the reason that our ancestors ate this matzah ?” We might also ask : “ How can we replace our angry chametz with the matzah of our humility ?”
Rabbi Dan Ornstein is the rabbi at Congregation Ohav Shalom in Albany , NY .
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