Torah Reading: Exod. 22:24-23:19, Num. 28:19-25 Chag Matza Sameach! "Joyful Feast of Unleavened Bread!" A symbol of the Passover holiday is matza, an unleavened bread. The Torah contains an instruction to eat unleavened bread, specifically, on the first night of Passover and to eat only unleavened bread during the entire week of Passover. (Exodus 12:17-20).  The Sages teach that this is because the Children of Israel and the Hebrews left Egypt with such haste that there was no time to allow baked bread to rise; thus flat, unleavened bread, matza, is a reminder of the rapid departure of the Exodus.  Matza has also been called Lechem Oni (Hebrew: "bread of poverty") serving as a symbol to remind Jews what it is like to be a poor slave and to promote humility, appreciate freedom, and avoid the inflated ego symbolized by more luxurious leavened bread. For more information visit: https://www.lojs.org/passover-week-torah-readings-2023/