"Shalom, this is Rabbi Shlomo Ra'anan from the Ayelet HaShachar organization. It hasn't been talked about anywhere during these election days, but history is taking place this week at the Ein Harod Kibbutz (a very secular Kibbutz in the north of Israel): A real Matzah bakery opened at the Kibbutz, and people are coming here to bake hand-made Matzot in the oven, and to participate hands-on in making the Matzot for Leil-HaSeder (the Seder night). The variety of men, women and children who come here is just moving: Kibbutz members, married Hassidish yeshivah students, soldiers, university students and guests gather in a bakery the size of 350 square meters. Hundreds of school aged children make hand-made Matzot, such as their fathers perhaps had never done, but their great-grandfathers used to do every year.
"At the opening of this Matzah baking operation, the people gathered near the well in the fields of Ein Harod to draw water for the baking, with singing and joy. Until the holiday of Pesach, different groups from the region are supposed to come to the bakery every day. When a group of people gather to bake Matzot together, it is customary to call them 'Matzot Havura'. We are waiting for the Havurot (groups) that reserved a spot here. This year, for the first time, the following Havurot will bake Kosher L'Mehadrin Matzot (all from very secular kibbutzim/moshavim): the Kibbutz Beit HaShitah Havura, the Beit Alpha Havura, the Geva Havura and the Nahalal Havura.
"They say that the purpose of Pesach is to turn history into a biography. This is what we do here."
