In his classic work When Bad Things Happen to Good People, Rabbi Harold Kushner wrote, “God does not cause our misfortunes. Some are caused by bad luck, some are caused by bad people, and some are simply an inevitable consequence of our being human and being mortal, living in a world of inflexible natural laws … . Because the tragedy is not God’s will, we need not feel hurt or betrayed by God when tragedy strikes. We can turn to Him for help in overcoming it, precisely because we can tell ourselves that God is as outraged by it as we are.”

Though many theologians and believers would sneer at Kushner’s words, many of us find comfort in them. Personally, I can’t blame the chaos and pain through which humanity is now passing on a deity who willingly causes suffering and chooses who will live and who will die.

There is a part of the Passover Seder which I think is particularly relevant in this regard. Yachatz (which means “divide”) is the section of the Seder when we break the middle of three Matzas in half. One half is referred to as the “bread of affliction,” representing the poor bread our ancestors ate in slavery. This half symbolizes the ills in society now and throughout the ages. The single act of breaking the matza testifies to the “brokenness” in our world with all the divisions between nations and classes and racial and religious groups. It keeps our eye on the past and on the rending of the social fabric in our own day.

But the other half of that single broken matza is wrapped in a napkin and hidden for children to find and hide from their parents. It is necessary to eat of that half called the afikomen (the Greek word for “dessert”). No seder can end without eating the afikomen so children can hold out until they get what they want for its return. It’s a joyful and often rambunctious negotiation. But all attention is focused on the children. After all, they our future. Just as the other half of that same matza, the “bread of affliction” drew our attention to the past, the afikomen focuses us completely on the future.

And on Seder night, that’s where we stand … between past and future.

Passover is a celebration of remembrance and rebirth, of recollection and renewal. During Passover we are cognizant of being the bridge between past and future. It mandates us to fully dedicate ourselves to making a difference in this world.