A Rationalist Pesach

A list of posts on matza, olives and more

Here’s a catalogue of my Pesach posts over the years. First, the non-kezayis ones:

Seder Historical Realities versus Seder Traditions - A discussion of how several controversies relate to the same basic issue.

Why do we eat Matza on Pesach? - It’s not what you think.

My Big Fat Greek Pesach - When Israelis go to a Chutz L’Aretz program.

The Haggadah You Have to Have - A review of the Koren Graphic Novel Haggadah.

Bentleys, Matzas, and the Chumra Machine - Which is better, machine or hand-made?

Now, the kezayis ones! My monograph on the kezayis is no longer available online, but you can read it in my book Rationalism vs. Mysticism, which you can purchase at this link. Here is a list of posts relating to this topic:

Matzah/Maror Chart for Rationalists - so that you, too, can have a chart!

The Popularity of Olives - exploring why this paper is so popular and yet hated by some.

Why On Earth Would One Eat A Kezayis?  - discussing the strange notion that one should aim to eat a kezayis of matzah on Seder night.

The Riddle of the Giant Kezayis Defense - wondering why many people would not accept that a kezayis is the size of an olive.

Zayit Ra'anan, by a Sefardic Torah scholar, which you can download at this link. I haven't had time to study it properly, but the numerous haskamot alone are fascinating in their diversity. Some of the rabbanim are greatly unnerved, some admit that the arguments seem compelling but are afraid to say that anyone other than "the Gedolim" can decide these things, and others forthrightly state that it is obviously true that a kezayit is the size of a contemporary olive.

Maniacal Dishonesty About Olives - exposing an error-ridden critique that appeared in the charedi polemical journal Dialogue.

It's Krazy Kezayis Time! - discussing the view that one should eat a huge amount of matzah in a very short time in order to fulfill all opinions.

The Kezayis Revolution - announcing the fabulous sefer by Rabbi Hadar Margolin, which presents the same arguments that I brought but in a more yeshivish manner. He also brings an astonishing array of evidence that many recent charedi gedolim likewise held that a kezayis is very small, including even the Chazon Ish! Best of all, the entire sefer can be freely downloaded.

Monsters & Matzos - a great riddle: what is the connection between the relatively rare findings of ancient whale bones on the coast of Israel, and the large size of matza that many people eat on Seder night?

Meanwhile, the Biblical Museum of Natural History is open for tours before and during Pesach. We expect most tours on Pesach to sell out, so book your tour now! Visit www.BiblicalNaturalHistory.org for more details.