A Church of God at Woodstock, Il and Truth On The Web Ministries presents

During Unleavened Bread we are to have no leaven or leavened products in our home (Exodus 12:15; 13:7). This is specifically to be sure that nobody eats leaven -even accidentally. This includes any agent that produces fermentation and causes dough to rise.

It was much easier in the ancient times to remove leaven as most bread was baked fresh and a single starter culture of dough was the only other leaven to put out. Today, leaven is hidden in many products and products are stored for longer periods. Food items in your house that contain leaven or have been leavened; such as: cereals, crackers, breads, cakes, pies, breaded meats and vegetables (chicken nuggets, etc.), tortillas and the like should be removed from your house and discarded. [even Matzo crackers may have leaven! READ THE LABEL!] It is best to use up your stock -- not buying any new leavened products for a couple weeks prior to Passover. If you have more leavened products than you will consume before the Feast then please think of finding a food shelter that accepts donations early on. Also check the ingredients list on products that you do buy for hidden leaven.

Although not specifically found in scripture, but noted in Jewish literature, some observers do an annual house-cleaning: vigorously removing crumbs from couches, rigs, ovens, toasters, and vacuum bags. Although no one will be tempted to eat these items and they cannot leaven new dough, many find the event spiritually edifying and more precisely in obedience to the law. Doing all this is symbolic of putting both the visible and hidden sins out of our lives and it starts, prior to the Feast of ULB, at Passover.

1 Corinthians 11:26-32 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come. Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

A believer must always be examining him/her self and discarding sin from every crevice of their heart and body. Discern what the Lord did and is doing by His sacrifice. Discern why He did it and what your willing obligation should be. Submission and Obedience to Him and His holy laws - which are just and good. Also when we examine ourselves, we do not compare ourselves with those around us. (2 Corinthians 10:12 For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.)

Instead, the holy Scriptures and the law of God are our "perfect mirror" by which to measure ourselves. (James 1:18-27 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.)

We are to discard all carnal habits and walk in the spirit. Putting on the mind of Christ (He is the Head of The Body) means conforming our thoughts, values, and character to be like His. This is being unleavened - without sin by the blood of Christ. Be ye submissive to His chastening and obedient to His law.
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Leavening Agents

As opposed to just the fermented grain leavens of biblical times, we are now faced with numerous ways our food is leavened or puffed up. Today, technically, a leaven is anything that produces bubbles in dough or batter, causing baked goods to rise.   Most breads rise because of yeast, which works by fermenting sugar, which in turn produces carbon dioxide. There are three common methods by which bread can be made to rise. These are by the presence of steam during cooking, aeration, and the production of carbon dioxide in the dough [Steam, Air (mechanical), CO2 Agents or Chemicals]. All of these methods involve incorporating and trapping gas in the substance of the bread.

  Many things can leaven breads but these can be grouped in three standard categories. Air trapped in egg foams or while creaming butter and sugar creates small pores which can expand. The air pockets that permeate a dough or batter also provide space for the accumulation of carbon dioxide gas and steam. Watch the viscosity of batter. Thick batters help trap air during beating while thin batters let air escape during beating. The longer the product sits before going in the oven, the more air is lost. Steam can also cause things to get puffed up. Water expands 1600 times when it becomes steam. Water in products becomes steam when heated. Low temperatures (<400 C) reduce steam's ability to to get leavening power. (Puff pastry, cream puffs, popovers use steam as their major leavening agent.) Chemical leavening occurs when an acid and an alkali interact in the presence of liquid or heat. The resulting carbon dioxide gas expands and causes the bread to rise. Chemicals may be subcategorized into ingredient lists that you can look out for during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

While most leavening is obvious, some forms and processes lead to doubtful disputations among the brethren as to "what" is "leaven" that needs to be 'put out' during Days Of Unleavened Bread (DOUB or ULB). Some argue that only leavening caused by fermented grain is to be avoided, others that steam and beaten eggs are out, some that all are forbidden. Let everyone be true to the dictates of their own conscience as led by the holy spirit of God. A simple rule of faith to apply: When in Doubt - Cast it Out! Its better to keep your conscience clear and, besides, any 'giving up' or sacrifice of what we eat for YHWH is good and pleasing in His sight and an acceptable offering.

Chemical Leavening Agents

Chemical leavening agents can be used to leaven the dough prior to packaging in much the same manner as active yeast is used. Chemical leavening agents are generally composed of an acidifier and a carbonate salt normally sodium bicarbonate. Other carbonate salts such as sodium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, potassium carbonate and ammonium carbonate are sometimes used.

• Baking Powder (an alkalai, ususally a carbonate salt, and an acidifier combined) Baking powder is generally just baking soda mixed with an acid. Traditional baking powder was composed of a mixture of tartaric acid and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), a quantity of flour usually being added to reduce the strength. When dissolved in water the acid and bicarbonate react and emit carbon dioxide gas which expands, producing bubbles to leaven the mixture. Most modern baking powders are double acting, that is, they contain two acid salts, one which reacts at room temperature, producing a rise as soon as the dough or batter is prepared, and another which reacts at a higher temperature, causing a further rise during baking. Baking powders that contain only the low-temperature acid salts are called single acting. Many recipes call for a process called creaming, where butter and sugar are beaten together to introduce tiny seed bubbles which the leavening gas will further expand. Common low-temperature acid salts include cream of tartar, calcium phosphate, and citrate. High-temperature acid salts are usually aluminium salts, such as calcium aluminium phosphate. They can be found not only in many baking powders, but also in many non-dairy coffee creamers.

• Coated anhydrous monocalcium phosphate; Dicalcium Phosphate Dihydrate; Dicalcium Phosphate (acidifiers)

• Dimagnesium Phosphate (acidifier)

• Glucona-delta-lactone (acidifier)

• Monocalcium Phosphate Monohydrate (acidifier)

• Salt of Harts-horn

• Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate (from Harts-horn) (acidifier)

• Sodium Aluminium Phosphate (SALP) (acidifier)

• Sodium Aluminum Sulfate or NaAl(SO4)2 (acidifier)

• Disodium Pyrophosphate (acidifier)

• Ammonium (Bi)Carbonate (harts-horn powder); Ammonium Carbonate or (NH4)2CO3 known as Bakers' Ammonia; Triebsalz

• Potassium Carbonate (Baking Ammonia also potash or pearlash)

• Sodium Carbonate (alkalai)

• Sodium Hydroxide (alkalai)

• Calcium Oxide (alkalai)

• Magnesium Hydroxide (alkalai)

• Potassium Bicarbonate or KHCO3 (alkalai)

• Ammonium Bicarbonate (alkalai)

• Potassium Acid Tartrate (acidifier)

• Potassium Carbonate (alkalai)

• Bicarbonate of Soda Saleratus (alkalai)

• Bicarbonate of Ammonia Sodium Aluminum Phosphate; Carbonate of Ammonia Sodium Acid Phosphate; Bread Soda Sodium Aluminum Sulfate (alkalai with acidifier)

• Sodium Bicarbonate or NaHCO3 (only if mixed with an acid such as buttermilk or cream of tartar)

• potassium bitartrate (cream of tartar) (acidifier)

• Calcium Acid Phosphate; Calcium Phosphate or Ca(H2PO4)2 (acidifier)

• Levair

• lievito di vaniglia (leaven of vanilla in Italian language which is basically baking soda, baking powder and vanilla extract)

• other commonly used acidifiers include acetic acid, citric acid, fumaric acid, adipic acid and glucona-delta lactone - these are not leaven by themselves but must be combined with a carbonate salt. If they are in a products ingredient list - then look for the carbonate as well.

Standard Leavening Agents

• yeast or microorganisms that release carbon dioxide as part of their lifecycle can be used to leaven products. Leavening with yeast is a process based on fermentation, physically changing the chemistry of the dough or batter as the yeast works. (yeast extracts are okay - they are not the whole yeast organism and cannot leaven. They are the proteins derived from inactivated (killed) yeast. They are used as a flavor enhancer and will be listed on labels as "yeast extract", "yeast autolysate" or "torula yeast." Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Yeast hulls, Yeast Nutrients are also non-leavening items. There are two kinds of Brewer's Yeast. One is used to make beer and its bubbles and consequently can leaven. The other is a deactivated yeast used as a nutritional supplement. The latter is okay as it has no leavening properties.)

• Barm is the resulting cast-off yeast from the beer making process which can be used as a leavener.

• Sour Dough or Starter Dough  (or, more formally, natural leaven or levain) refers to the process of leavening bread by capturing wild yeasts in a dough or batter, as opposed to using a domestic, purpose-cultured yeast such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Sourdough more specifically refers to a symbiotic culture of lactobacilli and yeasts, giving a distinctively tangy or sour taste (hence its name), due mainly to the lactic acid and acetic acid produced by the lactobacilli.

•  Salt rising (or salt risen) bread is bread in which the bacterium Clostridium perfringens is used to leaven the bread rather than yeast or baking soda. The salt used in the starter is used to suppress yeast growth and provide an environment more conducive to the C. perfringens bacterium. Salt Rising Bread is an artisan bread made from wheat flour with a starter consisting of a liquid (water or milk), either corn, potatoes, or wheat, and some other minor ingredients. The starter distinguishes itself from a sourdough starter by working best with an incubation period of 6-16 hours at temperatures ranging from 38-45� C (98-113� F); a sourdough starter will usually work best at or below room temperature.

• baking powder  ( three types of BP: phosphate, anhydrous phosphate, and sodium aluminum sulfate phosphate [household])

• baking soda  (only a leaven if used with an acid like : sour milk or buttermilk, molasses, brown sugar, honey, corn syrup, maple syrup, lemon juice, and vinegar, other acidic fruit juice or cream of tartar or tartic acid) may also be called "saleratus"

• potash or pearlash  (potassium carbonate, pottasche, pottasch, saleratus, pearl ash) a by-product of burned wood ash.

• beaten egg whites or beaten whole eggs  (beating them traps air to facilitate leavening - un-beaten or carefully blended eggs will not leaven)

• sourdough  (left over leavened dough from previous batch)

• harts-horn powder  (ammonium carbonate, carbonate of ammonia, baking ammonia, bicarbonate of ammonia, ammonium bicarbonate, powdered baking ammonia, triebsalz, hartshorn, salt of hartshorn, hirschhornsalz, hjorthornssalt)

• Carbonated Beverages such as soda-pop or beer will leaven a baked product. A 7-Up in a cake used rather than baking powder will result in a light, soft texture, due to carbon dioxide - it is a leavening agent unless all the air/gas is depleted (flat). Although these are not leaven themselves they will leaven baked goods if used in the cooking process. [The command is to put out leaven AND also not to eat anything that is leavened. This can be a contention for some - let each be ruled by the spirit and conscience.] Beer is made with yeast. It is commonly used in the batter for deep-fat fried foods, and sometimes used in baked goods.

•  Kefir is a fermented milk drink originating in the Caucasus - it is similar to drinkable yogurt in taste and consistency except a bit more sour and a little yeasty. It is traditionally fermented using kefir grains, a symbiotic culture of yeasts and bacteria passed down from generation to generation. Kefir can be used as a leavening agent when baking bread, because it contains active yeasts and bacteria. It can be used directly in a recipe, by replacing the yeast and half the water with kefir. Recipes that specify buttermilk or yogurt can be made just as well (or better!) with kefir.

• Buttermilk  or cultured skim milk, is indispensable to the baker.  It is a fermented acidic product used to give added tang to baked goods and as a leavening agent to make products rise more.  Buttermilk is acidic and it reacts with baking soda, an alkaline, to create carbon dioxide bubbles in the batter and hence makes the batter lighter. It is not leaven stand alone to our understanding.

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How to Observe ULB for Unequally Yoked Couples
Being unequally yoked can pose its own unique set of problematic issues. Familiar dilemma: Scenario A: God has placed the husband as the head of the household and yet the unbelieving husband persecutes the wife for observing the feasts. What do you do?  ... Scenario B:  A wife creates havoc over her husband throwing away the leavened bread in the house "forcing" her to partake in his "weird" religion ... but God says to keep the Feasts. What do you do?

It is truly a divisive matter in a home. Jesus said He came to bring a sword to a family but that does not give us reign to treat others poorly or lord our beliefs over another. God has called you both to PEACE.

Above all, you must always reflect the Father's light of Love. Be a good and loving spouse. Tell your spouse that you are sorry for the way you have handled this disagreement in the past. Tell him/her these indeed are your convictions and that you want to obey God, love your husband/wife and keep (or establish) harmony in the home ... and maybe even ask him/her for his help in obtaining this.

Husbands with unbelieving wives: Remember that you cannot force submission of your wife - true submission is a willing act not a coerced one. Be kind, loving and gentle but lead your family with courage in the ways of the Lord. If you provide sound leadership of your family every day and all year then your holydays will have less distractions due to disunity.

Wives with unbelieving husbands -Maybe the answer could be for you to designate a room or 'set up a tabernacle' (tent) which you make YOUR dwelling for the Feast of ULB. In this place YOU would have the 'headship' as far as keeping it de-leavened but outside you are not responsible for but the 'Head' is ... of that which is your husband. That way your dwelling is clear of leaven and you do not force the truth down your family's throats. You honor God. You honor your husband. And teach your children a valuable lesson in how to truly be a Christian.

1 Corinthians 7:12-16  But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away. And the woman which hath an husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the [believing] wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the [believing] husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy. But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace.  For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife?
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Bread From Heaven

Jesus/Yeshua is the ultimate fulfillment of sweet unleavened bread (matzoh) because He is sinless, is received freely to him who gathers and He provides and sustains life.  The "Bread of Life" is the Word of God.  Jesus Christ is the Word of God made flesh (John 1:14), and whosoever believes in Him will have eternal life (John 3:15-16; John 5:24; Acts 10:43; Romans 3:26;  1John 5:10; ). We spiritually partake of the Word (both scripture and Christ as The Word) as our daily bread. Here are some scriptures about that Bread from Heaven:

 John 6:31-35 Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

John 6:47-58 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

Luke 22:19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.

1 Corinthians 10:16-17 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

Be Holy -- as He is Holy

1 John 3:4-7 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.

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ULB Recipes

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Unleavened Humor

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"BE YE UNLEAVENED"

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Love to you all in Christ Jesus ~ Kenneth M. Hoeck

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