The placement of the challah under the challah
cover and over the Shabbat tablecloth (or over
a challah cutting board) also recalls the Biblical
scene of the manna which the Israelites ate every
day following the Exodus from Egypt. When Moses
told the people about the manna, he said that
it would fall for them every day of the week.
However, in deference to the holiness of Shabbat,
the manna would not fall on that day.
Instead, two portions of manna would fall on
Friday, enough for that day and for the Shabbat
(Exodus 16:22-26). This is given as the reason
for the use of two braided loaves at Shabbat and
holiday meals, as the challahs represent the double portion of manna
that fell in honor of Shabbat.
Each morning the Israelites found the manna in
the fields, encased in two layers of dew to preserve
its freshness. Rashi describes the way the manna
was found:
Thus we see that the dew fell upon the ground
and the manna fell upon it, and then dew fell
again upon this, and so it was as though it were
carefully packed in a chest (Rashi on Exodus 16:13,
quoting Mechilta, Yoma 75b).
Thus, we place the challahs beneath a challah
cover and over a tablecloth (or challah board)
to recreate the miracle of the manna at our own
Shabbat tables.
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