3 symbols

We have now told the story of Passover…but wait! We’re not quite done. There are still some symbols on our seder plate we haven’t talked about yet. Rabban Gamliel would say that whoever didn’t explain the shank bone (sacrificial lamp), matzah, and maror hasn’t done Passover justice.  

The shank bone represents the Pesach, the special lamb sacrifice made in the days of the Temple for the Passover holiday. It is called the pesach, from the Hebrew word meaning “to pass over,” because G-d passed over the houses of the Jews' ancestors in Egypt when visiting plagues upon their oppressors.

The matzah reminds us that when the Jewish people were finally free to leave Egypt, there was no time to pack or prepare. They grabbed whatever dough was made and set out on their journey, letting their dough bake into matzah as they fled.

The bitter herbs provide a visceral reminder of the bitterness of slavery, the life of hard labor experienced in Egypt.


haggadah Section: -- Cup #2 & Dayenu