Our Seder Obligation

Rabbi Gamliel (grandson of Hillel) would say: "Those who have not explained three things during the seder have not fulfilled their obligation. These are matzah (unleavened bread), maror (bitter herbs) and the pesah (paschal lamb) offering.

The Seder Plate

Shank Bone: Signifies the paschal lamb which the Israelites sacrified to mark the doorposts of their homes with blood. This was the sign for the Angel of Death to pass over their houses during the tenth plague.

Maror - Bitter Herb (horseradish): is to remind us of the time of our slavery.  We force ourselves to taste pain so that we may more readily value pleasure.

Baytsah - Egg: is the egg of life. Baytsah symbolizes the fragility and interdependence of life.

Charoset is a mixture of fruits, nuts and wine that symbolizes the clay and mortar the Israelites used to make bricks for Pharoah’s cities of Pithom and Ramses. It is sweet to show that in the bitter time of slavery the Israelites hoped for the sweetness of freedom.

Orange: You will not find an orange included in any ancient Haggadah. It is a newer tradition. It serves as a statement of inclusivity.

Matzah: The symbol of affliction and freedom. When Moses and the Israelites fled Egypt, they moved so quickly that the bread did not have time to rise.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, הַמּוֹצִיא לֶֽחֶם מִן הָאָֽרֶץ

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, hamotzi lechem min ha-aretz.

We praise God, whose presence fills the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתַָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מַצָּה

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al achilat matzah.

We praise God, whose presence fills the universe, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to eat matzah.


haggadah Section: Motzi-Matzah