Kiddush=sanctification. Wine is a symbol of the sanctity, the preciousness, and the sweetness of this moment. Held together by sacred bonds of family, friendship, peoplehood, we share this table tonight with one another and with all the generations who have come before us. Let us rise and sanctify. HOW? We drink 4 cups of wine at the Seder in celebration of our freedom( Kedem g rape juice is fine too ). We stand, recite the blessing, and enjoy the first cup. To life, l'chaim! The blessing praises God for creating the "fruit of the vine" ( which is a loose translation for Weinreb in Yiddish, according to Vilnius University scholar Dovid Katz ). We recite the blessing, not over the whole grape, but over wine — squeezed and fermented through human skill. So, too, the motzi blessing is recited not over sheaves of wheat but over bread, leavened or unleavened, ground and kneaded and prepared by human hands. The blessing is over the product cultivated through human and divine cooperation: We bless the gifts of sun, seed and soil transformed by wisdom and purpose to sustain the body and rejoice the soul.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree hagafen.We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruit of the vine.

“When I’m in social situations I always hold onto my glass. It makes me feel comfortable and secure, and I don’t have to shake hands.” - Larry David


haggadah Section: Kadesh