KIDDUSH ~Blessing over the Wine or Grape Juice NOTE: We drink four cups of wine or juice during the seder, each of which may be focused on a different intention. We have included two different ‘tracks’ for the dedication of these four cups. The first track (A) is focused on cultural healing, and the second (B) on political struggle. Consider the cup of wine which we are about to drink. Countless sets of hands played a role in bringing the wine to our seder: the entrepreneurs and farm-owners who decided to direct their energies and capital into the wine business, the workers who planted and pruned the vines, those who picked the grapes, the vintners who directed the fermentation of freshly harvested fruits into wine, the janitors who kept the winery clean and sanitary, the truck drivers and loading dock workers who transported the finished product, the clerks at the wine shops, and the servers who bring the wine to our tables tonight. (12) A) A Cup to our Ancestors: One person reads the directions for this meditation slowly aloud: Close your eyes and focus on your body breathing/being breathed. Draw to your mind your ancestors – genetic or spiritual. Imagine them in the different places they lived, the lands and seas they traveled, by choice and for their lives, in freedom and enslaved. Imagine them holding what was precious to them, imagine this gift coming down through the generations to you. Imagine the places they were broken and take a moment to feel the body of your ancestors, its stitches and its scars. (29) Thank them for the parts of your heritage you love and forgive them for the pain. Now visualize yourself as the ancestor of the generations to come. Accept their gratitude and forgiveness.(1) Everyone open your eyes and read together: We invite to the room the spirits of our ancestors. We honor you and we forgive you. Thank you for bringing us to this moment. May our lives contribute to the healing of all of our peoples, and all of the worlds. Say the blessing over the wine


haggadah Section: Kadesh