Welcome to our Passover Seder! שלום Shalom! Bienvenu!

We gather tonight to celebrate and commemorate the defining story of the Jewish people – the Exodus from Egypt and our liberation from slavery.

The Passover Seder reminds us that in every age we must all do whatever we can to help those who are enslaved by tyranny. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” So long as a people is anywhere enslaved, exploited, or oppressed, then nowhere is freedom truly secure.

This year, we face the particular challenge of a modern-day plague. With the world under quarantine, we are unable to gather together around the Passover table. Tonight truly is a night different from all other nights— a "social distance" seder.

It is easier than ever to imagine ourselves within the story of the Exodus, beset by a plague, unsure of the future. Like the Israelites, we must ask ourselves tonight: What can we learn from these trials and tribulations? How can we embrace the paradox of our lives right now—to stay strong in solidarity, working towards collective liberation like our ancestors did, even as we stay apart?

In Jewish tradition, lighting candles and saying a blessing over them marks a time of transition, from the day that is ending to the one that is beginning, from ordinary time to sacred time.

.בָּ רוּךְ אַ תָּ ה יְ יָ, אֱ לֹהֵ ינוּ מֶ לֶ ךְ הָ עוֹלָ ם, אֲ שֶׁ ר קִ דְּ שָׁ נוּ בְּ מִ צְ וֹתָ יו וְ צִ וָּ נוּ לְ הַ דְ לִ יק נֵ ר שֶׁ ל יוֹם טוֹב

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu bemitzvotav vetzivanu lehadlik ner shel yom tov.

Tonight, we will drink wine four times. Wine is a symbol of joy and happiness and we give thanks that we are able to gather together again with friends and family to observe this festival just as our ancestors have done for centuries.

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p'ri ha-gafen.

Praised be thou, O Lord Our God, King of the Universe, who has created the fruit of the vine!

All drink the first cup of wine.

This blessing is said when we do something for the first time or for the first time in a while. First, we welcome everyone who is at their first Seder. Tonight is also the first time this particular group has gathered together to celebrate Pesach. This year is also the first that our family has gathered together over internet connection, allowing us to be together even across many cities, states, and continents.

Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melech haolam, shehecheyanu, v'kiy'manu, v'higiyanu laz'man hazeh.   Blessed are You, Adonai our God, who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to this season.

As we wash our hands
We pray,
Blessed is the Soul of the Universe,
Breathing us in and breathing us out.
May our breaths continue
And our health and the health of all
Be preserved
In this time of sickness and fear of sickness.
Holy Wholeness,
We take as much responsibility for this as we can
By observing the obligation to wash our hands
Thoroughly:
For as long as it takes to say this prayer.
Amen

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה הָ׳ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדַיִם

Passover, like many of our holidays, combines the celebration of an event from our Jewish memory with recognition of the cycles of nature. We take a vegetable, representing spring, hope, and renewal, and dip it into salt water, a symbol of the tears our ancestors shed as slaves. We thus understand the experience of the Exodus: we taste hope amid tears.

Before we eat, we recite a short blessing:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָאֲדָמָה

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree ha-adama.

We praise Adonai, Spirit of Everything, who creates the fruits of the earth.

הא לחמא עניא די אכלו אבהתנא בארעא דמצרים. כל דכפין ייתי ויכל. כל דצריך ייתי ויפסח. השתא הכא. לשנה הבאה בארעא דישראל. השתא עבדי. לשנה הבאה בני חורין

Ha lachma anya di achalu avahatana b'ara d'Mitzrayim. Kal dichfin yeitei v'yeichul. Kal ditzrich yeitei v'yifsach. Hashata hacha, l'shanah haba'ah b'ara d'Yisrael. Hashata avdei. L'shana haba'ah b'nei chorin.

This is the bread of poverty and persecution that our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt. Let all who are hungry, come and eat; let all who are in need, come and share the Pesach meal. This year we are still here; next year in the land of freedom. This year we are still slave; next year free people."

We now point to each of the ritual items on the seder plate.

SHANKBONE This recalls the lamb's blood that the Israelites spread on the doors of their homes the night of the tenth plague, the killing of the Egyptian first-born son. By putting ram's blood on their doors, the Jews alerted the Angel of Death which were the Jewish homes, so that the Angel of Death could "pass over" and spare the Jewish households this plague.

MAROR (bitter herb) This recalls the bitterness of slavery.

CHAROSET This sweet salad represents the mortar used by the Hebrew slaves to make bricks.

KARPAS (greens) Karpas symbolizes the freshness of spring.

SALT WATER Salt water symbolizes the tears and sweat of enslavement.

EGG The roasted egg is a symbol in many cultures, usually signifying springtime and renewal. Here it stands in place of one of the sacrificial offerings which was performed in the days of the Second Temple.

And MATZAH may not be on the plate, but is also central to Passover. It represents the unleavened bread which was the only thing the Israelites had time to bake as they fled Egypt.

Tradition continues evolving. In recent decades, Jews have added new items to their seder plates. Some items that have recently been proposed and added to seder plates around the world include:

• ORANGE for the full inclusion of women and/or the LGBT community in Jewish life.
• BEET to replace the shankbone at a vegetarian Passover meal.
• TOMATO to represent workers' rights.
• BANANA to represent the Syrian refugee crisis. (The banana was the favored treat of Aylan Kurdi, a drowned refugee child made famous by the photo of his body washed up on a Turkish beach.)
• FAIR TRADE CHOCOLATE to represent a commitment to fighting child labor
• PADLOCK & KEY to join the movement to end mass incarceration in the United States
• OLIVE to represent our hope for peace in Israel and Palestine

What new item should we add to our seder plate tonight?

Asking questions is a core tradition in Jewish life. The tradition that the youngest person asks the four questions reflects the centrality of involving everyone in the seder.

מַה נִּשְׁתַּנָּה הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה מִכָּל הַלֵּילות

Ma nishtana halaila hazeh mikol haleilot?

Why is this night different from all other nights?

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אָֽנוּ אוֹכלין חָמֵץ וּמַצָּה  הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה כֻּלּוֹ מצה  

Shebichol haleilot anu ochlin chameitz u-matzah. Halaila hazeh kulo matzah.

On all other nights we eat both leavened bread and matzah.
Tonight we only eat matzah.

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אָֽנוּ אוֹכְלִין שְׁאָר יְרָקוֹת הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה מָרוֹר

Shebichol haleilot anu ochlin shi’ar yirakot haleila hazeh maror.

On all other nights we eat all kinds of vegetables,
but tonight we eat bitter herbs.

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אֵין אָֽנוּ מַטְבִּילִין אֲפִילוּ פַּֽעַם אחָת  הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה שְׁתֵּי פְעמים

Shebichol haleilot ain anu matbilin afilu pa-am echat. Halaila hazeh shtei fi-amim.

On all other nights we aren’t expected to dip our vegetables one time.
Tonight we do it twice.

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אָֽנוּ אוֹכְלִין בֵּין יוֹשְׁבִין וּבֵין מְסֻבִּין.  :הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה כֻּלָּֽנוּ מְסֻבין

Shebichol haleilot anu ochlin bein yoshvin uvein m’subin. Halaila hazeh kulanu m’subin.

On all other nights we eat either sitting normally or reclining.
Tonight we recline.

Let us now tell the story of the Exodus from Egypt.

According to the Torah, there was a great famine in Canaan, so Jacob sent his sons to Egypt. They were few in number, but they stayed in Egypt and became a large population. The Egyptians came to fear this large contingent of foreigners living amongst them, and instituted laws to restrict their movements. In time, they were forced into slavery. The Israelites were compelled to do hard labor for the Egyptians, making bricks and mortar for their cities and pyramids.

The Israelites cried out to God for freedom, and God chose Moses to go to Pharaoh and ask for the Israelites to be freed.

Let My People Go

(Traditional spiritual)

When Israel was in Egypt land

Let My People go

Oppressed so hard they could not stand

Let My People go.

Go down, Moses

Way down in Egypt land

Tell old Pharaoh

To Let My People go.

The triumph of Passover is diminished by the sacrifice of many human lives. This fact is an inextricable part of our story.

The plagues that befell the Egyptians resulted from the decisions of tyrants, but the greatest suffering occurred among those who had no choice but to follow. As we rejoice at our deliverance from slavery, we acknowledge that our freedom was hard-earned. We regret that our freedom came at the cost of the Egyptians’ suffering.

We pour out a drop of wine for each of the plagues as we recite them to signify having a little less sweetness in our celebration. Our cup of joy cannot be completely filled because our freedom did not come without cost to others. As we remove these drops of wine, we remember the suffering of the Egyptians.

• BLOOD / dam
• FROGS / tzfardeiya
• LICE / kinim
• BEASTS / arov
• CATTLE DISEASE / dever
• BOILS / sh’chin
• HAIL / barad
• LOCUSTS / arbeh
• DARKNESS / choshech
• DEATH OF THE FIRSTBORN / makat b’chorot

Singing "Dayenu" is a much-loved tradition at the Passover Seder. We recognize all the things that God gave the Israelites throughout their exodus and journey in the desert, and respond with the phrase "Dayenu," meaning "it would have been enough." The traditional "Dayenu" recounts everything the Israelites were thankful for as they left Egypt.

בְּכָל־דּוֹר וָדוֹר חַיָּב אָדָם לִרְאוֹת אֶת־עַצְמוֹ, כְּאִלּוּ הוּא יָצָא מִמִּצְרָֽיִם

B’chol dor vador chayav adam lirot et-atzmo, k’ilu hu yatzav mimitzrayim.

In every generation, everyone is obligated to see themselves as though they personally left Egypt.

The seder reminds us that it was not only our ancestors whom God redeemed; God redeemed us too along with them. That’s why the Torah says “God brought us out from there in order to lead us to and give us the land promised to our ancestors.”

---

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who redeemed us and our ancestors from Egypt, enabling us to reach this night and eat matzah and bitter herbs. May we continue to reach future holidays in peace and happiness.

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.

Drink the second glass of wine!

The blessing over the meal and matzah | motzi matzah | מוֹצִיא מַצָּה

The familiar hamotzi blessing marks the formal start of the meal. Because we are using matzah instead of bread, we add a blessing celebrating this mitzvah.

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, Ruler of Everything, who brings bread from the land.

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, Ruler of Everything, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to eat matzah.

Distribute and eat the top and middle matzah for everyone to eat.

Dipping the bitter herb in sweet charoset | maror  |מָרוֹר   

  In creating a holiday about the joy of freedom, we turn the story of our bitter history into a sweet celebration. We recognize this by dipping our bitter herbs into the sweet charoset. We don’t totally eradicate the taste of the bitter with the taste of the sweet… but doesn’t the sweet mean more when it’s layered over the bitterness?

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מרוֹר

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

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to eat bitter herbs.

Eating a sandwich of matzah and bitter herb | koreich | כּוֹרֵךְ

When the Temple stood in Jerusalem, the biggest ritual of them all was eating the lamb offered as the pesach or Passover sacrifice. The great sage Hillel would put the meat in a sandwich made of matzah, along with some of the bitter herbs. While we do not make sacrifices any more – and, in fact, some Jews have a custom of purposely avoiding lamb during the seder so that it is not mistaken as a sacrifice – we honor this custom by eating a sandwich of the remaining matzah and bitter herbs. Some people will also include charoset in the sandwich to remind us that God’s kindness helped relieve the bitterness of slavery.

At this time, we eat the festive meal.

We also take this time to search for the Afikomen, the piece of matzah that was hidden earlier.

The blessing over the meal is immediately followed by another blessing over the wine:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree hagafen.

We praise God, Spirit of Everything, who creates the fruit of the vine.

As we come to the end of the seder, we drink one more glass of wine. With this final cup, we give thanks for the experience of celebrating Passover together..

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.

Drink the fourth and final glass of wine! 

Nirtzah marks the conclusion of the seder. Our bellies are full, we have had several glasses of wine, we have told stories and sung songs, and it is time for the evening to come to a close. At the end of the seder, we honor the tradition of declaring, “Next year in Jerusalem!”

We pray that God brings health and healing to Israel and all the people of the world, and that next year, we can gather together in person again. As we say…

לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בִּירוּשָׁלָֽיִם

L’shana haba-ah biy’rushalayim

NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!

Chad Gadya (One Little Goat):

(Chad gadya, chad gadya. Dizabin abah bitrei zuzei. Chad gadya, chad gadya.)

Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Which my father bought for two zuzim.  Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the cat that ate the goat.  Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the dog that bit the cat, that ate the goat.  Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the stick that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat.  Which my father bought for two zumzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the fire that burned the stick, that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat. Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the water that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat. Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the ox and drank the water, that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat. Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then came the butcher and killed the ox, that drank the water, that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat.  Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then the angel of death came and slew the butcher, who killed the ox, that drank the water, that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate that the goat. Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya.

Then the Holy One, Blessed Be He came and smote the angel of death who slew the butcher, who killed the ox, that drank the water, that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat.  Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya!