What's up Jews?!

A heartfelt welcome to everyone for joining us today to share in our Passover seder.  The purpose of the Passover seder is to remember our deliverance from slavery in Egypt.  At the same time, it's a great opportunity to pause and recognize all that we have and we're blessed with.

We're bummed that some of our family can't be here with us today; we're sad that some of our family is no longer with us to celebrate; and we're blessed with Bernie and Phoebe here adding some credence to the affair. At the same time, we welcome Jonny to his first seder (although, it may be pushing it a bit to ask him to recite the four questions).

Congrats to the three lovely couples who will soon be celebrating the "official" start of their lives together:

- Malorie & Jessica
- Laura & Cory
- Monica & Danny

And last, but certainly not least, a huge shout out to Ellen who put this all together.

On with the show...

The seder officially begins with a physical act: lighting the candles.  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.  Lighting the candles is an important part of our Passover celebration because their flickering light reminds us of the importance of keeping the fragile flame of freedom alive in the world.

Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu melech ha'olam asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav, v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner shel Yom Tov.

Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the Universe, who has sanctified us with laws and commanded us to light the festival lights.

As we light the festival candles, we acknowledge that as they brighten our Passover table, good thoughts, good words, and good deeds brighten our days.

"We were slaves"

Passover is a time of understanding struggle, freedom, and inclusion.

Jews are a people of memory and action. On Passover, we use stories and rituals to remember and retell the narrative of these three themes: struggle, freedom, and inclusion. In Hebrew, Egypt is called Mitzrayim, which means "a narrow place". Every year, the Haggadah asks us not only to share the story of the Exoducs, but challenges us to actively engage in the process of understanding our own struggles. We are encouraged to connect the story of Exodus to communal and individual struggles for liberation, and are reminded that the fight for freedom is ongoing. 

On seder night, there are two moments where we metaphorically open our doors and invite others in. First, at the beginning when we say, “All who are hungry come and eat.” We were once slaves, poor and hungry, and we remember our redemption by sharing what we have with others.

Second, at the end of the seder, we have the custom of pouring a fifth cup of wine, which we claim is for Elijah the Prophet. This is a statement of trust, that although we are a free people, our redemption is not yet complete, and we trust that it will come one day.

The message is clear: everyone is welcome and everyone is necessary. Why is it that we go out of our way to include all at our seder table? When we make room for others, we have the opportunity to make room for ourselves as well. The Mishnah (Pesahim 10:5) teaches us that:

בכל דור ודור חייב אדם לראות את עצמו כאילו הוא יצא ממצרים

"In every generation a person is obligated to see themselves as if they left Egypt"

The seder presents us with the obligation of identifying with the generation that left Egypt and internalizing that experience. We come to feel the redemption as if it was our own as well to - לראות את עצמו. 

From the time I was very little, Passover was always my very favorite holiday.

It was a holiday that required much preparation and that started weeks before. Our house was cleaned completely and lots of foods that could not be eaten on Passover were used up.  Our Passover food order would be bought and carefully stored until the right moment.  The kitchen especially was made ready for Passover with the stove, refrigerator and all else was scrubbed and when that was done all the Passover dishes that had been stored all year would be taken down and all others put away.

I, too, was scrubbed and always wore a new outfit for our seder.  Those were the days when our parents were quite poor and a new outfit was a great luxury.

Then came the big night of the seder.  It was always held in my Grandma and Grandpa’s house. They lived in three small rooms and somehow there was always room for tables to be setup for all our large family, of course we were crowded but no one seemed to mind.

My Grandpa, who I have now been told was a Rabbi, led the service.  All in Hebrew, of course.  We children had a vague idea of the meaning, but had to sit for what seemed to be hours while the men chanted the entire Haggadah. My Grandpa wore a beautiful white robe and a high yarmulke. He reclined on a pillow as is the custom and to me he was a figure that was much loved and respected.

I, as the youngest, generally asked the four questions and was really proud to have that honor.

Finally, the prayers were finished and it was time for dinner.  How my Grandma and Aunts managed in that tiny kitchen I’ll never know, but out came lots of good food.  My favorite being the potato pancakes.  It seems hard to imagine, but all the food had to be prepared as there were no jars of gefilte fish or packaged cakes.  I believe that they were cooking and preparing days in advance.  No dishwashers either. How lucky we are now!

My youngest Uncle, Eddie, always bought daffodils for the table.  That was very impressive as in those days flowers were something that you only had on special occasions.  To this day, I have a special feeling when Spring comes and I see daffodils.

I was so very fortunate to have such a large and loving family and to experience such meaningful times as a little girl.

As the years passed and my Grandparents were not with us, my mother took over the preparation for the Passover holiday and the seder.  I later had the pleasure of making seders in our house.

A memorable seder was the first Passover that we spent in California.  We were away from family, but had my good friend from NY come to be with us and several friends that we had met in San Diego.

Now we have th joy of spending Passover at our children’s homes.  The beauty of Passover has always stayed with me and I pray that my children and grandchildren will feel the same as I do.

March 2002

Grandma Pearl

All Jewish celebrations, from holidays to weddings, include wine as a symbol of our joy (and a way to increase joy). The seder starts with wine and then gives us three more opportunities to refill our cup and drink.

The blessing praises every component for creating the "fruit of the vine." We recite the blessing, not over the singular grape, but over every process of creating wine — squeezed and fermented through human skill. We bless the gifts of sun, seed and soil transformed by wisdom and purpose to sustain the body and rejoice the soul. We even bless the gifts of the hangover that will ensue tomorrow.

The Hebrew word “Kiddush” means sanctification. The wine is a symbol of sanctity, preciousness, and the sweetness of this moment. We share this table tonight with one another and with all the generations who have come before us. Let us rise, and sanctify this singular moment.

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.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם,
שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam,
she-hechiyanu v’key’manu v’higiyanu lazman hazeh.

Praised are You, Lord, our God, Whose presence fills the universe, who has given us the gifts of life and strength and enabled us to reach this moment of joy.

Drink the first glass of wine!

The Cup of Elijah

The extra cup of wine on the table is the Cup of Elijah. There is a story that Elijah, a great teacher who lived long ago, said that he would return in each generation disguised as someone poor or oppressed and come to people's door to see how he would be treated. For that reason, we open the door and invite Elijah to come in to our lives. This is a symbolic invitation to learn from everyone we meet. Every person has something to teach us.

אֵלִיָּֽהוּ הַנָּבִיא, אֵלִיָּֽהוּ הַתִּשְׁבִּי,

אֵלִיָּֽהוּ, אֵלִיָּֽהוּ,אֵלִיָּֽהוּ הַגִּלְעָדִי.

בִּמְהֵרָה בְיָמֵֽנוּ יָבוֹא אֵלֵֽינוּ

עִם מָשִֽׁיחַ בֶּן דָּוִד,

עִם מָשִֽׁיחַ בֶּן דָּוִד.

Eliyahu hanavi Eliyahu hatishbi Eliyahu, Eliyahu, Eliyahu hagiladi Bimheirah b’yameinu, yavo eileinu Im mashiach ben-David, Im mashiach ben-David

Elijah the prophet, the returning, the man of Gilad: return to us speedily, in our days with the messiah, son of David.

Reflect: What shmutz in your life would you like to be rid of?

Water is refreshing, cleansing, and clear. As a symbol of purification, we will wash our hands twice during our seder: now, with no blessing, to get us ready for the rituals to come; and then again later and then we’ll wash again with a blessing to prepare us for the meal.

To wash your hands, pour water on each of your hands three times, alternating between your hands.

Now let's wash our hands...

Tonight we recognize the cycles of nature. As we remember the liberation from Egypt, we also recognize the stirrings of spring and rebirth happening in the world around us. The symbols on our table bring together elements of both kinds of celebration.

We now take a vegetable, representing our joy at the dawning of spring after our long, cold winter. Reciting blessings over our food is a chance to slow down and connect to the source of our nourishment. Close your eyes and imagine the trip this little veggie made from the ground to the store to your plate. 

Before we eat it, 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 God, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruits of the earth.

We look forward to spring and the reawakening of flowers and greenery. They haven’t been lost, just buried beneath the snow, getting ready for reappearance just when we most needed them.

Now dip the vegetable into salt water and eat. 

-

Reflect: We all have aspects of ourselves that sometimes get buried under the stresses of our busy lives. What has this winter taught us? What elements of our own lives do we hope to revive this spring?

As we go through the seder, the matzah will be transformed. It will cease to be the bread of affliction and it will become the bread of hope, courage, trust and possibility.

Each person is invited to hold a piece of matzah, to feel its weight, color, shape and texture.

Resting the matzah on our open palms, we remember that the Passover story teaches that oppression and suffering result from fear and the unwillingness to open one’s heart to the pain and the experiences of others.

It was fear that brought about the enslavement of the Israelites and it was the hardening of the heart that kept the Israelites, the Egyptians and the Pharaoh in bondage. From fear and a hardened heart came violence, anguish and grief.

There are three pieces of matzah stacked on the table. In silence, aperson in the middle of the table will now break the middle matzah - the bigger half magically becomes the afikoman, the envy of all the other marzah shards in the house.

The host will wrap up the larger of the pieces and, at some point between now and the end of dinner, hide it. This piece is called the afikomen, literally “dessert” in Greek. After dinner, the children will have to hunt for the afikomen in order to wrap up the meal… and win a prize.

*Break the middle matzah*

Reader:

Every time we are able to act with compassion rather than anger, we stop the flow of violence.

And each moment we find the strength and courage to see ourselves in each other, we open possibilities for healing and peace.

This is the bread that we bless and share.

All:

May all who are hungry come and eat.

May all who are in need join together in this Festival of Freedom.

Pour the second glass of wine for everyone.

Jason, as a small child, returned home from Hebrew school and his father, Rob asked, "what did you learn today?"

Jason answered, "The Rabbi told us how Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt"

Rob asked, "How did he?"

Jason replied, "Moses was a big strong man, way stronger than Uncle Danny and Uncle Stu obviously, and he beat up the Pharaoh. Then while he was down, Moses got all of the people together to run towards the sea. When they got there, all the engineers (led by one name Eton) built a huge robotic carbon-fiber pontoon bridge. Once they got to the other side, Moses shouted "WHAT'S UP JEWS?!?!", then blew up the bridge while the Egyptians were trying to cross."

Rob was shocked, "Is that what the Rabbi taught you?!"

Jason replied, "No. But you'd never believe the story he DID tell us!"

Asking questions is a core tradition in Jewish life. The youngest child (in this case Elliot, since Jonny isn't quite up to public speaking yet) shall now stand and embarrassingly sing each question:

מַה נִּשְׁתַּנָּה הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה מִכָּל הַלֵּילות

Ma nishtana halaila hazeh mikol haleilot?

All: 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.

All: 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.

All: 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.

All: 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.

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

We now think about the story from all angles. Our tradition speaks of four different types of children react differently to the Passover seder. It is our job to make our story accessible to all the members of our community, so we think about how we might best reach each type of child:

The wise child asks,   What are the testimonies and laws which God commanded you?

We should read this child the entire book of Exodus, reciting every single statute and law, such as "Do not cook a young goat in its mother's milk". When we are finally done, everybody will be tired, and getting ready to drive back to the South Bay. 

The wicked child asks,   So it is okay to cook an older goat in its mother's milk? What good have all your pious prayers done you?! To hell with your ritual, and to hell with you!"

The wicked child stays far removed from suffering, and thus has lost the essence of the teachings. You might ask this child: “If you had been in Egypt, would you have been redeemed?" Then give the child a very fatty slice of brisket. 

The simple child asks,   What is this?

To this child, answer plainly: “With a strong hand God took us out of Egypt, where we were slaves.” Then the simple child might then say, "No, I meant what is this crawling on the Seder plate?". This is an opportunity to have a group discussion about the importance of thoroughly washing the shank bone.

What about the child who doesn’t know how to ask a question?

We explain to this child that the secret is to take a declarative sentence, then simply reverse the order of the subject and verb.

I am chopped liver.

What am I, chopped liver?

Then start telling the story:

“The story tells us that our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most fightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and favulous? Actually, who are you not to be? As we let our own light shine, we give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence liberates others."

The Passover story begins thousands of years ago in the land of Egypt, which is located in the Middle East, unfortunately. Egypt was ruled by a man called the Pharaoh, who was very powerful. Like one time he said, “I want a pyramid,” and although it took many years, a group of Egyptian workers actually built him a pyramid. When the Pharaoh saw it, he was very surprised, because what he actually wanted was some soup, which in ancient Egyptian sounds very similar to the word for pyramid. So everybody had a good laugh, and then the Pharaoh had the workers executed, because that’s how embarrassed he was.

So anyway, around this time, a nice Jewish boy named Joseph arrived in Egypt, and he came to be an advisor to the Pharaoh because he had a degree in management. He advised the Pharaoh to build storehouses to store the grain, which the Pharaoh thought was a tremendous idea, because up to that point he had been storing the grain in the bathroom, and it was disgusting. The Pharaoh was so pleased that he invited Joseph to stay in Egypt and bring his relatives to hang out also. They became known as the Israelites, and they multiplied and prospered in various fields (although generally not team sports).

Years passed, and eventually this Pharaoh died. A new Pharaoh took over, and he turned out to be a real schmuck. He was afraid that the Israelites would become too powerful, so he made them into slaves, which for the Jewish people was a pretty bad time.

Slavery totally sucked. The Pharaoh Schmuck was overly concerned with the unemployment rate. The Israelites worked from sunrise to sunset with no days off, not even Labor Day. 

The Pharaoh Schmuck was still angry. He decreed that every male baby born to an Israelite woman had to be cast into the River Nile. An Israelite couple, Amram and Yocheved, didn't want to ditch their baby so they put him into a super safe basket.

The Pharaoh's beautiful daughter was bathing in the Nile, because the Pharaoh's bathroom was disgusting. She noticed the floating baby and said, "I shall keep this baby, as apparently it does not belong to anybody!". She was not smart. Let's just say that her parents got caught in the scandal by paying for her to get into University of Egypt. 

Miriam, the baby's sister, offered to raise the baby and have Yocheved, the actual mom, be the nurse. The Pharaoh’s daughter was like, “Sure!” So, bottom line, this woman went to take a bath and came home with a baby and two new domestic employees. We can only imagine what she would have done with a credit card. She decided to name the baby Moses, which was an ancient Egyptian word meaning drawn from water.

Moses asked the Pharaoh to free the Israelites, but the Pharaoh refused. Why? Well, basically because he was a schmuck. So Moses opened a window and shouted out to G-d, "a little help here!".  G-d then brought upon the Egyptians ten plagues that got scarier and scarier with each one. Finally, after the 10th plague and immense sufferring, Pharaoh finally relented and let Moses take his people and leave Egypt . 

We fill our cups with a meh wine that we do not mind spilling to remember how happy we were when this happened. But we are not totally happy, because we are Jewish, and thus we can never be truly happy except when the Dodgers win the World Series.

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, for we are all human beings. Instead, the story teaches us that sufferring in our own lives is necessary in order to grow. We pour out a drop of wine for each of the plagues as we recite them.

Dip a finger or a spoon into your wine glass for a drop for each plague.

Blood | dam | דָּם

Frogs | tzfardeiya | צְפַרְדֵּֽעַ

Lice | kinim | כִּנִּים

Beasts | arov | עָרוֹב

Cattle disease | dever | דֶּֽבֶר

Boils | sh’chin | שְׁחִין

Hail | barad | בָּרָד

Locusts | arbeh | אַרְבֶּה

Darkness | choshech | חֹֽשֶׁךְ

Death of the Firstborn | makat b’chorot | מַכַּת בְּכוֹרוֹת

---

The Egyptians needed ten plagues because after each one they were able to come up with excuses rather than change bad behavior. Reflect on the plagues in your life? What are the plagues in our world today? What behaviors do we need to change to fix them?

Shortly after letting the Israelites leave Egypt, the Pharaoh realized he had made a terrible mistake. Sure, killer angels had just slaughtered a large percentage of his people’s children, and the streets were a disgusting stew of blood, frogs, and locusts, and it was hailing and dark, and everybody had lice and boils. But on the other hand, the Pharaoh had just lost his free labor force and the Israelites’ departure was going to do to destroy the Egyptian entertainment industry. Also, the Pharaoh was a huge fan of gefilte fish, which his Egyptian chefs couldn’t seem to get right no matter how hard he had them flogged.

So the Pharaoh sent his army to bring the Israelites back. His soldiers caught up with them on the banks of the sea.

Adonai told Moses to lift his walking stick. He raised it, and a strong east wind parted the waters of the sea, leaving space for the Israelites to cross over dry land and also pick up an array of interesting seashells that would have otherwise been inaccessible. The Egyptian army, none of whom apparently had been paying the slightest attention to anything happening in Egypt over the previous couple of weeks, decided it would be a good idea to follow them. Moses lifted his rod again, and the waters rushed back and covered the Egyptian soldiers, along with their horses and chariots.

Then Moses’s sister, Miriam, led the women in joyous dance and song, thanking Adonai for saving their lives. They tried to get Moses to dance, but he declined despite the ballroom dancing lessons he had taken when he was a prince. “You should save your strength,” Moses advised. “We still have to walk to the land of Canaan, and it is at least ninety minutes away.” He was correct, in the sense that it took longer.

The meaning of Passover comes down to a fundamental idea:

ּעֲבָדִים הָיִינוּ הָיִינו. עַתָּה בְּנֵי חוֹרִין

Avadim hayinu hayinu. Ata b’nei chorin.

We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt. Now we are free.

We sometimes find ourselves in a tight space (the hebrew word for Egypt, Mitzráyim, translates to boundaries, limits, restrictions, or narrow place). Passover is about acknowledging the sufferring, and finding a way out of the tight space. Finding freedom.

What does this mean, "It would have been enough"? Surely no one of these would indeed have been enough for us. Dayenu means to celebrate each step toward freedom as if it were enough, then to start out on the next step. It means that if we reject each step because it is not the whole liberation, we will never be able to achieve the whole liberation. It means to sing each verse as if it were the whole song—and then sing the next verse.

Had God:

Brought us out of Egypt and not divided the sea for us — Dayenu
Divided the sea and not permitted us to cross on dry land — Dayenu 
Permitted us to cross on dry land and not sustained us for forty years in the desert — Dayenu
Sustained us for forty years in the desert and not fed us with manna — Dayenu
Fed us with manna and not given us the Sabbath — Dayenu
Given us the Sabbath and not brought us to Mount Sinai — Dayenu
Brought us to Mount Sinai and not given us the Torah — Dayenu
Given us the Torah and not led us into the land of Israel — Dayenu 
Led us into the land ofIsrael and not built for us the Temple — Dayenu 
Built for us the Temple and not sent us prophets of truth — Dayenu 
Sent us prophets of truth and not made us a holy people — Dayenu 
For all these, alone and together, we say — Dayenu! 

Refrain:

da-da-yaynu;
da-da-yaynu;
da-da-yaynu;
da-da-yaynu;

Ilu hotzi, hotzi-anu,
Hotzi-anu, miMitzra'yim,
MiMitzra'yim, hotzi-anu,
Da-yay-nu. (Refrain)

Ilu natan, natan lanu,
Natan lanu, et ha-Shabat,
Et ha-Shabat, natan lanu,
Da-yay-nu. (Refrain)

Ilu natan, natan lanu,
Natan lanu, et ha-Torah,
Et ha-Tora, natan lanu,
Da-yay-nu. (Refrain)

Let's explain some symbols on the seder plate

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 you choose to pass over things in the moment for better things in the future. Sacrifice is a symbol of commitment to life and action. 

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

Egg: Symbol of spring time freshness and new life.

The promise we make for our second glass of wine is this: I will find a safe place to live and thrive. We promise to look for safety. We promise to try and find a home where we can be ourselves, where we can flower and grow, where we can become the person that we are meant to be.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן

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

We praise G-d, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruit of the vine.

Drink the second glass of wine!

As we now transition from the formal telling of the Passover story to the celebratory meal, we once again wash our hands to prepare ourselves. In Judaism, a good meal together with friends and family is itself a sacred act, so we prepare for it just as we prepared for our holiday ritual, recalling the way ancient priests once prepared for service in the Temple.

Wash Hands. 

After you have poured the water over your hands, recite this short blessing.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו, וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדָֽיִם

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al n’tilat yadayim.

We praise G-d, Ruler of Everything, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to wash our hands.

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 the meal! |  shulchan oreich  | שֻׁלְחָן עוֹרֵךְ

Enjoy! But don’t forget when you’re done we’ve got a little more seder to go, including the final two cups of wine!

Finding and eating the Afikomen |  tzafoon  | צָפוּן

The playfulness of finding the afikomen reminds us that we balance our solemn memories of slavery with a joyous celebration of freedom. As we eat the afikomen, our last taste of matzah for the evening, we are grateful for moments of silliness and happiness in our lives.

Refill everyone’s wine glass.

We now say grace after the meal, thanking all for the food we’ve eaten. On Passover, this is an extended toast to everyone who contributed to the meal, culminating with drinking our third glass of wine for the evening:

The Third Glass of Wine

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, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruit of the vine.

Drink the third glass of wine!

Gratitude opportunity: Share one aspect of tonight’s seder that you are grateful for in this moment.

Think freely. Smile often.

Tell those you love that you do.

Rediscover old friends. Make new ones.

Hope. Grow. Give. Give in.

Pick some daisies. Share them.

Keep a promise.

Laugh heartily.

Reach out. Let someone in.

Hug people. Slow down.

See a sunrise. Listen to rain. Trust life.

Enjoy. Make some mistakes. Learn from them.

Explore the unknown.

Celebrate life!

We appreciate good health and healing to all the people of the world, especially those impacted by natural tragedy and war. As we say…

לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בִּירוּשָׁלָֽיִם

L’shana haba-ah biy’rushalayim

NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!