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Like most religions, Judaism developed within a patriarchal society. Men recorded and interpreted religious law and wrote the traditional prayers. Miriam's Cup is a newer ritual object that is placed on the seder table beside the Cup of Elijah to represent her importance in the Passover story. Miriam's Cup is filled with water, rather than wine, and serves as a symbol of Miriam's Well, which was the source of water for the Israelites in the desert for 40 years. Filling Miriam's...

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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 now 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!” For some people, the recitation of this phrase expresses the anticipation of rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem and the return of the Messiah. For others, it is...

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“By spilling a drop of wine, from the Pesach cup for each plague, we acknowledge that our own joy is lessened and incomplete. For our redemption had to come by means of the punishment of other human beings. Even though these are just punishments for evil acts, it says ‘Do not rejoice at the fall of your enemy.’” (Proverbs 24:17)

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Traditionally, the Maggid opens with the Ma Nishtana--the Four Questions. Tonight, however, we will also ask our own questions. Let's begin, though, by reading the traditional four questions along with Don Isaac Abrabanel's responses (for a biography of Don Isaac look further down in the Haggadah). ***** 1. Why eat plain matza which is hard to digest? Poor laborers and slaves are fed matza not only because it is cheap but because it is filling and requires a long digestion period....

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Before we can enjoy our meal, we should attend the fourth question that we set out for ourselves a little earlier, namely what is the symbolic significance of matzah in the seder celebration. Let's begin with the Let's now extend our reflections on the bread of affliction by reading the following blessing over the meal and matzah: ***** בְָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, הַמּוֹצִיא לֶֽחֶם מִן הָאָֽרֶץ: Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, hamotzi lechem min ha-aretz. We praise God,...

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As if the 10 plagues just enumerated weren't bad enough, Midrashic literature suggests that some biblical passages might support the conclusion that God's wrath expressed itself according to the following possible formulas:  Rabbi Yossi, the Galilean posed the riddle this way: How do we know that the Egyptians suffered 10 plagues in Egypt and on the see they suffered 50 plagues? In Egypt what does it say? “The magicians said to Pharaoh: It is the finger of God.” (Shemot 8:15) On...

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PASSOVERTell me: how is this night different From all other nights?How, tell me, is this PassoverDifferent from other Passovers?Light the lamp, open the door wideSo the pilgrim can come in,Gentile or Jew;Under the rags perhaps the prophet is concealed.Let him enter and sit down with us;Let him listen, drink, sing and celebrate Passover;Let him consume the bread of affliction,The Paschal Lamb, sweet mortar and bitter herbs.This is the night of differencesIn which you lean your elbow on the table,Since the forbidden...

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May these candles, lit on the Festival of Freedom, bring light into our hearts and minds. May they renew our courage to act for justice and freedom here and now. May they illumine the path to truth, justice and peace. And so we repeat the ancient blessing: Bo-ruch A-toh Ado-noi E-lo-hei-nu Me-lech Ho-olom A-sher Ki-de-sho-nu Be-mitz-vo-sov Ve-tzi-vo-nu Le-had-lik Ner Shel Yom Tov. [English: Blessed are you, Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who sanctified us by commanding us to light...

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Who knows one? At some seders, people go around the table reading a question and the answers in one breath. Thirteen is hard! Who knows one? I know one. One is our God in Heaven and Earth Who knows two? I know two. Two are the tablets of the covenant One is our God in Heaven and Earth Who knows two? I know two. Three are the patriarchs Two are the tablets of the covenant One is our God in Heaven...

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The following quotations seem to us to have resonance with many of the themes of the seder. Many of these quotes are borrowed from Cokie and Steve Roberts' Our Haggadah. Others are from various other sources. If you see one you'd like to comment on, applaud, or jeer, speak up. ***** To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. —Nelson Mandela Change does not...

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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...

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An Apple Will Not Fall [Oon Apple Vil Nisht Fuln] [Note: According to Brian Klug, this is a (very) rough translation from the Yiddish (see below for the Yiddish).] Show me a peasant anywhere in the world who tries to pick an apple and he can’t – because the apple will not fall. Show me a cat anywhere in the world who tries to scratch the peasant who tries to pick an apple and he can’t – because the apple will...

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The Ma Nishtana is merely the traditional formula for four questions about the passover. For our purposes tonight, however, we would like to focus on the following four questions in a little more depth: 1) What response should the story of the ten plagues elicit from us? 2) Why do seder haggadot describe the Jews as a chosen people? 3) What does the celebration of the pesach call upon us to do? 4) What is the symbolic significance of matzah in...

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As we pour a glass of wine for Elijah and open the door for him, let us offer the following prayer together from the Maharal of Prague. HaRachaman! May the Merciful One send Elijah the prophet to announce good news about redemption and comfort--just as You promised: "Here I will send you Elijah the prophet before the Lord's great and awesome day. He will reconcile the hearts of parents to their children and children to their parents..." (Malachi 3.24)

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Despite the odd way in which Brian Klug spells some of the words in the passage below, the words are well-chosen and offer an additional perspective on the question of Jewish election. ***** "‘The people of God’: the very idea is outrageous. Not only the ultimate chutzpah, it carries a double dose of mortal danger. For a chosen people is a proud people, the envy of the nations. Pride and envy: the one begets arrogance and chauvinism, the other breeds hatred...

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As we (pretend to) wash our hands, let's pause to consider what we hope to get out of our evening together tonight. 

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The dipping of greens is reminiscent of the historic "dipping" that led Israel into exile in Egypt. The descent to Egyptian slavery began when Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery and dipped his coat of many colors into a slaughtered goat’s blood in order to mislead their father Israel about his beloved son’s true fate. The ascent from exile – moral and physical – began when every family gathered together with their neighbors to share a lamb on seder night and...

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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, for the traditions that help inform our daily lives and guide our actions and aspirations. *** 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. לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בִּירוּשָׁלָֽיִם L’shana...

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Traditionally, the Maggid opens with the Ma Nishtana--the Four Questions. Tonight, however, we will also ask our own questions. Let's begin, though, by reading the traditional four questions along with Don Isaac Abrabanel's responses (for a biography of Don Isaac look further down in the Haggadah). ***** 1. Why eat plain matza which is hard to digest? Poor laborers and slaves are fed matza not only because it is cheap but because it is filling and requires a long digestion period....