Four Children
The wise child asks, "Why are we gathered for a queer Seder this night?"
To them we say: "The whole Jewish people left Egypt together, all of them, queer, trans, straight, cis. But our queer and trans' voices have been absent from our history, and we would find them again. As it is written: 'Then Miriam the prophetess / took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after her in dance.' We know that our history and peoples have gone unheard. Who were these women, these femmes, these transwomen, these nonbinary revolutionaries marching forward with tambourines and writhing hips and no regrets? They are our history. This night let us celebrate together, both their liberation and our own."
The irreverent child asks, "Why do you gather here only LGBTQ tonight?"
To them we say, "This is not about exclusion. This is about carving out our own safe space- a dangerous concept for those whose privilege encourages them to demand access to our lives. Tonight is a time to focus on our histories, experience, and magic, which where we can help empower each other, and strengthen our connection to Judaism”
The assimilated child asks, "Why do we need to celebrate our Judaism in an LGBTQ context?"
To them we say, "Because we deny our history if we forget we are queer & trans. Because we insult our foremothers if we forget we are Jews. Because we rob our children and youth if we ignore who we are in favor of mainstream assimilation"
To the cis/straight child who is unable to ask because they are not here, we say,
"I don't speak because I have the power to speak; I speak because I don't have the power to remain silent" – Rabbi A.Y. Kook
Cara Levine-Brenner, with inspiration from Dancing with Miriam Haggadah: A Jewish Women's Celebration of Passover
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