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TIME TO EAT !!

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ספירת העומר : Counting of the Omer begins on the second day of Pesach as spiritual preparation and anticipation for the giving of the Torah on Shavuot. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord. Leviticus 23:16 בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל סְפִירַת הָעֹמֶר Blessed are you, God, ruler of the universe, who makes us holy with your good rules...

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כֹּל עוֹד בַּלֵּבָב פְּנִימָה נֶפֶשׁ יְהוּדִי הוֹמִיָּה, וּלְפַאֲתֵי מִזְרָח, קָדִימָה, עַיִן לְצִיּוֹן צוֹפִיָּה, עוֹד לֹא אָבְדָה תִּקְוָתֵנוּ, הַתִּקְוָה בַּת שְׁנוֹת אַלְפַּיִם, לִהְיוֹת עַם חָפְשִׁי בְּאַרְצֵנוּ, אֶרֶץ צִיּוֹן וִירוּשָׁלַיִם.   As long as in the heart within, The Jewish soul yearns, And toward the eastern edges, onward, An eye gazes toward Zion. Our hope is not yet lost, The hope that is two-thousand years old, To be a free nation in our land, The Land of Zion, Jerusalem. - lyrics Naphtali Herz Imber,...

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Holding up the three matzot from the Seder plate is a reminder that there was no time for yeast in bread-dough to rise - the Israelites did not have time to prepare. Exodus 12:39 Together all are welcome to celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread - now and for generations to come - because it was on this very day that God brought you and I out of the Narrow Places. Exodus 12:17 This year here; next year hopefully in Jerusalem....

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Remembering the bitterness of the story, we eat bitter herbs: Blessed are you, God, who makes us holy with your good rules, including the eating of bitter herbs. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מָרוֹר

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Washing at this point raises the question: why now?  Is it because slaves had no time to do it? Is it in gratitude for clean water? Rabbi Elazar said that Rav Oshaya said: Anything that is dipped in a liquid before it is eaten requires the ritual of washing of hands, preventing people from making food ritually impure. Talmud Pesachim 115b Wash this time without a blessing. Shulchan Aruch 158:4  Pour cup of water over one hand three times then the...

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REMEMBER THIS DAY, when you went out of the Narrow Places, out of the house of bondage, for with a mighty hand, God took you out of here. Exodus 13:3. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. Psalms 119:45. We shall live at last as free men on our own soil. Theodore Herzl Freedom often improves with order; thus the Seder: table-setting, candle-lighting, sacred-making, hand-washing, vegetable-dipping, Matzoh-breaking, question-asking, story-retelling, hand-washing again, motzi/matzoh/maror/Hillel-sandwich-making, EATING!, afikomen-finding, grace-reciting,...

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THIS IS AN OBLIGATION: ​To tell this history to others To explain the chain of events from our descent into the Narrow Places to God's redemption of you and I and To clarify the reasons for these good rules

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It Would Have Been Enough For Us If God only brought us out of the Narrow Places but did not make judgement on our oppressors. . . If God only made judgement on our oppressors but did not make judgement on their gods . . . If God only made judgement on their gods but did not strike down their first-born . . . If God only struck down their first-born but did not give us their wealth. . . If...

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חַד גַּדְיָא, חַד גַּדְיָא One little goat, one little goat: Which my father brought for two zuzim. Then came the cat who ate the goat Then came the dog who bit the cat Then came the stick that beat the dog Then came the fire that burned the stick Then came the water that quenched the fire Then came the ox who drank the water Then came the butcher who killed the ox Then came the angel of death who slew...

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Give thanks to God, who is good. Give thanks to the God of gods. Give thanks to the one who alone does great wonders, who made the heavens, who spread out the earth upon the waters, who made the great lights and the sun to govern the day, the moon and stars to govern the night; who struck down the firstborn of the Narrow Places and brought Israel out from among them with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; who divided...

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I am God - and I will take you out from under the burdens...Exodus 6:6. Prepare to drink the first 3.5 to 4.5 oz cup of sweet red wine (white only if you really have to). While drinking or eating this evening, liberally leaning to the left is a reminder of royalty from ancient times. בְּרוּכָה אַתְּ יָהּ אֱלֹהֵינוּ רוּחַ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵאת פְּרִי הַגָפֶן בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמָן הַזֶּה Blessed are you, God, ruler of...

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Remembering laws, stories and customs, the Passover Seder is concluding. What a privilege and joy to celebrate  the Seder together - here and now.  !! לְשָנָה הַבָאָה בִירושַָלָיִם. . . לְשָנָה הַבָאָה בִירושַָלָיִם. . . לְשָנָה הַבָאָה בִירושַָלָיִם Next Year in Jerusalem! Now. . . sing!

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Time for children (of all ages) to find and eat the Afikomen - remembering to balance the serious memories of slavery with the joyfulness of freedom.

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The [Israelites] are to eat the lamb, together with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Numbers 9:11 Rabbi Hillel the Elder (who lived one generation before the 2nd Temple was destroyed by Roman Imperial General Titus) used to wrap the lamb and bitter herbs and unleavened bread together. Generations of rabbis then argued about dipping or not dipping this into charoset as well as including or leaving out the lamb. Remembering the affliction, the bitterness and the hardship, make the Hillel sandwich.

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On a plate or napkin, place: One Zeroah - roasted lamb shankbone or chicken wing or beet ( symbol of Passover sacrifice) One Beitzah - roasted, hard-boiled egg ( symbol of ancient Temple sacrifice and of spring) Three Matzot - covered (symbol of Israel, Levite and Cohen & the bread of affliction) Karpas - parsley for saltwater-dipping (symbol of slavery's tears) Maror -horseradish (symbol of slavery's bitterness) Chazeret -romaine lettuce (2nd symbol of slavery's bitterness) Charoset - made of apple, pear,...

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Remember the importance of gearing answers to the questioning-style & learning-style of questioners. WISE ONE: if asked: “What is the meaning of the laws God has commanded you?” then answer: “We were slaves of Pharaoh in the Narrow Places, but God brought us out of there with a mighty hand. Before our eyes, God sent signs and wonders—great and terrible—on Pharaoh and his whole household. But God brought us out from there to bring us in and give us the land...

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Each new generation of Israelites, since the days of Joseph and his brothers, had multiplied greatly in the Narrow Places so that the land was filled with them. A new Pharoah came to power there. “Look,” Pharoah said to his courtiers, “there are too many Israelites among us. We must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies to fight against us.” So Pharoah put slave masters over the...

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Remembering the bitterness of the story, we eat bitter herbs: Blessed are you, God, who makes us holy with your good rules, including the eating of bitter herbs. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מָרוֹר

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I am God - and I will take you out from under the burdens...Exodus 6:6. Prepare to drink the first 3.5 to 4.5 oz cup of sweet red wine (white only if you really have to). While drinking or eating this evening, liberally leaning to the left is a reminder of royalty from ancient times. בְּרוּכָה אַתְּ יָהּ אֱלֹהֵינוּ רוּחַ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵאת פְּרִי הַגָפֶן בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמָן הַזֶּה Blessed are you, God, ruler of...

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בָרוךְ אַתָה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינו מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, הַזָן אֶת הָעוֹלָם כֻלוֹ בְטובוֹ בְחֵן בְחֶסֶד ובְרַחֲמִים הוא נוֹתֵן לֶחֶם לְכָל בָשָר, כִי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדוֹ. ובְטובוֹ הַגָדוֹל תָמִיד לֹא חָסַר לָנו וְאַל יֶחְסַר לָנו מָזוֹן לְעוֹלָם וָעֶד. בַעֲבור שְמוֹ הַגָדוֹל כִי הוא אֵל זָן ומְפַרְנֵס לַכלֹ ומֵטִיב לַכלֹ ומֵכִין מָזוֹן לְכָל בְרִיוֹתָיו אֲשֶר בָרָא. בָרוךְ אַתָה יְיָ, הַזָן אֶת הַכלֹ. Sovereign God of the universe, we praise You: Your goodness sustains the world. You are the God of grace, love, and compassion, the Source...