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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. 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.These are the ten plagues which God brought down on the Egyptians:דָּם Blood | dam |צְפַרְדֵּֽעַ Frogs...

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The cup of Elijah holds wine; the cup of Miriam holds water. Wine is more precious until you have no water. Water that flows in our veins water that is the stuff of life for we are made of breath and water, vision and fact. Elijah is the extraordinary; Miriam brings the daily wonders: the joy of a fresh morning like a newly prepared table, a white linen cloth on which nothing has yet spilled. The descent into the heavy waters...

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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. 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.Anyone who wishes to is welcome to wash their hands.בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו, וְצִוָּנוּ  ...

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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...

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Lift the plate with the three matzot and raise the middle matzah for all to see. Then break the middle matzah in two and set aside the larger piece as the afikoman, because more is hidden than is revealed. Even before we speak about the matzah, we break it. Why do we begin our seder by breaking the matzah? Our Rabbis teach that Israel was redeemed from Egypt because of these merits: our ancestors did not change their names; our ancestors...

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 The Torah says we are to speak these words before God and say, “My father was a wandering Aramean. He went down into Egypt and sojourned there. With few in number, he became there a great and populous nation. The Egyptians dealt harshly with us and afflicted us and imposed hard labor upon us. And we cried out to the Lord, the God of our fathers and God heard our cry and saw our affliction and our oppression. He brought us...

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Along with the cup for the Prophet Elijah, we have on our table a cup for the Prophetess Miriam, who helped lead the Israelites out of Egypt, and provided them with life-sustaining water during their wandering in the desert. Even after her death, the Israelites were sustained by the fresh waters of Miriam's Well. Zot Kos Miryam, kos mayim hayim. Zeikher l'yitziat Mitztrayim. This is the Cup of Miriam, the cup of living waters. Let us remember the Exodus from Egypt....

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The olive branch is a universal symbol of peace, associated with the dove in the story of Noah's Ark and the Flood. Olive trees mature slowly, so only when there was an extended time of peace, with agriculture left undisturbed, could the olive tree produce its fruit. In 2008, Jewish Voice for Peace promoted putting an olive on the seder plate as part of its Trees of Reconciliation project, which sought to donate 3,000 olive saplings to Palestinian farmers to replant...

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It’s time to drink the second cup of wine .....ברוך אתה ה' א‑לוהינו מלך העולם, בורא פרי הגפן. Barukh atah Adonai Eloheinu Melekh ha'olam, bo're p'ri ha'gafen. "Blessed are You, LORD, our God, King of the universe, Who creates the fruit of the vine." Amen.

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Kiddush (the blessing over wine) | kadeish | קַדֵּשׁAll celebrations have wine/grape juice as a symbol of joy. The seder starts with wine/grape juice and then we refill the cup three times and drink.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.We praise G!d, who chose us from all people and languages, and blessed us with commandment, and gave us our...

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The first words in the creation of the universe out of the unformed, void and dark earth were God’s “Let there be light." Therein lies the hope and faith of Judaism and the obligation of our people: to make the light of justice, compassion, and knowledge penetrate the darkness of our time. One person lights the candles and says: ברוך אתה יי אלהינו מלך העולם אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו להדליק נר של יום טובBaruch atah Adonai Elohaynu melech ha-olam, asher kideshanu...

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"Instructions for living a life:Pay attention.Be astonished. Tell about it.”

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הא לחמא עניא- Ha Lachma AnyaMagid starts with Ha Lachma Anya. We invite anyone to come join us at our seder. Ha Lachma Anya is not said in Hebrew, like the rest of the Hagada. It is in Aramaic. Why is it in Aramaic?                 1. One answer is that at the time, most people spoke Aramaic. We want to invite anyone who wants to come, and if the people do not understand, our invitation is pointless.                                                                                                    2. Another answer is that...

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מַה נִּשְׁתַּנָּה הַלַּֽיְלָה הַזֶּה מִכָּל הַלֵּילותMa 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...

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Passover combines the celebration of an event from Jewish memory with a recognition of 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, in this case parsely, to represent our joy at the dawning of spring after our long, cold winter. Whatever symbol of spring and...

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חַד גַּדְיָא,חַד גַּדְיָא  דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא בִּתְרֵי זוּזֵי, חַד גַּדְיָא,חַד גַּדְיָא.  וְאָתָא שׁוּנְרָא וְאַָכְלָה לְגַדְיָא, דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא בִּתְרֵי זוּזֵי, חַד גַּדְיָא,חַד גַּדְיָא.  וְאָתָא כַלְבָּא וְנָשַׁךְ לְשׁוּנְרָא, דְּאַָכְלָה לְגַדְיָא, דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא בִּתְרֵי זוּזֵי, חַד גַּדְיָא,חַד גַּדְיָא.  וְאָתָא חוּטְרָא והִכָּה לְכַלְבָּא, דְּנָשַׁךְ לְשׁוּנְרָא, דְּאַָכְלָה לְגַדְיָא, דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא בִּתְרֵי זוּזֵי, חַד גַּדְיָא,חַד גַּדְיָא.  וְאָתָא נוּרָא וְשָׂרַף לְחוּטְרָא, דְּהִכָּה לְכַלְבָּא, דְּנָשַׁךְ לְשׁוּנְרָא, דְּאַָכְלָה לְגַדְיָא, דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא בִּתְרֵי זוּזֵי, חַד גַּדְיָא, חַד גַּדְיָא.  וְאָתָא מַיָא וְכָבָה לְנוּרָא, דְּשָׂרַף לְחוּטְרָא, דְּהִכָּה לְכַלְבָּא, דְּנָשַׁךְ לְשׁוּנְרָא, דְּאַָכְלָה לְגַדְיָא, דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא...

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Why are these questions asked and never directly answered in the Haggadah? To this question there are more than four answers:1. Questioning is a sign of freedom, proof that we are free to investigate, to analyze, to satisfy our intellectual curiosity.2. The simplest question can have many answers, sometimes complex and contradictory ones, even as life itself is fraught with complexity and contradictions. To see everything as good or bad,  matzah or  maror, is to be enslaved to simplicity.3. The Haggadah...

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Along with the cup for the Prophet Elijah, we have on our table a cup for the Prophetess Miriam, who helped lead the Israelites out of Egypt, and provided them with life-sustaining water during their wandering in the desert. Even after her death, the Israelites were sustained by the fresh waters of Miriam's Well. Zot Kos Miryam, kos mayim hayim. Zeikher l'yitziat Mitztrayim. This is the Cup of Miriam, the cup of living waters. Let us remember the Exodus from Egypt....

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The olive branch is a universal symbol of peace, associated with the dove in the story of Noah's Ark and the Flood. Olive trees mature slowly, so only when there was an extended time of peace, with agriculture left undisturbed, could the olive tree produce its fruit. In 2008, Jewish Voice for Peace promoted putting an olive on the seder plate as part of its Trees of Reconciliation project, which sought to donate 3,000 olive saplings to Palestinian farmers to replant...