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As we begin the Seder meal, we link physical delight and pleasure to our celebration of faith and freedom. Judaism calls upon us to serve God with all that we are and have. In unison we say: Enjoying the Festival Meal As we enjoy our Festival meal, we pray that joy and contentment may soon be the lot of all God’s children, in a world of peace and freedom.

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בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדַיִם Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam Asher Kidshanu Bemitzvotav Ve-Tzivanu Al Netilat Yadayim. Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who sanctifies us with commandments, and commands us to wash our hands “Mitzrayim,” Hebrew for Egypt, literally means narrow straits. Judaic commentary has always viewed Mitzrayim as more than the literal escape from slavery, more than an escape from a place of narrow straights, an...

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The traditional Haggadah preserves some customs from when the Temple was still in existence in Jerusalem. All formal dinners began with an appetizer. Karpas is the appetizer of the Passover meal. It may consist of any green vegetable: parsley, lettuce, endive, cress, even scallion.  The green vegetable is a symbol of springtime and the miracle of natures renewal. At this season, when Mother Earth arrays herself anew, the human spirit rises, and we renew our faith in a world where freedom...

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“I will redeem you with an outstretched arm,” Exodus 6:7 - בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam Borey P’ree Hagafen. Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, Who creates the fruit of the vine.

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HaCarah – The conscious recognition of those not completely seen Tapuz v’Ko’kos – The Orange and Coconut Why do we have an orange and a coconut on the Seder Plate? Speaker 1: In our own day as in the ancient days of our tradition, an event becomes a story, a story is woven with new legends, and the legends lead the path into new teachings. So it is with the orange on the Seder plate. Speaker 2: To begin with in...

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Fill the cups with wine; open door; all rise... Elijah the Prophet Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. -Malachi 4:5 Elijah the prophet, Elijah the Tishbite, Elijah from Gilead, May he come quickly, In our days, with the Messiah son of David. Eh-lee-ya-hu ha-na-vee, Eh-lee-ya-hu ha-tish-bee, Eh-lee-ya-hu ha-gi-la-dee, Bim-hey-ra Ya-vo e-ley-nu Im-ma-shi-ach ben Da-vid. Elijah the prophet, Elijah the Tishbite, Elijah from Gilead, May he come quickly,...

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To the Sage Hillel, eating Matzah and Maror together was not a trivial matter. To him, slavery and freedom were merged in one historical event. The bread of poverty became bread of freedom and was tasted together with Maror, so that one should know both the bitterness of slavery and the joy of freedom. In the time of freedom, we remember the bitterness of slavery; in time of oppression, we keep alive the hope of freedom. This is why Hillel’s practice...

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In every generation, we all should feel as though we ourselves had gone forth from Egypt, as it is written: “And you shall explain to your child on that day, it is because of what God did for me when, I, myself, went forth from Egypt.” (Exodus 13:8) We end our Passover Seder by saying in unison: May slavery give way to freedom. May hate give way to love. May ignorance give way to wisdom. May despair give way to hope....

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During the time when Pharaoh issued his decree to kill Israelite males, Moses, who later was to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt to freedom, was an infant. His concerned mother, Jochebed placed him in a basket of reeds in the Nile River while Moses’ sister Miriam watched from a distance to see who would come to find him. The basket was found by the Pharaoh’s daughter, who decided to raise the infant as her own son and named...

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We take the uppermost Matzah and break it into pieces and distribute it to each participant at our Seder. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם הַמּוֹצִיא לֶחֶם מִן הָאָרֶץ Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam Ha’Motzi Lechem Min Ha’Aretz. Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, Who brings forth sustenance from the Earth. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מַצָּה Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam Asher Kidshanu Bemitzvotav Ve-Tzivanu Al Achilat...

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These events on our timeline reflect mostly accomplishments of the GLBT community in the face of adversity. Tonight we acknowledge and recognize the GLBT community’s endurance under ten additional plagues. For each of these plagues we continue our tradition of dipping our finger tip in our wine cups, and for each plague we place one drop of wine on our plates: Blood: The blood shed in the Nazi death camps and in Queer-bashings. Laughter: The laughter caused by our stereotyped representation...

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When the hardships imposed by the Pharaoh did not slow down the population growth of the Israelites, Pharaoh then decreed that all Israelite males born should be killed. However, the Israelite midwives – Shifra and Puah – who were ordered by Pharaoh to be in charge of this task, feared the wrath of God and made sure that this did not happen.  The Pharaoh then ordered his people to throw every male child born to an Israelite in the Nile River....

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The Candle lighting celebration begins by honoring light We light the candles and say… בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ לְהַדלִיק נֵר שֶׁל יוֹם טוֹב Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam Asher Kidishanu B’Mitzvotav V’Tzivanu L’Hadlik Ner Shel Yom Tov. Blessed are You, Lord, our God, Ruler of the universe, Who sanctifies us with commandments, and commands us to light the candles on this holiday. - בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶה...

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What’s the story behind the Haggadah? According to Rabbi Moshe Lazarus, the word Haggadah comes from the Torah command – “And you shall tell (v’Higadeta) your children on that day…” Although the minimal fulfillment of this mitzvah is a simple recounting of the going out of Egypt and explaining a few of the Passover symbols, proper fulfillment requires much more. Over the centuries, additions have been made to the Haggadah to enhance this mitzvah. Many of these additions gained such wide...

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The Supportive/Open Minded Child How do we make our GLBT Seder more inclusive? We seek to ensure that everyone is included and that all of their needs are being met. For example, there is a movement to encourage the use of gender-neutral pronouns like ze for he/she and hir for him/her at inclusive Seders. We have incorporated many new traditions into our own Seder for example, the orange on our Seder plate, or the creation of a whole second Seder plate. ...

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Tonight’s Haggadah contains the following ingredients:    Kadesh – Sanctification – קַדֵש  Oorhatz – Washing of the hands – וּרְחַץ  Carpas­ – The eating of the green vegetables – כַּרְפַּס  Yahatz – Breaking of the Middle of the three Matzot – יַחַץ  Maggid – The story of Exodus – מַגִיד  Eyru’ayim - The reading of the GLBT timeline – אֵירוּעַיִם  Rachatz – Washing of the hands before the meal – רַחַץ  Motzi – Blessing before the meal – מוֹצִיא  Matzah – Blessing...

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The Paschal Lamb reminds us that the Holy One, praised be God, passed over the houses of our ancestors in Egypt. The Matzah is to remind us that before the dough our ancestors prepared for bread had time to rise, God revealed the might, power and presence of God unto them and redeemed them. The Bitter Herbs are to remind us that the Egyptians embittered the lives of our ancestors in Egypt. In gratitude for the miracles which God has performed...

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בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדַיִם Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam Asher Kidshanu Bemitzvotav Ve-Tzivanu Al Netilat Yadayim. Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who sanctifies us with commandments, and commands us to wash our hands “Mitzrayim,” Hebrew for Egypt, literally means narrow straits. Judaic commentary has always viewed Mitzrayim as more than the literal escape from slavery, more than an escape from a place of narrow straights, an...

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In recognition of our collective potential, when we all work together, able to recognize each others’ identities, we hold the fruit salad and inspect its components. Each piece of fruit is different from the other and regardless of which fruit it is, together the diversity of textures and flavors work together to make a collective entity that is greater than anyone piece. In an ideal world all people will be included in society as equal players able to contribute to society...