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נִרְצָהEnding the seder and thinking about the future | nirtzah | Our seder is over, according to Jewish tradition and law. As we had the pleasure to gather for a seder this year, we hope to once again have the opportunity in the years to come. We pray that God brings health and healing to Israel and all the people of the world, especially those impacted by natural tragedy and war. As we say… לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בִּירוּשָׁלָֽיִם:   L’shana haba-ah biy’rushalayim   NEXT...

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On Passover, Hillel, the head of the Rabbinic academy in Jerusalem two thousand years ago, combined the pesach, matzoh and maror and ate them together, so he might observe the commandment exactly: “They shall eat the Pesach lamb offering with matzoh and maror together.” The destruction of the Temple by the Romans brought an end to animal sacrifices, so our sand- wich today is made only with matzoh and maror. We will now eat the bitter herbs sandwiched between two pieces...

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Baruch Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech ha’olam, hamotzei lechem min ha’aretz.

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1. One is G-d, one is G-d, one is G-d! In the Heaven and the Earth אחד אלוהינו שבשמיים ובארץ .א 2. Two are the tablets that Moses brought שני לוחות הברית .ב 3. Three are the Patriarchs שלושה אבות .ג 4. Four are the Matriarchs ארבע אימהות .ד 5. Five are the books of the *clap* Torah חמישה חומשי תורה .ה 6. Six are the books of the *clap* Mishnah שישה סידרי משנה .ו 7. Seven are the days of...

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Take the middle matzah and break it into two, one piece larger than the other. The larger piece is set aside to serve as afikoman. The smaller piece is put back, between the two matzot.

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We encourage you to incorporate this reading into the Ha lachma anya section of your seder. Ha lachma anya—this is the bread of affliction. At the seder we begin as slaves. We eat matzah, the bread of affliction, which leaves us hungry and longing for redemption. It reminds us of a time when we couldn’t control what food was available to us, but ate what we could out of necessity. The matzah enables us to taste slavery—to imagine what it means...

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בָּרֵךְSaying grace after the meal and inviting Elijah the Prophet | bareich |   Refill everyone’s wine glass. We now say grace after the meal, thanking God for the food we’ve eaten. On Passover, this becomes something like an extended toast to God, culminating with drinking our third glass of wine for the evening: We praise God, Ruler of Everything, whose goodness sustains the world. You are the origin of love and compassion, the source of bread for all. Thanks to You,...

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In every generation, we must see ourselves as if we personally were liberated from Egypt. We gather tonight to tell the ancient story of a people's liberation from Egyptian slavery. This is the story of our origins as a people. It is from these events that we gain our ethics, our vision of history, our dreams for the future. We gather tonight, as two hundred generations of Jewish families have before us, to retell the timeless tale. Yet our tradition requires...

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English ONE LITTLE GOAT One little goat, one little goat: Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya, One little goat, one little goat: Then came the cat, and ate the goat, Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya, One little goat, one little goat: Then came the dog, and bit the cat, that ate the goat, Which my father bought for two zuzim. Chad gadya, chad gadya, One little goat, one little goat:...

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(Professor Eliezer Segal, http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/)   Why is it only  on Passover night we never know how to do anything right?   We don't eat our meals in the regular ways, the ways that we do on all other days.   `Cause on all other nights we may eat all kinds of wonderful good bready treats,   like big purple pizza that tastes like a pickle, crumbly crackers and pink pumpernickel, sassafras sandwich and tiger on rye, fifty falafels in pita, fresh-fried, with peanut-butter and tangerine...

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Nor for our sake, O Lord, not for our sake, but for your name’s sake give glory, because of your kindness and your truth. Why should the nations say: “Where is their God?” Our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases! Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have a mouth, but they cannot speak; they have eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but they cannot hear; they have a nose,...

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1. GAMES (Nuts and nut games are popular for Passover, for two reasons: firstly, nuts within the shell are available in abundance for little cost and are kosher for Passover; secondly, "nut" in Hebrew has the same numerical value as the word "good" in Hebrew, both are 17.) Nut Ferry Carry nuts on the blade of a dull knife as relay teams with a time limit. Nut Roll Make a board lean against a wall and attempt to "win" a nut...

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Find the Afikomen, symbolizing part of you that was split off and must be reintegrated into your full being to be a whole and free person.

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חֲסַל סִדור פֶסַח כְהִלְכָתוֹ, כְכָל מִשְפָטוֹ וְחֻקָתוֹ. כַאֲשֶר זָכִינו לְסַדֵר אוֹתוֹ. כֵן נִזְכֶה לַעֲשוֹתוֹ. זָךְ שוֹכֵן מְעוֹנָה, קוֹמֵם קְהַל עֲדַת מִי מָנָה. בְקָרוֹב נַהֵל נִטְעֵי כַנָה. פְדויִם לְצִיוֹן בְרִנָה. לְשָנָה הַבָאָה בִירושַָלָיִם.

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Why do we wash our hands all the time? This washing, even though it is an official task of the Seder, is done without a blessing. It is strictly for cleanliness purposes. And why not? We're about to handle food. It seems so easy for us. We turn on the tap, and there it is. But water is scarce. May we be aware of our water as we continue the Seder.

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מָרוֹרDipping the bitter herb in sweet charoset | maror |    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? ברוּךְ אַתָּה יְיַָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל...

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When Israel was in Egypt land, "Let my people go!" Oppressed so hard they could not stand. "Let my people go!" Go down, Moses, way down in Egypt Land. Tell ol' Pharaoh: "Let my people go!" The Lord told Moses what to do, "Let my people go!" To lead the children of Israel through, "Let my people go!"

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1. One is G-d, one is G-d, one is G-d! In the Heaven and the Earth אחד אלוהינו שבשמיים ובארץ .א 2. Two are the tablets that Moses brought שני לוחות הברית .ב 3. Three are the Patriarchs שלושה אבות .ג 4. Four are the Matriarchs ארבע אימהות .ד 5. Five are the books of the *clap* Torah חמישה חומשי תורה .ה 6. Six are the books of the *clap* Mishnah שישה סידרי משנה .ו 7. Seven are the days of...

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  Ilu hotzi hotzianu hotzianu mimitzrayim, hotzianu mimitzrayim, DAYENU. Ilu natan natan lanu, natan lanu et hashabat, natan lanu et hashabat, DAYENU. Ilu natan natan lanu, natan lanu et hatorah, natan lanu et hatorah, DAYENU.

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For those of you not in the know, “Glee” is the TV show of the moment. At once an escapist fantasy and the most realistic depiction of high school angst this side of Claire Danes, “Glee” is also – thanks largely to co-creator Brad Falchuk, son of the current Hadassah national president – among the most “out” Jewish shows to grace the small screen. Like the show’s gay, disabled, multiethnic and differently sized kids, what’s interesting about its Jewish characters is...