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We now refill our wine glasses one last time.  We lift up Miriam's cup to honor her leadership, and open the front door to imagine the prophet Elijah joining our seder. In the Bible, Miriam was bold and brave, saving Moses from death.  She led the Israelites through the Red Sea to dance and celebrate their freedom on the other side.   She provided strong leadership and found sources of water during the wandering in the desert. The Babylonian Talmud teaches, "If...

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Eating a sandwich of matzah and bitter herb |   koreich  | כּוֹרֵךְ When the Temple stood in Jerusalem, one important ritual involved eating the lamb offered as the pesach or Passover sacrifice. Think of it as a holy BBQ for the Divine.  The great sage Hillel would put the meat in a sandwich made of matzah, along with some of the bitter herbs.  The Temple no longer stands, and we don't incorporate sacrifice into our Jewish practice anymore.  But we honor...

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Contributed by Truah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights Our hands were touched by this water earlier during tonight's seder, but this time is different. This is a deeper step than that. This act of washing our hands is accompanied by a blessing, for in this moment we feel our People's story more viscerally, having just retold it during Maggid. Now, having re-experienced the majesty of the Jewish journey from degradation to dignity, we raise our hands in holiness, remembering once...

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Singing songs of YAY! | hallel | הַלֵּל  This is the time set aside for singing. Some of us might sing traditional prayers from the Book of Psalms. Others take this moment for favorites like Chad Gadya & Who Knows One. To celebrate the theme of freedom, we might sing songs from the civil rights movement.  Fourth Glass of Wine As we come to the end of the seder, we drink one more glass of wine. With this final cup, we...

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Dipping the bitter herb in sweet charoset |   maror   |מָרוֹר  Adversity and resilience.  Suffering and insight.  Broken shards and new forms of being.  These are the themes of Passover and our own lives.   We recognize this by dipping our bitter herbs into the sweet charoset.  Let's say the blessing together. ברוּךְ אַתָּה יְיַָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מרוֹר: Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al achilat maror. We bless the wellspring of...

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The blessing over the meal and matzah |   motzi matzah  | מוֹצִיא מַצָּה The familiar hamotzi blessing marks the formal start of the meal. Because we are using matzah instead of bread, we add a blessing celebrating this mitzvah. בְָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, הַמּוֹצִיא לֶֽחֶם מִן הָאָֽרֶץ: Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, hamotzi lechem min ha-aretz. We are grateful for the opportunity to eat bread that comes from the land. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ...

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In Every Generation & Second Cup בְּכָל־דּוֹר וָדוֹר חַיָּב אָדָם לִרְאוֹת אֶת־עַצְמוֹ, כְּאִלּוּ הוּא יָצָא מִמִּצְרָֽיִם B’chol dor vador chayav adam lirot et-atzmo, k’ilu hu yatzav mimitzrayim. In every generation, everyone is obligated to see themselves as though they personally left Egypt. The seder reminds us that it was not only our ancestors who were redeemed; we  experience liberation in our own day by remembering stories of redemption. May we continue to reach future holidays in peace and happiness.  Let's raise...

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In our home we have a custom of evoking Jewish comedians of the 20th century.   We call it the 'Shrug, Upturned Palm' gesture.    Dayeinu is one of those moments to enlist this.    (Someone from the Clermont house can demonstrate.)   Had we experienced even just one moment of kindness described in the Exodus story, it would have been enough – dayeinu! (Shrug, upturned palm.)  Let's sing together:  אִלּוּ הוֹצִיאָֽנוּ מִמִּצְרַֽיִם, דַּיֵּנוּ Ilu hotzi- hotzianu, Hotzianu mi-mitzrayim Hotzianu mi-mitzrayim, Dayeinu If the Divine ...

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As we rejoice about becoming free, we regret that our freedom came at the cost of the Egyptians’ suffering.  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 the Egyptians suffered: Blood | dam | דָּם Frogs | tzfardeiya |  צְפַרְדֵּֽעַ Lice | kinim | כִּנִּים Beasts | arov | עָרוֹב Cattle disease...

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Adapted from Rabbi Rachel Barenblat's Velveteen Rabbi. Once upon a time, during a famine our ancestor Jacob and his family fled to Egypt where food was plentiful. His son Joseph had risen to high position in Pharaoh’s court, and our people were well-respected and well-regarded, secure in the power structure of the time. Generations passed and our people remained in Egypt. In time, a new Pharaoh came to power. He found our difference threatening, and ordered our people enslaved. In fear...

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The Four Archetypal Children Jewish tradition speaks of four types of people who react differently to the themes of a Passover Seder.  Historically these are children, but we know many of these types as adults.   It's like a Jewish Myers-Briggs test!   What does the wise child say? The wise child asks,  What are the teachings given to us for how to live as a community in freedom? This child or adult is responsive to guidelines for how to observe the holiday...

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By Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Rabbi Lauren Holzblatt, from the AJWS Seder Supplements Resource Guide On Passover, Jews are commanded to tell the story of the Exodus and to see ourselves as having lived through that story, so that we may better learn how to live our lives today. The stories we tell our children shape what they believe to be possible—which is why at Passover, we must tell the stories of the women who played a crucial role in...

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An important Seder tradition is to place three pieces of matzah on the table, and then break the middle matzah into two pieces. The larger piece becomes the afikomen, literally “dessert” in Greek, and will be hidden in a secret place. After dinner, the youngest people at the table will have to hunt for the afikomen in order to wrap up the meal and win a prize! We eat matzah to remember the Israelites' hurried escape from Egypt. As slaves, they...

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Passover evokes compelling narratives of slavery and freedom with honoring the cycles of nature. As we remember the liberation from Egypt, we also recognize the stirrings of spring and natural growth unfolding in the world around us. The symbols on our table bring together both elements of these celebrations. We now take a vegetable, representing our joy at the dawning of spring (mindful that more snow might come!).  Let's now dip it into salt water, a symbol of the tears our...

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Jewish celebrations often include wine as a symbol of our joy. The seder starts with wine and then gives us three more opportunities to refill our cup and drink. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree hagafen. We bless the source of compassion that creates the fruit of the vine. We are grateful to participate in mitzvot (actions that enhance our relationship to what's sacred in life, and to celebrate special...