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. This is traditionally hidden, by the leader of the Seder for the children to “steal” or “find” and then ransom for a something at the end of the Seder. The smaller piece is put back, between the two matzot. This smaller piece, along with the top matzah is what will be used for the “Motzi-Matzah” and...

The Wicked Child I read the haggadah backwards this year The sea opens, the ancient Israelites slide back to Egypt like Michael Jackson doing the moonwalk Freedom to slavery That’s the real story One minute you’re dancing hallelujah, shaking your hips to the j-j-jangle of the prophetesses’ tambourines, the next you’re knee deep in brown muck in the basement of some minor pyramid The angel of death comes back to life two zuzim are refunded. When armies emerge from the sea...

So this is Maggid,The part of the seder where we tell the storyOf leaving Egypt.Actually,We spend more time talking about talking about the storyThen telling the actual story.Very meta is our haggadah,With many numbers,Lots of fours:Four questionsFour cups of wineFour children, Four ways of asking,Why is this night different from all other nights? The first child, Book smart.The wise childKnows all the rules.He's direct,No messin' around,This is what you do on Pesach:Tell the storyDip the herbsReclineDrink four cupsDon't eat leavened breadAsk...

Together as we wash our hands, they move into the bowl of water, and back out of the water. Why do we do this? Are our hands really getting clean without soap? We won’t be eating for some time, why do we do this so early? The washing of our hands suggests that we are open to question. One question that is always asked is about hope. Rick Recht answers in his song: This is the hope that holds us together,...

Korech:  Mixing the Bitter and the SweetOne of my favorite moments of the seder comes just before dinner is served.  It is called Korech.  It is also known as the Hillel sandwich.  It is the moment when we eat maror (the bitter herbs) and the charoset (the sweet apple and nut mixture) on a piece of matzah.  What a strange custom to eat something so bitter and something so sweet all in one bite.  I can taste it now, just thinking...

We will wash our hands twice during our seder: now, with no blessing, to get us ready for the rituals to come; and then again later, we’ll wash again with a blessing, preparing us for the meal. Too often during our daily lives we don’t stop and take the moment to prepare for whatever it is we’re about to do. Let's pause as we wash our hands to consider what we hope to get out of our evening together. 

YACHATZ Is matzo poor man's bread or the food of free men? Can it be both? If we regard it as the Bread of Affliction why did we carry dough on our backs out of Egypt, to let it bake in the hot sun without leavening and rising? Can one Matzo be both a symbol of wretchedness and deliverance? Matzo is a paradox. Not only is it so, but in breaking the middle matzo we also break with symmetry. There is...