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To conclude this seder, let us end with a joke, one in which will surely get a chuckle from the members of our project: Issy is a very wealthy man and for his mother’s birthday he goes to a Sotheby’s sale and buys her a very expensive painting. When he gets back home, he can’t wait to phone to tell her what he’s bought for her. "Hi, mum, it’s me, Issy, your number one son, your boychik."  "Oh (pause) is everything...

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Nirtzah marks the conclusion of the seder. Our bellies are full, we have had several glasses of wine, we have told stories and sung songs, and now it is time for the evening to come to a close. At the end of the seder, we honor the tradition of declaring, “Next year in Jerusalem!” To some, "Next year in Jerusalem!" is an affirmation of hope and of connectedness with Klal Yisrael, the whole of the Jewish community. Still others perceive in...

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We now refill our wine glasses one last time and open the front door to invite the prophet Elijah to join our seder. In the Bible, Elijah was a fierce defender of G-d to a disbelieving people. At the end of his life, rather than dying, he was whisked away to heaven. Tradition holds that he will herald in a new era of peace, so we set a place for Elijah at many joyous, hopeful Jewish occasions.

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Singing songs that praise G-d | 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, which you can find in the appendix. To celebrate the theme of freedom, we might sing songs from the civil rights movement. Or perhaps the always zany JR has some parody lyrics about Passover ready to share with the...

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Refill everyone’s wine glass. We now say grace after the meal, thanking G-d for the food we’ve eaten. On Passover, this becomes something like an extended toast to G-d, culminating with drinking our third glass of wine for the evening: We praise G-d, 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, we need never lack for food; You provide food enough for everyone. We...

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Finding and eating the Afikomen | tzafoon | צָפוּן The playfulness of finding the afikomen reminds us that under normal circumstances, we balance our solemn memories of slavery with a joyous celebration of freedom. When we eat the afikomen, our last taste of matzah for the evening, we are grateful for moments of silliness and happiness in our lives. Tonight, at this seder, we choose to not eat the afikomen, out of respect for the work to come in our quest...

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Eating a sandwich of matzah and bitter herb | koreich | כּוֹרֵךְ When the Temple stood in Jerusalem, the biggest ritual of them all was eating the lamb offered as the pesach or Passover sacrifice. The great sage Hillel would put the meat in a sandwich made of matzah, along with some of the bitter herbs. While we do not make sacrifices any more – and, in fact, some Jews have a custom of purposely avoiding lamb during the seder so...

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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 praise G-d, Ruler of Everything, who brings bread from the land. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתַָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ...

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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. In Judaism, 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. Some people distinguish between washing to prepare for prayer and washing to prepare for food by...

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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 the ancestors of the Jewish people whom G-d redeemed; G-d redeemed us too along with them. That’s why the Torah says “G-d brought us out from there in order to lead us to and give us...

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We have now told the story of Passover…but wait! We’re not quite done. There are still some symbols on our seder plate we haven’t talked about yet. Rabban Gamliel would say that whoever didn’t explain the shank bone, matzah, and marror (or bitter herbs) hasn’t done Passover justice. The shank bone represents the Pesach, the special lamb sacrifice made in the days of the Temple for the Passover holiday. It is called the pesach, from the Hebrew word meaning “to pass...

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The plagues and subsequent redemption from Egypt are but one example of the care G-d has shown for the Jewish people throughout history. Had G-d but done any one of these kindnesses, it would have been enough – dayeinu. אִלּוּ הוֹצִיאָֽנוּ מִמִּצְרַֽיִם, דַּיֵּנוּ Ilu hotzi- hotzianu, Hotzianu mi-mitzrayim Hotzianu mi-mitzrayim, Dayeinu If G-d had only taken us out of Egypt, that would have been enough! אִלּוּ נָתַן לָֽנוּ אֶת־הַתּוֹרָה, דַּיֵּנוּ Ilu natan natan lanu, natan lanu et ha-Torah, Natan lanu et...