The duality of the Passover Seder

• Published date: 20 April 2024
• Author: NECHAMA GOLDMAN BARASH
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

There is no other way to celebrate the 15th of Nisan at night except by going up to Jerusalem and eating the paschal sacrifice with matzah and maror (bitter herbs) in collectives of fellow Israelites. Presumably, the story of the exodus was told and retold without a clear text. Children sat with their parents and watched and wondered. However, four cups of wine, charoset, reclining, afikoman, even the four questions were absent. In short, it most likely resembled the national barbecue that takes place across the country on Yom Ha'atzmaut – but localized to the hills of Jerusalem

The mishna in Chapter 10 of Tractate Pesachim displays incredible ingenuity as the rabbinic sages define the structure of Seder that incorporates all of the powerful themes that are part and parcel of our national origin story: freedom from affliction and oppression; religious and national identity; continuity and tradition; and more. Building off the Greek symposium (much has been written about this over the last few decades), the rabbis crafted an intentional, well-directed evening incorporating both familiar rituals such as Kiddush, matzah, and maror, which would have been part of Passover, along with many unfamiliar rituals including four cups of wine, reclining, dipping, afikoman, and the recitation of Hallel at night.

In a move to distinguish themselves from the Greeks, whose symposiums were really for aristocratic society, the rabbis declared that even poor men would recline and drink four cups. On this night, unlike all others, everyone is free and everyone, at least conceptually, is equal.

The final Haggadah: A masterpiece of experience

While it took several hundred years until the final Haggadah as we know it came to be, the end result was a masterpiece of experience that remains a touchstone of Jewish faith, identity, and practice across the world today.

One particular example of how the evening integrates past, present, and future into the experience is in the following mishna: "Rabban Gamliel would say, 'Whoever has not said [explained] these three things on Pessah has not fulfilled his obligation, and these are: 'Pessah, Matzah, and Maror.'"

Rabban Gamliel makes it clear that simply naming "Pessah, Matzah, and Maror" rather than the required eating of the three is enough on this night. The holiday can and will survive even without the offering. Second, the order of explanations (brought below) should follow the order in the text above, which is in line with the...