The Open Source Haggadah

A well-known answer to this question is that there is no end (“Ayn Sof”) to the amount that one can say. However Sfas Emes says something different: He asks similarly, why don't we make a bracha on tzedaka (charity) or Kibud Av (Honoring one’s parents)? Because these are things that come second nature to us, things that we know are good by nature and don't need a brocha to remind us of them (Mitzvas Sichli). The same applies to sipur tetzias mitzraim. It's such an amazing Nais (miracle), that it's ingrained in us so that we don't need a bracha to make it something holy, just like tzedaka and honoring ones parents. Its intrinsic.

10. The UN repeatedly asked Sadam to "Let his Weapons Go"
9. Both Moses and George W. Bush have trouble with public speaking
8. Surprisingly when the Jews and Iraqis are given freedom, a lot said they'd rather stay where they are
7. The Egyptians hid their gold, the Iraqis hid their chemicals
6. The Hagaddah covered the entire Passover story, CNN/Fox/MSNBC covered Iraq
5. US warplanes are raining from the sky in place of hail
4. Both stories rely on the leadership of a Chief of Staff
3. George Bush follows in his father's footsteps, Maaseh Avos Siman L'Banim
2. It is still unknown if Pharoah and Sadam survived their downfalls
1. The #1 plague in both stories was: (Sa)Dam

"I understand the importance of bondage between parent and child." - Dan Quayle.

Toward the beginning of Magid, we learn of 5 Rabbis (Rabbi Eliezer, Rabbi Yehoshua, Rabbi Elazar Ben Azaryah, Rabbi Akiva, and Rabbi Tarfon) who sat up all night in B’nei Brak discussing the seder, until their students came to inform them that it was time to say the morning “Kriat Shema.” The length of their exposition is extraordinary unto itself, but even more amazing when you see who these Rabbis are. Their names appear throughout the Talmud, so it is no surprise that they can engage in lengthy discourse on matters of Judaism. But this particular conversation was important, because as they went over the Haggadah, telling of how Hashem had saved their forefathers, they could have technically been called liars. See, none of them were descended from slaves. All of their ancestors had either been converts, who obviously had not been in Egypt at the time, or from the tribe of Levi (including Kohanim), which Egypt had exempted from slavery, as the Priestly class. So while we are commanded to see ourselves as if we, today, were being brought out of Egypt like our forefathers, these Sages would have thought back to their ancestors’ lives of relative luxury! How could they possibly be so involved in a story that didn’t directly concern them or their family!

From here, we learn a powerful lesson about Passover, and ourselves. The Jewish people is one entity--though we have different names, and occupy (vastly) different branches of the family tree, we are still inter-connected, and our fates inextricably tied to one another. If one Jew suffers, than it is incumbent upon all of us to alleviate that suffering. (Of course, though possibly on a different level, the same applies to all mankind- we share our world and origins, and are required to help anyone we can). Something that happens to our proverbial neighbor most definitely concerns us. This unity of experience, and consequent unity of purpose, should drive us every day, just as it drove those Rabbis, who rather than saying, “At least my family wasn’t enslaved,” proclaimed, “My people was enslaved- my brethren were oppressed--let us celebrate their redemption and ours, and let us pray for G-d to redeem us again!”

And indeed that is the lesson of Passover--the Jewish people seem to be the most adept in the world at drawing lines between one Jew and his fellow. We incorrectly allow our external differences to indicate that we are different inside, as well- and thus we are enslaved by our own conflicts. Let us learn the lessons of the seder--free ourselves from our self-imposed slavery by recognizing that unity in our people can bring the ultimate redemption.

Got Math? Let’s see:

Jews don’t do violence – what’s with knocking out the wicked son’s teeth? It’s to teach him a lesson. The numerical value of Rasha (Wicked) is 570. The numerical value of Tzadik (Righteous) is 204. Q: What’s the difference between the two? A: The wicked son’s teeth! (Sheinav) 366. The Wicked son is sitting at the seder table and not listening to the story or the message of Passover. He is actively excluding himself with his statements (“What is this that you are doing?”) What do you do to get him to stop making snide remarks? Keep him quiet by taking out his teeth. If the Wicked son lost his teeth (570-366=...) he’d pay attention to the miracles, begin to understand why we are doing the seder, and maybe get a big righteous (204!)

The Missing Son: The Lubavitcher Rebbi always said there is a fifth son we must also teach, that is the son who doesn’t even make it to the seder table dinner. Here are 10 more missing sons not found in the seder:

10. The "30-year-old-still-single" Son, If he would just get a date, Dayienu
9. The Brovender's Daughter just home for Pesach, ready to prove she's smarter than all 4 sons put together
8. The Alcoholic Son, "Can we get a little more wine in this Charoset please?"
7. The "Watching TV during the 2nd Seder" Son, who just announced he is making aliyah (after learning the NHL playoffs conflict)
6. The Moshav Granola Son, who finds the murdering of innocent parsley stalks offensive
5. The "Scummy" Son, who is so bad that yeshivish girls can't help but find him attractive
4. The "Fallen off the face of the Planet" Son, nobody knows where he has been but always shows up for the holidays with new facial hair
3. The Feminine Son, who asks "Does anyone mind if I sing Mah Nishtana to the tune of Rent?" (Why is my son different from all other sons?)
2. The "I love long D'var Torahs so that I can brag to my friends how late my seder went" Son
1. The Miami Beach Sun

In Egypt, Hebrew slaves were spared the plagues visited on the Egyptians, and the shankbone represents how the slaves were passed over for the last plague - the killing of the firstborn. The story of our escape from slavery also tells a second story of a powerful God who punishes individual members of a society that holds slaves. Many of us recoil at the violence of which the shankbone reminds us, and we pull away from the idea of a vengeful and murdering God. In a world filled with violence, how do we form a vision of justice that is meant not only for our own community, but for all peoples? What does it mean to remember past suffering? What kind of liberation do we want to help create today?

According to the Abarbanel, the son is pointing out a contradiction: On the one hand, we recline like free people and dip our food like aristocrats. But, on the other hand, we eat "bread of affliction" and bitter herbs. Are we celebrating freedom here, or are we commemorating the slavery?

The answer is both!

"We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt, and Hashem, our G-d, took us out from there with a 'strong hand'..." Tonight we experience the transition from slavery to freedom.

--Rabbi Dr. Dovid Gottlieb

More so than any other festival, the Seder-night is dedicated to children, because the Torah dictates that we must tell the history of the Exodus to our children on this night. The Haggada directs us to do many unusual things to arouse the children's curiosity so that they will want to know "why this night is different than all other nights." Immediately following Kiddush the curiosities begin. We wash hands as on each Shabbos or Festival, but on Seder-night we wash without a blessing because we first eat karpas (a vegetable) and not bread. Just as karpas whets our appetites for the matzah, so too, this unusual procedure interests us in the secrets of this night. The four questions expressing the childrens' interest are more than just a springboard for our discussion. They are part of the answer - the best story is one you want to hear! That is why the Sages say that even if you sit by yourself on this night you should interest yourself in the material by asking the four questions. People are inquisitive and should not be afraid to ask; if you are embarrassed to ask, you do not learn. The custom of providing treats for the children not only helps keep them awake, but also serves as a stimulus for their questions, and as a reward for their participation.

--Rabbi Milevsky

Blessed be He, had not taken our fathers out of Egypt, we and our children and the children of our children would still be under the domination of Pharaoh in Egypt. Therefore we must thank [and] praise...Hashem.”

The Haggada tells us that Hashem Himself and not any other force freed us from Egypt. When the Divine contacts this finite world, something must be affected. Because Hashem, Himself, took us out of Egypt, the essence of the Jewish soul was changed, so that any physical enslavement in future generations could never lead to a slave mentality. Our aspirations will always be toward the loftiest goals, even when our day to day conduct may be filled with drudgery. Our unique drive toward a meaningful existence that forces Jewish people to the forefront of every major "cause" and "-ism" in world history is the direct result of Hashem, Himself, taking us out of Egypt. When we will realize what Hashem did for us, and not just for our ancestors, we will be able to "thank [and] praise..." the One who performed miracles for our ancestors and for us.

Based on the Maharal "Kiddush Hashem" - Sanctifying the Name of Heaven by giving up one's life - is not a Mitzva that every Jew has the opportunity to fulfill. And so it was that in Auschwitz a debate arose amongst the religious inmates: What is the correct form of the Bracha for this Mitzva? "Baruch Atah...L'kadesh Shmo B'rabim" (Blessed are You...Who has commanded us 'to sanctify' His Name in public), or "...Al Kiddush Shmo B'rabim" (...Who has commanded us 'concerning the sanctification' of His Name in public).

The Rabbi was asked, and he answered: For a Mitzva that one can do on someone else's behalf, one says "Al." But for a Mitzva that one can only do oneself, like putting on Tefillin one says "L" - "L'haniach Tefillin." Since giving up one's life is not something that one can do on someone else's behalf, the correct form of the Bracha is "L'Kadesh Shmo B'rabim."

When a person looks death in the face and is concerned as to the exactitude of the Bracha he will make as he exits this world -- this is someone who can never be enslaved. Once Hashem redeemed us from Egypt, our oppressors may dominate our bodies, but our souls can never again be enslaved.

--Rabbi Yaakov Asher Sinclair