Save "Our Personal Exodus: Giving Lasting Meaning to the Seder
"
Our Personal Exodus: Giving Lasting Meaning to the Seder

Pesach 2012/5772

Pesach

Maharat Victoria Sutton

Class of 2015

The Mishnah in Arvei Pesahim (Pesahim 10:5) teaches in the name of Rabban Gamliel, “We do not fulfill our obligation if we don't have the following three things at the seder Pesah, Matzah and Maror." These foods are emblems that serve to remind us of the bitterness of slavery in Mitzrayim and the redemption from that bitterness. Yet, these three elements are not mere mementos of Yetziyat Mitzrayim (the Exodus from Egypt). The Mishnah informs us that we must see ourselves as if each one of us departed from Egypt. As the pasuk says, “Tell your child I do all of these things because of what G-d did for me when I left Egypt" (Shemot 13:8).

There is an obligation not only to commemorate our liberation as a people collectively through mentioning these three symbols, rather, a person must also experience them through his or her senses. To fulfill the mitzvah properly, they must be discussed, touched, passed and tasted. At the seder, we not only talk of these tropes, but we literally internalize the feelings of bitterness, suffering and freedom, in order to impress them on our sense memory and psyche.

What is the purpose of this personal exodus each year? What is this experience supposed to effect in each one of us as individuals? The Mishnah presents one answer: out of this ritual follows the obligation to praise God for what was done for our fathers.The Mishnah, however, merely explains the historical aspects of the seder praising God for bringing a nation, our forefathers and foremothers, from darkness to the light. This doesn't explain why we have to see ourselves as having been freed by God from bitter enslavement!

“Ki ger hayitem b’eretz mitzrayim” “Because you were strangers in the Land of Egypt” a fundamental, foundational principle in Judaism. The Torah cites this refrain again and again, when exhorting us to care for those in our midst that are suffering, disenfranchised and powerless. More than a theoretical concept, it is a way of life. Because we were powerless, we give voice to those who have none. Because we tasted bitterness, we seek to sweeten the lives of those who cannot do it alone. The seder teaches us empathy - not intellectually, but experientially. For one evening, we live in the tension between poverty and abundance, between bitterness and sweetness, between slavery and freedom. Although we feel great joy in being with our family and loved ones, together we swallow salty tears of anguish and despair. Even as we see the multitude of pots simmering in the kitchen, we point to the bread of affliction. The opening stanza of the haggadah tells us: “Ha Lahma Anya di’Akhalu avhatna b’arah di’mitzrayim - kal d’khafen yetei v’yekhul, kal d’tzrikh yetei v’yifsah” Because the bread of poverty and affliction is in front of me, I invite all who are hungry or in need to eat and join me in celebrating Pesah.

We use cookies to give you the best experience possible on our site. Click OK to continue using Sefaria. Learn More.OKאנחנו משתמשים ב"עוגיות" כדי לתת למשתמשים את חוויית השימוש הטובה ביותר.קראו עוד בנושאלחצו כאן לאישור