Parts of the Seder

A finger points to Hebrew text in a book, focusing on large green letters.

The Passover seder is traditionally divided into 15 steps, sometimes viewed as the steps from slavery toward freedom. In addition to the traditional 15 steps, our listing provides the constituent parts of maggid, the telling of the Passover story, as well as several other rituals commonly found at the sederOne of the crucial elements of slavery was that the Jews were not able to form themselves as a viable community. Egyptian taskmasters rigidly regulated their lives, preventing any sense of communion and solidarity. And so, on Pesakh night, the essence of the seder is to constitute ourselves as a Jewish community. Three quintessential acts define Jewish community, and all three of those are at the core of our seder experience: we break bread, demonstrating our covenantal relationship to each other and to God; we learn Torah; and we invite the poor and hungry to share our meal with us, demonstrating that our community is one which extends itself to those in need. 

Latest Rituals

A reading about oppression in women’s lives along with a personal reflection on black freedom and the Zionist dream
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The motzi/matzah blessings with both the traditional masculine and alternative feminine forms of God-language.

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How a Jewish woman becomes “free”

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A meditation intended for locating your inner pharoah
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From A Journey Towards Freedom: A Haggadah for Women Who Have Experienced Domestic Violence The three symbols of Passover narrated from the perspective of women who survived domestic abuse.
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Describes women’s role in ancient Egypt in relation to each of these symbols
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A modern dayeinu from the Ma’yan Haggadah

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A renditon of the traditional Passover song, Dayeinu, from the perspective of Jewish women

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Dayeinu from the perspective of the biblical matriarchs

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