Passover Seder
The Seder concludes with a prayer that the night's service be accepted. A hope for the Messiah is expressed: "L'shanah haba'ah b'Yerushalayim! - Next year in Jerusalem!"
Although the 15 orders of the Seder have been complete, the Haggadah concludes with additional songs which further recount the miracles that occurred on this night in Ancient Egypt as well as throughout history. Some songs express a prayer that the Beit Hamikdash will soon be rebuilt. The last song to be sung is Chad Gadya ("One Kid Goat"). This seemingly childish song about different animals and people who attempted to punish others for their crimes and were in turn punished themselves, was interpreted by the Vilna Gaon as an allegory to the retribution God will levy over the enemies of the Jewish people at the end of days.
Following the Seder, those who are still awake may recite the Song of Songs, engage in Torah learning, or continue talking about the events of the Exodus until sleep overtakes them.
[
Public Seders
The group of people who hold a Passover Seder together is referred to in the Talmud (tractate Pesachim) as a chavurah (group). This definition is most apt today in view of the large, public Seders that are conducted around the world. In the Far East, for example, Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries regularly conduct Seders for hundreds of visiting students, businesspeople and Jewish travelers. The Chabad Seder in Katmandu regularly attracts more than 1,200 participants[6]. In 2006, the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS and Baltic Countries organized over 500 public Seders throughout the Former Soviet Union, led by local rabbis and Chabad rabbinical students, drawing more than 150,000 attendees in total[7].
In Israel, where permanent residents only observe one Seder, overseas students learning in yeshivas and women's seminaries are often invited in groups up to 100 for "second-day Seders" hosted by outreach organizations and private individuals.
[
Non-Jewish Seders
- See also: Passover in the Christian tradition
Many Christians, and Evangelical protestants in particular, have recently taken great interest in performing seders according to the ancient rubric. Some forms add a Christian (Messianic Passover) message. Many Christians cite to the meal as a way to connect with the heritage of their own religion and to see how the practices of the ancient world are still relevant to Christianity today.[2] Catholics view many elements of the mass as having historically arisen out of Jesus' Last Supper which, according to the synoptics, was a seder. As such, Catholics see the mass itself as having been first celebrated by Jesus in a seder setting.
[
Interfaith Seders
A number of congregations hold interfaith Seders where Jews and non-Jews alike share in the story and discuss common themes of peace, freedom, and religious tolerance. During the American Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, interfaith Seders energized and inspired leaders from various communities who came together to march for equal protection for all. Today, many Unitarian Universalist congregations (a liberal religion that encompasses many faith traditions[3] hold annual interfaith community Seders. A number of Interfaith Passover Seder Haggadahs have been written especially for this purpose.
[
See also
[
References
[
External links
- The Sephardic Guide to Pesach & Seder
- Passover Seder Explained by Eli Ha-Levi, BA, M.L.I.S.
- A guide to the Seder chabad.org
- Meta-questions for Discussion at the Passover Seder from a Conservative viewpoint
- Haggadah and Seder insights Ohr Somayach
- International Seder Directory - Find a Local Passover Seder
- The Seder Plate of the Maharal from The Maharal Haggadah by Shlomo Mallin
- The Meaning of the 15 Steps in the Seder
- Traditions and teachings of Passover from the Messianic viewpoint
|
||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
For more information review our copyright contact and privacy policy.