: THE DIVINE REVELATION IN THE MISHKAN
Moshe gathers all the Jews in the Mishkan, the Tabernacle, to witness the Divine Presence revealed in the Sanctuary. Aharon, Moshe’s brother, and the High Priest, offers various sacrifices in preparation for this event. After concluding the offering of all the sacrifices, Aharon blesses the people with the priestly blessing (Birkat Cohanim). Moshe joins Aharon and together they again bless the people of Israel, after which the Divine presence is visibly perceived above the Tabernacle. How? A heavenly fire (light?) descends and consumes the offerings that were on the altar. The people are overwhelmed with emotion upon perceiving this heavenly fire as a sign of acceptance of the sacrifices, offered by the Almighty.

THE TRAGEDY OF THE SONS OF AHARON
Aharon’s two eldest sons, Nadab and Abihu, bring an offering of the “Ketoret” incense that had not been sanctioned or authorized. Consequentially, a heavenly fire engulfs them. Moshe orders the removal of their bodies from the Tabernacle and instructs Aaron and his two remaining sons not to observe the traditional laws of mourning; they had to continue serving in the Sanctuary on behalf of the Jewish nation. The priests are instructed not to drink wine before performing the temple service, this juxtaposition possibly implies that Nadab and Abihu were intoxicated while bringing their faulty offering. Moshe addresses Aharon and his two sons, instructing them to consume the offerings for that day, despite the death of their relatives. Moshe notices that one of the sin offerings had been burned, rather than consumed. When he expresses his surprise, Aharon explains his reasoning for ordering that particular offering to be burned, and Moshe humbly accepts Aharon’s explanation.

THE DIET OF THE JEWS
The Torah instructs us about Kashrut, the dietary restrictions that the Jewish people must observe. The Text teaches us how to distinguish the species of animals, fish, and birds that are clean from those that are impure. The “pure” terrestrial animals have their hooves split in two; such as cows, sheep, and goats. The Torah lists four exceptional animals that have only one of these characteristics and are therefore not “pure;” such as the pig, which has split hooves but does not chew its’ cud. Fish to be Kosher (aside from being deemed as a “clean” animal) must have fins and scales. The Torah then mentions a list of unclean, non-kosher bird species, and the Text concludes this section by mentioning certain types of lobsters (it does not refer to sea lobsters but to four species of Orthoptera) that are considered fit for consumption.

PURITY AND HOLINESS
The Text then discusses the ritual impurity caused by coming into contact with the carcass of an impure animal, as well as certain species of rodents and amphibian creatures. The Torah also indicates that clean food and eating utensils are liable to contract ritual impurities if they come into contact with any of the impure animals mentioned above. Likewise, the impurity that can be contracted when coming into contact with the corpse of an animal that, although pure, was not ritually sacrificed (nebela or terefa), is described. Insects and reptiles are not suitable for consumption. The Torah explains that by observing the Kashrut diet we will be condemned as “holy” that is, socially and culturally separated from pagan peoples and practices. The holiness that comes from abstaining from forbidden foods also refers to impulse control and self-discipline

Tehilim 113

The Text

1. Halleluyah! Praise HaShem, you who are His servants; praise the name of HaShem. 2. Let the name of HaShem be blessed, from this moment and forevermore. 3. From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of HaShem is praised. 4. HaShem is exalted above all the nations; His glory towers above the very heavens. 5. Who is like HaShem our God — the One who sits enthroned on high, 6. yet stoops down to behold both the heavens and the earth? 7. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, 8. to seat them among princes — among the princes of His own people. 9. He settles the barren woman in her home as a joyful mother of children. Halleluyah!

---

Commentary

This psalm opens the Hallel — the sequence of praise that Jews recite on the most joyous occasions of the Jewish calendar. Its placement at the very beginning is no accident. Before any celebration can get underway, we pause to ask a fundamental question: What kind of God are we actually praising here? The psalm answers that question with quiet power, moving from the broadest possible picture — all of humanity, all of time, the entire span of the earth — down to the most intimate human experiences imaginable.

Who should praise? HaShem’s servants. Not the mighty or the accomplished, but those who stand in a living relationship with Him.

What should be praised? His name — which in Jewish thought means not just a label, but His presence as it makes itself felt in the world and in history.

When? From this moment on, forever — without pause, without end.

Where? From sunrise to sunset — everywhere, in every corner of the world.

---

Having painted that universal picture, the psalm makes a fascinating observation. HaShem is praised by all the nations — because anyone, anywhere, who looks up at the night sky and marvels at its order and beauty is, in some sense, giving honor to its Creator. The cosmos is legible to every human being. This kind of praise — call it the praise of wonder, or of philosophical awe — is not limited to the Jewish people. It belongs to all of humanity.

But then the psalm asks: Who is like HaShem our God?

And here is where things get interesting. What sets HaShem apart, the psalmist says, is not simply that He dwells on high — it’s that He also looks down. He is not a remote, indifferent Creator who built the universe and then stepped away. He pays attention. He is moved by what He sees. He reaches into the dust and lifts out the person nobody noticed. He hears the silent grief of a woman who longs for a child.

That combination — infinite transcendence and intimate involvement — is what makes Jewish praise unlike any other. Other peoples can honor God as the architect of the cosmos. What Israel proclaims is that the very same God who is beyond all comprehension is also present in the smallest, most personal corners of human life. Our praise is distinctive because our experience of God is distinctive: we find Him not only in the grandeur of the heavens, but in the quiet moments where His hand tilts the scales of ordinary life.

---

The two images at the end of the psalm — the poor man raised to sit among princes, and the barren woman who becomes a happy mother — carry more weight than they might first appear to.

Notice the detail about the poor man: he isn’t elevated among strangers in some foreign land. He rises to honor among his own people, the very community that once knew him in his poverty. That kind of reversal is far more striking than simply starting fresh somewhere new. Jewish tradition reads this as a portrait of the Exodus — the moment a nation of slaves became the Am HaShem, so glorified that Egypt itself would one day seek their friendship and alliance in the time of King Solomon.

The barren woman, in prophetic literature, is a familiar image for the Land of Israel herself. While her children — Bene Israel — wander in exile, she sits empty and waiting, like a mother whose home has gone quiet. She only truly comes alive when they return.

So the psalm ends not just with praise, but with hope. Just as HaShem once lifted us from the depths of Egypt and made us into something extraordinary, may He do so again — bringing Bene Israel home to their Land, and ushering in the full redemption through Melekh HaMashiach, speedily in our days.

📅 In which Hebrew day and Hebrew month does Pesach begin?
👉 15th of Nisan (at night)

🌊 What do we celebrate on the seventh day of Pesach?
👉 Splitting of the Red Sea (Yam Suf)

👪 Who were the brother and sister of Moshe?
👉 Aharon and Miriam

🏠 What were the names of Moshe’s parents?
👉 Amram and Yocheved

🍎 What does the charoset represent?
👉 The mortar (brick mixture)

👦 👦 👦 👦 Who are the Four Sons mentioned in the Haggadah?
👉 Wise, Wicked, Simple, One who doesn’t know to ask

❓ What questions do we ask in Ma Nishtana? (Mention 3)
👉 Matzah / Maror / Reclining

🌾 What are the five grains that can become chametz?
👉 Wheat, Barley, Spelt, Rye, Oats

⏳ What three elements are necessary for something to become chametz?
👉 Grain + Water + Time

🚫 What is Bitul Chametz?
👉 Declaring chametz ownerless/null

🫓 What is the difference between regular matzah and matzah shemurah?
👉 Shemurah is guarded from harvest

🙏 What two berachot do we say before eating matzah at the Seder?
👉 HaMotzi / Al Achilat Matzah

🏺 What is the Afikoman, and when do we eat it?
👉 Final matzah, eaten at end

🧂 What does dipping karpas in salt water symbolize?
👉 Tears of slavery

⚖ What amount of chametz makes a food forbidden on Pesach?
👉 Even a tiny amount

🔥 How do we make an oven kosher for Pesach?
👉 Clean well + high heat (libun)

🛡 What is the meaning of the text “Vehi She’amda” in the Haggadah?
👉 HaShem protects us in every generation

🎶 Name five things for which we thank HaShem in Dayenu.
👉 Exodus / Splitting Sea / Manna / Torah / Israel

🚿 What special handwashing do we perform during the Seder?
👉 Urchatz (no beracha)

🛋 How and when do we recline during the Seder, and why?
👉 While eating/drinking — sign of freedom

🍷 What foods must be eaten while reclining?
👉 Matzah and 4 cups of wine

🐸 🩸 🔥 What were the Ten Plagues that struck Egypt before the Exodus? Hebrew and English
👉 Dam–Blood / Tzefardea–Frogs / Kinim–Lice / Arov–Wild animals / Dever–Pestilence / Shechin–Boils / Barad–Hail / Arbeh–Locusts / Choshech–Darkness / Makat Bechorot–Death of Firstborn

🎉 PESACH TRIVIA — Questions and Answers

Sephardic Tradition • Children’s Level

❓ 1. On which Hebrew day and month does Pesach begin?

✅ It begins on the 15th of Nisan. The Seder is on the night of the 15th.

❓ 2. What do we celebrate on the seventh day of Pesach?

🌊 We celebrate the splitting of the Red Sea (Yam Suf), when HaShem saved Bene Israel from Paro’s army.

🎶 We read the Shira — the Song of the Sea.

❓ 3. Who were the brother and sister of Moshe?

👨 Aharon

👩 Miriam

❓ 4. What were the names of Moshe’s parents?

👨 Amram

👩 Yocheved

➡️ Both from the tribe of Levi

❓ 5. What does the charoset represent?

🟤 It represents the mortar and mixture our ancestors used as slaves in Egypt.

🌰 In the Sephardic tradition, it is made with dates, raisins, nuts, and spices.

❓ 6. Who are the Four Sons in the Haggadah?

🧠 The wise (Hacham)

😠 The wicked (Rasha)

🙂 The simple (Tam)

🤷 The one who does not know how to ask

❓ 7. What questions do we ask in Ma Nishtana? (mention 3)

🫓 Why do we eat only matza and not bread?

🌿 Why do we eat maror?

🥣 Why do we dip our food twice?

➡️ (Sephardic: Why do we recline?)

❓ 8. What are the five grains that can become chametz?

🌾 Wheat

🌾 Barley

🌾 Spelt

🌾 Rye

🌾 Oats

❓ 9. What three elements make something chametz?

1️⃣ One of the five grains

2️⃣ Water

3️⃣ Time (18 minutes to ferment)

❓ 10. What is Bitul Chametz?

🗣 It is declaring that all chametz is like dust and ownerless.

🏠 In addition, we must physically remove it from all our properties.

❓ 11. What is the difference between regular matza and matza shemura?

🫓 Matza shemura = “guarded matza” from the time of harvest

➡️ It is protected so no water touches it before baking

👉 This is what we use at the Seder

❓ 12. What two berachot do we say before eating matza?

🍞 Hamotzi lechem min ha’aretz

🫓 Al achilat matza

❓ 13. What is the Afikoman and when do we eat it?

🫓 It is a piece of matza set aside

⏳ It is eaten at the end of the Seder

🎒 Many children carry it on their shoulder, remembering the Exodus from Egypt

❓ 14. What does dipping karpas in salt water symbolize?

💧 It represents the tears of Bene Israel during slavery

❓ 15. How much chametz makes a food forbidden on Pesach?

⚠️ Even a tiny amount (very small!) makes it forbidden

❓ 16. How do we kasher an oven for Pesach?

🧽 Clean it היטב

⏳ Do not use it for 24 hours

🔥 Heat it at maximum temperature (libun) to burn any residue

❓ 17. What does “VeHi She’amda” mean?

🛡 That HaShem’s promise protects us

➡️ In every generation they try to destroy us, but HaShem saves us

❓ 18. Name 5 things we thank HaShem for in Dayenu

🙏 Leaving Egypt

🌊 Crossing the sea

🕯 Receiving Shabbat

⛰ Arriving at Har Sinai

📖 Receiving the Torah

❓ 19. What handwashing do we do at the Seder?

🧼 Twice:

1️⃣ Urchatz (without a beracha)

2️⃣ Rachtzah (with a beracha)

❓ 20. How and when do we recline at the Seder? Why?

↩️ We recline to the left

🍷 When drinking the 4 cups

🫓 When eating matza

👑 Because that is how free people ate

❓ 21. Which foods are eaten while reclining?

🍷 The 4 cups

🫓 The matza (including Afikoman)

🥪 Korech

🚫 Maror does not require reclining

❓ 22. What are the Ten Plagues?

1️⃣ 🩸 Blood

2️⃣ 🐸 Frogs

3️⃣ 🐜 Lice

4️⃣ 🐾 Wild animals

5️⃣ 🐄 Pestilence

6️⃣ 🤕 Boils

7️⃣ 🌨 Hail

8️⃣ 🦗 Locusts

9️⃣ 🌑 Darkness

🔟 👶 Death of the firstborn

Before Pesach begins, we must make sure that no edible chametz remains in our homes.

Chametz refers to foods or drinks (for humans or for pets) made from, or containing any element derived from, the five grains: wheat, barley, oats, rye, and spelt. Such as bread, cake, pasta, cookies, and many alcoholic beverages like beer, whisky, vodka, etc.

The Torah teaches that during Pesach chametz may not be eaten, and it also may not be in our possession.

The Rabbis also taught that we must physically remove all edible chametz from our properties. This includes our homes, cars, offices, or any other place.

That is why, before Pesach, we carefully clean our homes and remove from them all chametz products.

🔍 Tuesday, March 31 (at night)

Bedikat Chametz – Searching for Chametz

On the night before Erev Pesach, that is, tonight Tuesday, March 31, we perform Bedikat Chametz, the final search for chametz.

Using a flashlight 🔦, we carefully check places where food might be found. (traditionally, candles 🕯️ were used, but today many rabbis recommend using a flashlight due to fire concerns.)

📍 Places to check carefully:
🍪 kitchen
🧺 pantry
🧊 refrigerator and freezer
🛋 dining room
🚗 car
🎒 backpacks, bags, pockets

During the search, we are mainly looking for actual chametz food, such as:

🍪 cookies
🍫 snacks and candy
🥨 crackers, pretzels
🥣 cereals
🍺 alcoholic drinks made from grain
🥤Liquid products such as multivitamin drinks or protein shakes that contain chametz.
🐶 pet food (many contain chametz and may not be used or kept during Pesach)

What is NOT Chametz?

Some items are not considered chametz because they are not edible, food, even if they might contain grain derivatives.

For example:
🧴 cosmetics
🧽 cleaning products
💊 medications in the form of hard tablets, which are swallowed with water

These may remain in our possession during Pesach.

What is Se’or?

🫙 Se’or is the sourdough starter used to make bread 

It is an additive that is not eaten directly, but is kept in the home (it can last for years!) and is used whenever one wants to prepare homemade sourdough bread.

The Torah forbids using or keeping se’or during Pesach.
Therefore, it must also be removed from the house, and it is discarded or given away before the holiday.

The Berakhah

Before beginning the search we say:

Barukh Ata A-donay, E-lohenu Melekh ha’Olam, asher qiddeshanu be-mitsvotav ve-tsivanu al bi’ur chametz.

Translation:
“Blessed are You, HaShem our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to remove the chametz [from our homes].”

Bitul Chametz – First Declaration

After the search, we place the chametz we found in a safe place in order to remove it from the house the next day.

Then we recite the Bitul Chametz, declaring that any edible chametz that we may not have found during this inspection no longer belongs to us:

Kal chamira deika birshuti dela chaziteh vedela biarteh, libtil veleheve hefker ke’afra de’ar’a

This means:
“All chametz or se’or that is in my possession, which I did not see and did not remove from the house, should be considered ownerless like the dust of the earth.”

📅 Wednesday, April 1 (in the morning)

Erev Pesach

Bi’ur Chametz – Removing the Chametz from the house

After breakfast we gather:

• the chametz found the night before
• any remaining chametz

And we remove it from the house.

📚 Traditionally it is burned 🔥(in the past garbage was disposed of this way).

But it may also be:

🗑️ thrown into a garbage bin outside the home
🐦 given to animals

Bitul Chametz – Final Declaration

After removing or burning the chametz, we repeat the declaration, this time more broadly:

כָּל חֲמִירָא דְּאִיכָּא בִרְשׁוּתִי…

Transliteration:
Kal Chamira de’ika birshuti dehaziteh u’dela haziteh…

Meaning:
“Any chametz that belongs to me, whether I saw it or not, whether I removed it from my house or not, should be considered ownerless like the dust of the earth.”

Chametz may be eaten until the end of the fourth hour of the day, and must be removed from the house until the end of the fifth hour.

In our community, UMJCA, every year we use the same times:

🍞 Chametz may be eaten only until 10:00 a.m.
🕚 It must be removed from the house before 11:00 a.m.

For times in other cities and locations, see:
https://www.myzmanim.com/search.aspx

 

 

 

📚 רֶגַע שֶׁל עִבְרִית – Mini Ulpan

The Hebrew root ב־ע־ר (BET–AYIN–RESH) is polysemous: it has several different meanings depending on the context. The same is true for the root ע־ר־ב (AYIN–RESH–BET), which contains the same letters and has multiple meanings.

The word Bi’ur (בִּעוּר) in this context does not mean “burning”. It comes from the root בער, which means to remove something completely from a place, leaving nothing behind.

Examples:

וּבִעַרְתָּ הָרָע מִקִּרְבֶּךָ
“You shall remove the evil from your midst”

Or even closer:

בִּעַרְתִּי הַקֹּדֶשׁ מִן הַבָּיִת
“I have removed [completely] all that is sacred from the house (ma’aser, etc.)” (Devarim 26:13)

👉 Bi’ur Chametz = removing the chametz completely from the house

1️⃣ What is Matzah?

🫓 Matzah is a special bread that we eat during Pesach.
It is made from only two ingredients:

🌾 wheat flour
💧 water

Unlike regular bread, the dough used for matzah has no yeast (no sourdough starter) and is not left to rise.
Instead, matzah stays flat, thin, and crisp.

2️⃣ Why Do We Eat Matzah?

The Torah commands us to eat matzah on the night of the Seder.
Matzah reminds us of two important moments in our history.

🏃 The Bread of Freedom

On the night of the Exodus, Pharaoh suddenly told the Jewish people to leave Egypt immediately.

⏳ There was no time to wait for bread to rise.

This reminds us that it was HaShem—not an army, a revolution, or another human event—who brought our freedom.

The people quickly prepared simple flat dough and baked it right away. Instead of bread, they left Egypt carrying matzah.

🫓 Their matzot traveled with them into the desert.

That is why the Torah commands us to eat matzah every year at the Seder—to remember the night we became free through HaShem.

🧱 The Bread of Slavery

“Lechem Oni” — לֶחֶם עֹנִי — Bread of Poverty

The Haggadah tells us that when the Jewish people were slaves in Egypt, they ate matzah all the time:

🍽 breakfast • 🍽 lunch • 🍽 dinner

For the Egyptian slave masters, matzah was the cheapest and simplest bread to feed the Jewish slaves.

It had:
❌ no yeast
❌ no salt
❌ no special ingredients

They gave it to the slaves because it was cheap to make, quick to prepare (no waiting for the dough to rise), and it kept their stomachs full for a long time.

Regular Egyptian bread was soft, fluffy, and rich, but the Jewish slaves received only simple flat bread — matzah.

That is why the Haggadah begins:

“Ha Lachma Anya — This is the bread of poverty that our ancestors ate in Egypt.”

🫓 When we eat matzah, we also remember our lives as slaves in Egypt.

Bread Comparison

🥖 Egyptian Bread
soft • fluffy • rich

🫓 Jewish Bread (Matzah)
flat • simple • crisp

 

🎭 A Beautiful Sephardic Custom

In many Sephardic Jewish communities, families act out the Exodus story during the Seder.

Children place matzah on their shoulders, like the Jews leaving Egypt.

Then the children are asked:

👨🏻 “Where are you coming from?”
👦🏽 מֵאֵיפֹה אַתָּה בָּא?
👧🏾 “From Egypt!” — מִמִּצְרַיִם!

👨🏼 “Where are you going?”
👦🏽 לְאָן אַתָּה הוֹלֵךְ?
👧🏾 “To Yerushalayim!” — לִירוּשָׁלַיִם!

👨🏿 “What are you carrying with you?”
👦🏽 מַה אַתָּה נוֹשֵׂא?
👧🏾 “Matzah and Maror!” — מַצָּה וּמָרוֹר!

 

This custom is inspired by the Torah’s description of the Exodus:

מִשְׁאֲרֹתָם צְרוּרוֹת בְּשִׂמְלֹתָם עַל־שִׁכְמָם
“They carried their dough wrapped in their clothes upon their shoulders.”
(Shemot 12:34)

This reenactment helps children imagine themselves leaving Egypt, just as our ancestors did.

 

3️⃣ How is Matzah Made?

🧑‍🍳 Making matzah must be done very quickly and carefully.

From the moment the flour touches the water until the matzah goes into the oven, no more than 18 minutes may pass.

Why?

Because after that time the dough may ferment and become chametz, which we cannot eat during Pesach.

The Process

🌾 flour + 💧 water
⬇
🥣 dough
⬇
📏 rolled very flat
⬇
🔘 holes are made
⬇
🔥 baked quickly in a hot oven
⬇
🫓 MATZAH

4️⃣ Types of Matzah

🫓 Regular Matzah

Regular matzah is supervised from the moment the flour is prepared until the matzah is baked.

🌾 grain → flour → dough → 🔥 oven → 🫓 matzah

Regular matzah is usually square and machine-made.

⭐ Matzah Shemurah

“Shemurah” means guarded or protected.

This matzah is supervised from an earlier stage—beginning when the wheat is harvested in the field.

🌾 field → grain → flour → dough → 🔥 oven → 🫓 matzah

Usually:

🫓 it is made by hand
🫓 it is usually round

Because of the extra care, Matzah Shemurah is more expensive.

Many families use Matzah Shemurah at the Seder, when eating matzah is a special mitzvah.

5️⃣ When Do We Eat Matzah?

🫓 On the night of the Seder, eating matzah is a mitzvah.

During the rest of Pesach:

❌ We do not eat Chametz.
🫓 We replace regular bread with matzah, which is why we say HaMotzi when we eat matzah during Pesach.

Even though it is not required to eat matzah every day of Pesach, matzah becomes our Pesach bread.

 

🥬 What is Maror?
The Torah says that the Pesach offering was eaten together with: 🫓 Matzah 🌿 Maror. This is how it was done when we had the Bet haMiqdash.

What is maror? A bitter vegetable. The word maror comes from the Hebrew mar, meaning “bitter.” The Torah explains that the Egyptians:
“…made the lives [of the Jewish slaves] bitter with hard labor, with mortar and bricks…” (Shemot 1:14)

🌿 We eat maror to remember and symbolically experience the bitterness of slavery in Egypt.

🥬 Which vegetable is used for maror?
Ashkenazi families often use horseradish, sometimes mixed with beet (chrein) 🌱.

Sephardic families use lettuce 🥬.
Why lettuce?

The Rabbis explained that lettuce (chazeret) starts soft and not very bitter.
But as it grows, its stalk hardens and its leaves become more bitter.

This reflects what happened in Egypt. At first, Pharaoh avoided harsh oppression so as not to provoke rebellion. But gradually, he increased the pressure until the Jewish people were fully enslaved.

The taste of maror teaches that oppression can begin subtly and later become harsh and bitter.

🗣️ Maror must be explained
At the Seder, we do not only eat maror—we must also mention it and explain its meaning.

“Rabban Gamliel taught: Anyone who does not mention (and explain) the following three things does not fully fulfill the mitzvah of the Seder — vehiggadta levincha:
🕊 Pesach 🫓 Matzah 🌿 Maror

🏗️ What work did Bene Israel do in Egypt?
At first, Pharaoh imposed forced labor as a type of tax. Bene Israel helped build the cities of Pitom and Ramses. Later, they were fully enslaved.

The Torah says:
“The Egyptians made their lives bitter with hard labor, with mortar and bricks.” (Shemot 1:14)

From the word vayemareru (“they made bitter”) comes maror.

The Torah describes their work. It was not dragging stones for pyramids.
The Jewish people made bricks using טִיט וְתֶבֶן (tit ve-teven) — mud mixed with straw.

This labor included:
🧱 Carrying heavy mud from the Nile, mixed with silt
🌾 Gathering straw and mixing it into the mud
☀️ Mixing with their feet and shaping bricks by hand

They worked long hours in thick mud under the sun.
The mud irritated their skin and hardened on their bodies. It was exhausting and unhealthy work.
Even when weak or sick, they had to continue.

This work with tit ve-teven became a central memory of slavery in Egypt.

🟤 What is Charoset?
Charoset is a mixture of fresh fruits (such as apple), dried fruits (dates, nuts, etc.), and vinegar or wine.

Its thick texture resembles the mortar used to make bricks in Egypt.
When we see the charoset, we remember the forced labor.

At the Seder we remember slavery in two ways:
🌿 The taste of maror → bitterness
🟤 The charoset → mortar

Together, they represent both the feeling and the image of slavery.

🫓 How and when do we eat maror and charoset?
At the Seder we eat maror with charoset twice:

🌿 First, we dip maror in charoset after the berachah:
“asher kideshanu bemitzvotav vetzivanu al achilat maror.”

🥪 Then, we eat maror and charoset again with matzah, in the korech sandwich, as practiced by Hillel, remembering the Pesach offering eaten with matzah and maror.

According to Maimonides, charoset is the only condiment required at the Seder:

• Karpas is dipped in charoset
• The first matzah is eaten with some charoset
• Maror is eaten with charoset, both alone and in korech 

🍇 WHY DO WE DRINK FOUR CUPS?

During the Pesach Seder, we drink four cups of wine 🍷🍷🍷🍷 (or grape juice 🧃).

The Mishnah teaches that on the night of the Seder we should act as if we ourselves left Egypt. In other words, we behave like free and noble people 🛋✨.

In ancient times, nobles and aristocrats would celebrate special occasions by reclining at the table and drinking wine generously 🍷.

In fact, they would drink wine four times during these festive meals:

🍷 The first cup was taken before sitting down at the table, like at the reception of a celebration 🎉

🍷 The second cup was drunk just before beginning the meal 🍽

🍷 The third cup was taken at the end of the meal 🍴

🍷 And the fourth cup was enjoyed during dessert, at the end of the evening 🍰

👉 This is the same structure we follow for the four cups during the Seder.

🍷 THE FOUR CUPS IN THE SEDER

🍷 The first cup is drunk at Kiddush — when the Seder begins.

📖 The second cup is drunk at the end of the Haggadah, just before the meal begins.

🍽 The third cup is drunk after the meal, following Birkat HaMazon — the blessing after eating.

🎶 The fourth cup is drunk during Hallel, after the afikoman (the “dessert” of the Seder).

🍷🛋 THE FOUR CUPS SHOULD BE DRUNK

WHILE RECLINING ON THE LEFT SIDE

📜 WHAT DO THE FOUR CUPS REPRESENT?

The Torah uses four expressions of redemption to describe the Exodus from Egypt.

HaShem says:

➡️ “I will take you out” of Egypt

🔓 “I will save you” from slavery

💪 “I will redeem you” with great miracles

🤝 “I will take you as My people”

Each cup reminds us, step by step, how HaShem led the people of Israel from slavery to freedom ✨.

👨‍👩‍👧 WHO DRINKS THE FOUR CUPS?

At the Seder, everyone drinks the four cups 🍷

👨 Adults drink wine

🧒 Children or minors drink grape juice 🧃

From ancient times, even those who could not afford wine were provided with wine—or money from community funds—so they too could have four cups at the Seder.

This ensures that everyone at the table celebrates freedom together 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦✨

So that no one feels excluded—and everyone can experience what it means to be truly free and dignified 🎉

והוצאתי והצלתי וגאלתי ולקחתי ….. והבאתי

Although today, at our Seder, we drink four cups of wine 🍷🍷🍷🍷, the original ancient tradition—mentioned by the Talmud and by Maimonides—included a fifth cup 🍷 connected to a special prayer.

This prayer is the well-known Psalm in Tehilim, Mizmor 136 📖. The Sages called it:

🎶 Hallel haGadol — the “Great Song of Praise” to HaShem.

This psalm has 26 verses, each one describing the kindness of HaShem toward His people:

🌍 It begins with the creation of the world

⛓ It includes our gratitude for the Exodus from Egypt

🇮🇱 And it concludes with the establishment of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel

ונתן ארצם לנחלה

👉 This fifth cup is NOT obligatory—it is optional.

👉 And unlike the first four cups, it was drunk only by the person reciting the psalm 👤, not by everyone at the table.

🇾🇪 Yemenite Jews maintain this custom to this day and continue to drink the fifth cup 🍷

❓ WHY IS IT CALLED ELIYAHU HANAVI’S CUP?

For centuries, the Sages debated whether this fifth cup should be drunk 🍷

The four cups correspond to the four expressions of redemption in the Torah:

📖 In Shemot (chapter 6), HaShem says:

➡️ “I will take you out”

➡️ “I will save you”

➡️ “I will redeem you”

➡️ “I will take you as My people”

But the next verse adds a fifth expression:

➡️ “And I will bring you to the Land of Israel” 🇮🇱

👉 This fifth idea is clearly reflected in Hallel haGadol

🤔 THE GREAT QUESTION

For many centuries, throughout our two thousand years of exile, the Rabbis faced a difficult question:

Yes, we were freed from Egypt ✨

Yes, we became the people of HaShem 🤝

But…

❗ We no longer had the Land of Israel

❗ We lost our land and independence after the destruction of the Bet haMiqdash

So what should we do?

❓ Should we celebrate this fifth promise because it already happened?

❓ Or should we wait until it is fully realized again, in the Messianic era?

⚖️ THE DIPLOMATIC SOLUTION

The Rabbis did not reach a final decision.

So they established a middle approach:

🍷 We pour the fifth cup

🚫 But we do NOT drink it

👉 We acknowledge the promise… but we are still waiting for its full fulfillment ✨

🚪 WHY IS IT CALLED THE CUP OF ELIYAHU HANAVI?

When a halachic question remains unresolved, we say that when Eliyahu haNavi comes (announcing the arrival of the Mashiach), all doubts will be clarified by the renewed Sanhedrin in the Bet haMiqdash.

This cup, which is poured but not drunk, is “waiting” for Eliyahu haNavi—who will tell us whether we should drink it or not.

We leave it ready, reminding us that we are still awaiting the future redemption ✨

🇮🇱 THE STATE OF ISRAEL

Today, Baruch HaShem, we once again have a sovereign Jewish state in Israel 🇮🇱.

For this reason, many contemporary Rabbis—Sephardic and Ashkenazic alike, such as Rabbi Hayim David HaLevi z”l and Rabbi Shelomo Goren z”l—have suggested:

👉 Since 1948, we may return to the original custom

👉 And drink the fifth cup 🍷

For this reason, today many Jews—especially those living in Israel—serve and drink the fifth cup in honor of Medinat Israel 🇮🇱✨

 

🌙 For more than three thousand years, the night of the Seder has become the most powerful educational experience in Jewish life. Not only because we eat Matzah 🫓 and bitter herbs 🌿 — but because on this night we do something much greater: 👉 We teach our children the story of our people. By doing so, we fulfill one of the most important mitzvot of the Torah: 📖 Sippur Yetzi’at Mitsrayim — telling the story of the Exodus from Egypt. The Torah commands: וְהִגַּדְתָּ לְבִנְךָ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא 👉 “And you shall tell your child…” (Shemot 13:8) 🎭 THE RABBIS’ GREAT CHALLENGE Our Rabbis went beyond the literal fulfillment of this mitzvah. They understood that if we simply “tell” or “read” the story, it would be difficult for children to absorb it: some can read, others cannot; some know how to ask questions, others do not. And the goal is that everyone participates. They also taught that it is not enough to explain the story of the Exodus—we must go back and experience both the suffering and the freedom as if we were there. Their guiding principle was: בְּכָל־דּוֹר וָדוֹר חַיָּב אָדָם לִרְאוֹת אֶת עַצְמוֹ כְּאִלּוּ הוּא יָצָא מִמִּצְרָיִם 👉 In every generation, a person must see himself as if he personally left Egypt. To achieve this, they designed the Seder—a structured “program” of 14 (or 15) steps as we know it today. 👉 A process that allows us, in one single night, to experience two opposite realities: • The experience of slavery • The experience of freedom These two ideas are also at the heart of the Haggadah. We do not begin with the miracles or the splitting of the sea. We begin with: 👉 “Avadim hayinu” — We were slaves in Egypt. We start from the lowest point—reliving it through the words of the Haggadah—and from there, we rise. 🌿 THE FLAVOR OF SLAVERY The Rabbis did not want slavery to remain an abstract idea. 👉 They wanted us to feel it—at least in a symbolic way—as part of the Pesach meal. That is why they established concrete symbols in the Seder: 💧 We dip the karpas in salt water or vinegar, to recall the tears of slavery. 🌿 We eat maror—a bitter herb, even though it was originally required only with the Korban Pesach. 🟤 We eat Charoset, a thick, paste-like mixture of fruits, resembling the mortar of the bricks we made in Egypt. To experience slavery, we engage our senses: We remember the tears. We taste the bitterness. We see the mortar. 🛋 EXPERIENCING FREEDOM The Sages also taught that we must experience freedom in its fullest expression. For this reason, the Pesach Seder is meant to resemble the meal of nobles and aristocrats. They derive this idea from a verse we recite in Hallel: מְקִימִי מֵעָפָר דָּל … לְהוֹשִׁיבִי עִם נְדִיבִים “He raises the poor from the dust… and seats them among nobles.” Therefore, during the Seder: 🥬 We begin with karpas (a vegetable appetizer)—something associated with refined dining, where people do not eat out of hunger but to awaken their appetite. 🛋 We recline (hasibah) like free and noble individuals. 🍷 We drink four cups of wine, as was customary in formal aristocratic meals. The Seder is not a history lesson. It is a carefully designed experience in which we move from slavery to freedom, from bitterness to dignity and celebration. We do not just remember the Exodus—we relive it.

This list of eight mitzvot is based on the introduction of Maimonides to Hilkhot Pesach, and it does not include the mitzvot related to the Pesach sacrifice (Korban Pesach).

There are three positive commandments (things we do) and five prohibitions (things we must not do) connected to Pesach.

⭐ THE 3 POSITIVE COMMANDMENTS

1. אכילת מצה

🫓 Eating Matzah

On the first night of Pesach we eat matzah.
(In the Diaspora we eat matzah on the first two nights.)

Matzah reminds us that the Jewish people left Egypt very quickly, before their bread had time to rise.

During the rest of Pesach it is forbidden to eat chametz, but technically there is no formal obligation to continue eating matzah.

2. והגדת לבנך

📖 Telling Our Children the Story

On the first night of Pesach (in the Diaspora, the first two nights) we tell our children the story of:

➡️ the slavery in Egypt
➡️ how HaShem redeemed us

We do this by reading and explaining the Haggadah at the Seder.

This mitzvah includes many beautiful traditions:

🍷 Drinking the four cups of wine
🪑 Reclining like free people
🥬 Eating maror (bitter herbs) to remember the bitterness of slavery
🍎 Eating charoset, which reminds us of the bricks our ancestors made in Egypt
❓ Asking the Four Questions and discussing the story of the Exodus

All these traditions help us tell the story and remember what happened.

3. השבתת חמץ

🧹Disowning and  Removing Chametz

Before Pesach, we must disown any chametz that belongs to us (Bitul).

The Rabbis added that we must also physically remove chametz from our property—our homes, cars, offices, etc. (Bi’ur).

How do we get rid of our chametz? We can:

🏠 Remove it from our homes
🗑 Throw it in the garbage outside the house
🔥 Burn it
🐦 Feed it to birds or fish (in a lake or river)
🎁 Give it as a gift or sell it to a non-Jew

This should be done on the eve of Pesach, on the 14th of Nisan, in the late morning.

📅 In 2026:  

On Tuesday, March 31 at night, we do the Bedikat Chametz; we search the house for chametz.

The next day, Wednesday, April 1, is Erev Pesach. We must finish eating chametz by 10:00 AM and remove it (biur) and declare it ownerless (bitul) by 11:00 AM .

 

⛔ THE 5 PROHIBITIONS

4. איסור אכילת חמץ

🚫🍞 Not Eating Chametz or Se’or

During Pesach we are not allowed to eat chametz.

Chametz is food made from these five grains:

🌾 wheat
🌾 barley
🌾 rye
🌾 oats
🌾 spelt

If these grains ferment or rise, they become chametz.

Se’or is sourdough, used to make bread during the year. We may not keep this dough during Pesach.

5. איסור אכילת תערובת חמץ

🚫🥨 Not Eating Food that Contains Chametz

It is also forbidden to eat any food that contains chametz or natural yeast during Pesach.

The Gemara gives examples of foods that contained mixtures of chametz, such as:

🧀 Kutach ha-Bavli — a type of cottage-like cheese that contained small pieces of bread.
🍺 Shekhar ha-Madi — a drink made from grain, similar to beer.

6. בל יראה

👀🚫 Chametz or Se’or Should Not Be Seen

During Pesach we may not possess chametz anywhere that belongs to us.

Chametz should not be visible in our homes.

7. בל ימצא

🔎🚫 Chametz or Se’or Should Not Be Found

Chametz also should not be found in our possession during Pesach.

These two mitzvot (6 and 7) are actually identical.
They teach the same idea in two ways.

The Sages refer to them together with the famous words:

בל יראה בל ימצא
“Chametz should not be seen and not be found in your possession during Pesach.”

8. איסור אכילת חמץ ערב פסח אחר חצות היום

⏰🚫🍞 Not Eating Chametz on the Eve of Pesach

On the day before Pesach we must stop eating chametz at midday.

The Rabbis moved this prohibition earlier, so chametz may only be eaten until the end of the fourth hour of the day.

These hours are daylight hours, calculated by dividing the time from sunrise to sunset into twelve parts.

📅 In 2026:
This rule applies on April 1, Erev Pesach, the day before the Seder.

In many communities, such as UMJCA, the established practice is that chametz may be eaten only until 10:00 a.m. On that day, all activities related to chametz—such as selling it, giving it away, or eliminating it—must be completed by 11:00 a.m.