Telling The Exodus Story — Again?

But why, when we already know what’s going to happen?

Photo by on

I’ve been adding to my Haggadah for the past 40 years. At every Seder I’m always on the lookout for the juicy tidbit, the new understanding, the insight that makes me cry and smile at the same time, the question that gets everyone at the table involved, even the kids. Then it gets recorded in my own Haggadah.

It started back in the 80s, when I was living in Jerusalem and at a Seder. That night I heard an interpretation on the Haggadah that hit me in just the right spot, both intellectually and emotionally nourishing. I knew I’d forget what I’d heard, if I didn’t record it. So after the holiday, I wrote it down in my Haggadah.

Then I thought: Why stop here? How cool would it be to have a Haggadah perfectly attuned to my sensibilities, with my favorite teachers, mentors and Torah commentators featured in the Haggadah. So I started listening and collecting and coming up with some of my own interpretations, too.

It changed the way I approached Passover and how I experienced the Seder.

In Hebrew, Egypt — mitzrayim — means a narrow place, a tight spot, not only in the physical sense but internally, too