1992
Scenes from an Egyptian Family:
A Passover Haggadah
By John Kador
1. Welcome and Introductions
LEADER: Over three thousand years ago at this time, something very important happened and it is still happening today.
ADULT 1: The Jews, who were slaves in Egypt, rose up and demanded their freedom. We continue to demand it today.
CHILD 1: We tell the Passover story for two reasons.
CHILD 4: First, we want to remember, to never forget how easy it is to be slaves and how hard it is to be free. But there is another reason we tell the Passover story.
ADULT: It's not enough to remember. Telling the story year after year helps us feel as if we ourselves had been slaves in Egypt.
ADULT 3: Jews have learned that when it's really important, it's not enough just to talk about it. We want to act it out.
ADULT So at this time, we will again learn about how the Jews made the Egyptians end the slavery. We will learn again about the plagues that God sent to punish the Egyptians.
ADULT: We will learn about the women, Egyptians and Hebrews, that made the men see reason.
CHILD 2: We will learn about Moses, the LEADER of the Jews, and Pharaoh, the LEADER of the Egyptians.
CHILD 4: And for the first time, we will think about the ordinary Egyptians--people like you and me. How did they see the story? What happened to them? Today we shall see.
2. Scene from an Egyptian Family
CHILD 3: Mommy, what does Daddy do for a living?
CHILD 4: He is an overseer. He works in the mud pits with the Jews to make them work harder.
CHILD 3: How does he do that?
ADULT: He whips them so they will make more bricks for Pharaoh's pyramids. But he pulls back at the last minute so the whip doesn't hurt so much.
ADULT 5: (Remembering) Once Daddy whipped me and it hurt like hell!
ADULT: (Making a decision). Yes. It was wrong to whip you and it is wrong to whip the slaves.
3. Scene from a Hebrew Family
CHILD 1: Dad, why are Jews slaves?
ADULT 1: Well, son, when our people came here a long time ago, the Pharaoh feared our strength. So he made us into slaves.
CHILD 1: Did we fight?
ADULT 1: No and we should have. We thought that the kind that enslaved us was just a bad man and that once he died, the new king would set us free.
CHILD 1: Bad guess, huh? We've got to do something about it.
ADULT: (Desperately trying to change the subject) Uhh. How was your day at work, dear?
ADULT 1: Awful. They treated me like a slave.
CHILD 1: (Refusing to change the subject) You are a slave, Dad.
ADULT 1: (Gives son a frustrated look and sarcastically says). Thanks. No wonder there's no profit sharing.
CHILD 2: We shouldn't have given up so easily. I'm going to say something in school.
ADULT 1: No, don't. If the Egyptians hear that you are speaking up like that, they will take you away and whip you. Wait.
CHILD 2: Wait for what?
ADULT 1: They say the Deliverer is near.
CHILD 1: Hah! I've been hearing that ever since I was little. Domino's has a guarantee. What do we have?
ADULT 3: (With conviction). But I feel it, too. The Deliverer is surely near.
4. Scene from an Egyptian Family
ADULT 1: (Tired) God, what a day it's been.
ADULT: What? Did the Deliverer show up?
ADULT 1: Nah. Just the usual. I don't know about those Jews. Maybe they deserve to be slaves. By the end of the day, they so covered with mud I can't tell if they're people or apes.
ADULT: Look at yourself. You're completely covered with mud, too. That's what slavery is doing to us. To keep every Jew in the mud, an Egyptian has to be right there in the mud beside him. Care for a banana, dear?
ADULT 1: (Looks at himself. With emotion) I know. It tears me up to see the Jews in such pain.
ADULT: So what can we do?
ADULT 1: Nothing. I have a family to feed. I try not to whip the Jews too hard. But if I don't do it, that Tut guy who wants my job will. And he likes to whip Jews hard!
5. The Story of Moses
LEADER: At this point, let's go back a few years. Moses, who was destined to lead the struggle of his people for freedom, was born to Hebrew slaves Yocheved and Amram.
ADULT 4(as Amram): Did you hear the news? Pharaoh is killing every baby boy?
ADULT (as Yocheved): Why?
ADULT 1 (as Pharaoh's Magician): Oh great Pharaoh, the stars tell of the birth of a baby boy who will grow up to free the slaves.
CHILD 1 (as Pharaoh): Wait! I can't let that happen. What can we do about it?
ADULT 1 (as Pharaoh's Magician): Well, why don't you kill every male child? If there are no baby boys, the prediction can't come true.
CHILD : (as Pharaoh): Good idea. Let the word go forth that all Jewish baby boys must be killed. So let it be written. So let it be done!
LEADER: So the order went out to kill all the children. But Yocheved defied Pharaoh's order. She put Moses in a basket and floated the baby away in the Nile River.
CHILD 4: As it turned out, Pharaoh's daughter found Moses and adopted him as her son.
CHILD 3: And so it was that Moses grew up in the Pharaoh's court and thought of himself as an Egyptian.
CHILD 2: He saw the way Jewish slaves were treated and felt sad.
ADULT But as he grew older, he found that it was getting harder and harder to accept the way the Jews were being treated.
ADULT 3: One day, when we was grown, he was passing the mud pits were the Jewish slaves were making bricks.
LEADER: He saw an Egyptian overseer whipping a Jew and something snapped in Moses. He got so angry that without thinking, he killed the Egyptian. He didn't know what came over him, and he ran away before they could catch him.
6. Scene from an Egyptian Family
ADULT: Kids, sit down. I have very sad news. Daddy is dead!
CHILD 3: Oh no, What happened?
ADULT: Daddy was at work today as usual. A man named Moses killed him.
CHILD : Why? Did Daddy do anything?
ADULT: Daddy was whipping a Jew. When he did, this Moses got real angry and killed Daddy.
ADULT 5: Is Moses a slave?
ADULT: No, that's the funny thing. He is an Egyptian of royal birth.
7. Scene from a Hebrew Family
ADULT 1: (Excited) Hey everybody, an amazing thing happened today.
CHILD 1: What? Did they finally invent the wheel?
ADULT 1 (Looks at CHILD 1 with a pained expression): What's a wheel? No. I was being whipped by that overseer. You know, the one who only pretends to hurt me. Suddenly an Egyptian wearing the clothes of a nobleman came to my rescue and killed him.
CHILD 1: No kidding. Why?
ADULT 1: No one knows. He escaped before the Egyptians caught him.
CHILD 1: What kind of man was he?
ADULT 1: I don't know. But before he ran away, he said, "You won't be a slave much longer. Be well, my brother."
CHILD 1: "My brother!???...."
ADULT 3: (With awe) Do you think it's, maybe, the Deliverer.
8. Scene from an Egyptian Family
(An Egyptian middle class couple at dinner)
ADULT: My wife, did you hear about Moses?
CHILD 4: Yes, what a story. Maybe Pharaoh will give slavery up.
ADULT: Are you going to start worrying about the slaves again?
CHILD 4: Can you tell me you don't feel anything for those poor people?
ADULT: It doesn't matter what I feel. You know that. I don't like it anymore than you do, but there's nothing we can do about it.
CHILD 4: Well I'm going to try. I have an audience with Pharaoh tomorrow.
9. Pharaoh Meets with an Egyptian Women
ADULT: What we are doing, your Highness, keeping these people as slaves is wrong. On behalf of the mothers of Egypt, I ask you to let the people go.
ADULT 4(As Pharaoh): (Patronizing) Do not trouble yourself over matters more properly handled by men. The slaves are not the concern of women.
ADULT: Are women not concerned with right and wrong, Your Highness? We, who nurture Egypt's young, tremble for our nation when we reflect that the Gods are just.
ADULT 4(As Pharaoh): The Jews were slaves when my father the Pharaoh ruled. I will not be the king that frees them.
ADULT: Yes you will. It is the destiny of all people to be free. As long as the Jews are enslaved, Egypt is, too.
10. The Story of Moses Continues
LEADER: After killing the overseer, Moses escaped to a nearby land, married, had children, and became a shepherd. Most of all he wanted to forget his people's suffering.
CHILD 2: But he couldn't. Not having been a slave himself, he saw more clearly than anyone else that slavery could be stopped.
CHILD 4: One day, while rescuing a lost lamb, God showed him a burning bush that burned and burned but never burned up.
ADULT 3: This was a sign that although the Jewish people might be burned up, too, it would continue to live and resist.
ADULT 5: Moses understood that it was time to return to his people.
11. The Ten Plagues
ADULT 1 (as Moses): Oh Pharaoh, it is wrong to keep anyone in slavery. Let my people go free!
LEADER (as Pharaoh): Forget it! I need slaves to make my bricks of straw and mud. Go away and don't bother me.
ADULT 1 (as Moses): No. I speak in God's name. If you do not listen to my pleas for justice and mercy, God will visit ten plagues on you and your people.
LEADER: As each plague is read, we dip our fingers into wine or juice and shake a drop on our plates to symbolize the blood, the very real damage that these plagues caused. Here are the plagues.
CHILD 1: First, God turned the rivers into blood.
ADULT: The fishes died, the
rivers stank;
All throats were parched and dry.
Seven days of blood--the whole land rang
With Egypt's mournful cry.
CHILD : Second, God sent millions of frogs
CHILD 4: Millions of frogs
came
Filling every bed.
Frogs in every drawer
And frogs on every head!
CHILD : Third and fourth, God sent gnats and flies.
ADULT 3: Gnats and flies.
Flies and gnats.
We sure know them by heart
The thing that really bugs us,
Is we can't tell them apart.
ADULT 5: Fifth, God killed all the cows.
CHILD 1: It's hard to give
up chocolate milk
Goat's milk makes me shudder.
Free the slaves and free the cows.
We can't have one without the udder.
ADULT: Sixth, God made everyone's skin break out in boils.
ADULT Boils on our arms and
boils on our knees!
Let's come now to the point.
When our butts are full of boils
We'll reach our boiling point.
CHILD 2: Seventh, God sent hail to destroy the crops.
CHILD 4: Hail is water that
turns to ice
And falls like rocks and stones.
But it's not the crops that we hate smashed.
It's the hail that breaks our bones.
CHILD : Eighth, God sent locusts to eat everything that wasn't covered.
ADULT: Whoa, the locusts sure
are fast.
They eat everything and then
Before you can cuss the locusts,
They eat it all again.
CHILD 1: Ninth, God sent Darkness.
CHILD 4: Then God sent darkness
to the land,
And day was dark as night.
Three days Egyptians dwelt in dark
While Israel dwelt in light.
ADULT: By this time, the Egyptian people wanted Pharaoh to let the Jews go free. But still Pharaoh did not agree. So God sent the most fearsome plague of all.
12. Passover
ADULT 3: Tenth, God said that the oldest child of every family would die.
CHILD 4: The last plague was
worst of all:
Each firstborn child would die
In each Egyptian family--
And Pharaoh would know why.
CHILD 1: But first God spoke
to Moses,
Saying, "Tell your people now
To prepare to flee from Egypt--
I will tell them how.
CHILD : "At the front
door of every house
With lamb's blood make a mark.
Then roast the lamb and eat--
And stay in after dark."
CHILD 3: At midnight in each
Egyptian house
Every first-born died.
But God passed over Jewish homes--
The lamb's blood was his guide.
CHILD 2: The Jews marked their doors So the angel of death would see and pass over. That's why we call the holiday "Passover".
ADULT The Egyptian people rose up and demanded that Pharaoh listen to reason. He finally did and told the Jews to go and to go quickly before he changed his mind.
ADULT 1: And the greatest
miracle,
Greater even than Pharaoh saying "Go!"
Is that Moses was able to restrain himself
From saying, "Told you so!"
13. The Story of Matzah
LEADER: The Jews were in so much of a hurry to leave that they did not have time to let the bread rise.
ADULT 3: We don't have time
for bread to rise,
With our lambs we gotta scram,
We'll bake the dough on sun-scorched rocks
We'll call it "Matzah-on-the-lam!"
ADULT: That's why on Passover observant Jews have no bread in the house and eat only matzah.
14. The Red Sea Parts
ADULT: Meanwhile, as the Jews were getting ready to leave Egypt, Pharaoh began to think about who was going to make all those bricks. And again he changed his mind!
CHILD 2: The Jews would not return to slavery. But how could they escape with the Red Sea blocking their way?
ADULT 5: God told Moses to raise his hand, and as he did, a miracle happened.
CHILD 3: The waters parted and the Jews passed safely through a path of dry ground in the Red Sea.
CHILD 1: When the soldiers tried to follow on their horses, Moses lowered his hand. The sea tumbled back over the Egyptian army and they all drowned.
ADULT: At last the Jews were safe. In the years they spent in the desert with Moses, they learned how to be a community, living with laws, and treasuring freedom.
15. The Seder Plate
ADULT: Let's learn about the food on the seder plate,
ADULT: On the table there
is a special seder plate with five foods on it--a roasted bone, an egg,
and green herbs in the form of parsley and horseradish. There is also
a chewy mixture of chopped nuts,
apples, and wine called haroset.
ADULT: The roasted bone reminds us of the lamb that we thankfully ate at the Temple in Jerusalem.
ADULT The bitter herbs remind us how bitter it was to live the life of a slave.
CHILD 4: The haroset looks like the clay out of which we toiled to make the bricks for Pharaoh.
ADULT 3: The egg and the parsley remind us of the new life that comes each Spring.
16. Eating of the Greens and Eggs
CHILD 4: By eating the greens that come to life each Spring, we celebrate a season of rebirth and renewal, where all things are possible.
CHILD 2: The salt water reminds us of the tears our people when we were slaves in Egypt.
(Everyone dips some greens and eggs in salt water and says)
17. Breaking of the Matzah
LEADER: On the seder table, there is a plate with three pieces of matzah. One small piece we will hide. This piece is called the afikoman. (He hides the afikoman.)
ADULT: This is an important piece of matzah. We cannot finish the seder without it. So later, the children will hunt for it and the child who finds it will get a surprise.
ADULT 3: In a minute, we will find out why we are eating matzah tonight instead of bread. But first let us eat. (She takes a piece of matzah, breaks off some for herself and passes the rest along. We eat.)
(Pour a second cup of wine or juice. LEADER says a blessing.)
18. The Blessing on the Wine
CHILD 1: Legend has it that in days of old, kings and queens drank no less that three cups of wine or juice at meals.
CHILD : But tonight we are so happy that we drink four cups.
LEADER: Blessed are Thou,
Lord our God,
Ruler of the Universe, Creator of the
fruit of the vine.
19. Reminder of the Temple
ADULT: To remember the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem, we eat a sandwich of horseradish, haroset, and matzah.
(The bottom matzah is broken and distributed. Horseradish, haroset, and this matzah are eaten together.)
20. The Meal is Served
21. The Afikoman
(After the meal, the young people hunt for the afikoman. The winner receives a gift to redeem the afikoman. Pieces of this, the sweetest piece, can now be passed around.)
22. Elijah's Cup
(The door is opened and the extra cup is filled.)
LEADER: There is a story that Elijah, a great teacher who lived many years ago, visits every Seder to wish us a year of peace and freedom.
ADULT: We open the door and invite Elijah to come in and join us.
ADULT 5: Watch his cup to see if he enjoys any of the wine.
CHILD 3: door is open to welcome Elijah and as a sign of our determination to fulfill his hope of a world where there is freedom for all.
23. Blessing Over the Fourth Cup
LEADER: Blessed are Thou,
Lord our God, Ruler of
the Universe, creator of the fruit of the
vine.
24. Di E-nu, Di E-nu
ADULT: We are indeed blessed. We remember this with a song that asks, "What is enough?" The song allows us to mention all the wonderful things we have and then to gloat "but we have even more!"
ADULT 1: For example, one verse goes, "Had God helped us forty years in the desert and not fed us manna, it would have been enough." So we sing,
VERSE: I-lu hot-zi, hot-zi
an-nu
Hot-zi a-nu, mi-mitz-ray-im
Hot-zi a-nu, mi-mitz-ray-im
Di E-nu
CHORUS: Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di E-nu, Di E-nu (repeat verse and chorus)
LEADER: Had he fed us manna and not given us the Torah, it would have been enough.
ALL: Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di E-nu, Di E-nu
ADULT 3: Had he given us the Torah and not brought us into the Land of Israel, it would have been enough.
ALL: Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di E-nu, Di E-nu
CHILD 4: Had He blessed our children and kept the parents in chains, it would have been enough.
ALL: Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di E-nu, Di E-nu
ADULT: It would have been enough to have our families, but we have friends, too.
ALL: Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di E-nu, Di E-nu
CHILD 1: It would have been enough to have beautiful green meadows, but we have miniature golf, too!
ALL: Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di, Di E-nu
Di E-nu, Di E-nu
(At this point, we welcome light hearted ad libbed verses, for example, "We are not only blessed with music in the world, but we have MTV!" After each verse, the group responds with the chorus.)
25. Nirtzah: Acceptance
LEADER: The commemoration service of the Passover is now accomplished according to its order.
ADULT: May this service be acceptable before those who cherish freedom. Shalom.
John
Kador, Author
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