This Saturday night, millions of Jews, more or less simultaneously, will be time-traveling and boundary-crossing, joining together in this ancient ritual with a modern Zionist resonance.
On one level, admittedly, my call to “Zionize the Seder” is redundant. The seder is deeply Zionist already, in marking our freedom as a people. The Exodus is from Egypt…. to the Promised Land. The “Hallel” psalms of gratitude were sung ecstatically during festivals in Jerusalem’s Holy Temple. The 1370 Barcelona Haggadah devotes a whole decorated page to proclaiming: “LeShana HaBa’ah BeYerushalayim” – next year in Jerusalem.
And can anyone honestly sing Dayenu – especially the stanza celebrating our return to the Land of Israel then – without appreciating our good fortune to have a thriving Jewish state now – or the many miracles that saved us after Hamas’s horrific invasion of October 7?
Still, in 2018, I felt compelled to add texts from my book The Zionist Ideas to “Zionize the Seder.” It was so easy to integrate the Haggadah. So many texts jumped off my pages and embraced the ancient rituals, our old-new ideas and ideals.
Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik’s 1956 sermon marveling at Israel’s founding enhances the kiddush’s celebration of the miracles of creation and national liberation. The author Hillel Halkin’s cataloguing of Israel’s convention-defying accomplishments evoke Dayenu. Instead, I placed his text with the Four Questions. Halkin asks a pointed question: “Would anyone believe that one could repeatedly declare how much this people means to one but think the [Israel] adventure is entirely for others?”
Reframing the Wicked Son, highlighting how Zionism liberated us, in Israel and beyond, I add Berl Katzenelson’s 1934 “Revolution and Tradition.” We all need the skill of remembering, to anchor us and give us identity, he taught — and the skill of forgetting, to free us to innovate and grow.
Where the Haggadah notes how Jews become a numerous free people, I inserted the playwright David Mamet’s epic line: “Real life consists in belonging.” Just soak those five words in for a moment.
Before singing Hallel, I propose reading Golda Meir’s 1958 UN speech, applauding Israel’s 10th anniversary. She proclaimed: “our purposes since the establishment of our state have remained unaltered: to rebuild a poor, barren land, to enable the return of an ancient people to its source, to regain our independence and national self-expression, to live in peace with all peoples near and far, and to take our place in the community of free nations.” Consider how far we’ve come – and where else we need to go.
The Zionization requires more than reading. The great danger of the Haggadah is that the text is so rich, our seder plate and agenda so full, that we will just rush through the experience – or simply mimic the teachings from before. It’s important to carve out time in the seder to debate, to talk, to learn actively.
As we start, while recalling Rabbi Eliezer sitting around learning all night with colleagues 1900 years ago, I ask, why not prepare for Israel’s 77th anniversary next month by replicating the small “salons” that popped up throughout Eastern Europe more than a century ago, debating three key Zionist ideas: that we are a people as well as a religion, that we have a homeland, and that we, like other nations, have rights to establish a state on that homeland.
With no additional readings, we can mirror Rabbi Eliezer and his buddies, and think big. Let’s ask:
• “What’s the most inspiring experience you’ve had in Israel? Jewishly in general?
• “What does having a State of Israel mean for us today?”
• “How should we celebrate Israel’s 77th?” (starting with ice cream for breakfast!).
• “Do we seek a closer a relationship with Israel – why or why not?”
My Zionizing supplement ends with 20 Zionist one-liners, encouraging a parlor game. Give each participant a key Zionist quotation (two can get the same one). Each one reads it and reacts, saying “Huh, this is an interesting piece of the puzzle explaining Zionism,” or “Wow, this is exactly what I think” or “Uh-uh, I disagree.” This way we learn to model a nuanced conversation going beyond all-or-nothing agreement or condemnation.
Because the seder is interactive, opportunities to relive Jewish history – and choreograph family memories – abound. When our kids were young, we stood up, singing and dancing around the table to re-enact the Exodus.
Since October 7, I’ve updated the supplement to include testimonials and reflections, remembering our holy hostages, honoring our fallen soldiers. I wrote two prayers. One, a memorial prayer to recite as we sit down to a seder table with one empty chair – naming one fallen soldier or one of the 59 hostages Hamas still holds. And, a second, as we sing Dayenu, is a modern Dayenu – “thanks, each would have been enough” — acknowledging Zionism’s seven modern triumphs, from establishing Jewish sovereignty and a robust old-new culture, to inspiring and strengthening Jews worldwide.
Breaking the Matzah to transform it into the “afikoman” dessert, ritualizes the process of breaking and building, of losing and healing. That brings to life Ben Zussman’s letter, read after this 22-year-old fell in Gaza, telling his parents: “Probably no one is happier than me right now. I’m truly on the verge of fulfilling my dream soon. I’m happy and grateful for the honor I have to defend our beautiful country and Am Yisrael, the Jewish people.”
Before “Baruch HaMakom” praising God’s redemptive abilities, recite the poem Rachel Goldberg read to the UN 67 days into the hostage crisis –the first seder is on the 553rd day of hell for them. The heroic mother of Hersh Goldberg z”l, considering the “million tears” she and many others shed since October 7, wondered: “Can we take the… sea of tears… remove the salt/ and pour them over our desert of despair/and plant one tiny seed?”
For the four sons, this journal’s columnist Tabby Refael modeled how to be wise by listening generously. Last year, she wrote about assuming a questioner’s good intentions and choosing not to be possessive about her “lived experience” as a Persian Jew. Instead, she welcomed him and us to broaden our understanding of Judaism and Jewish peoplehood, beyond our particular subgroup and historical chip-on-the-shoulder.
To pre-empt anguished discussions around the 10 plagues and the drowning at the Red Sea, I include an important analysis from West Point’s urban warfare expert. John Spencer concluded that Israel “has painstakingly followed the laws of armed conflict and implemented many steps to prevent civlian casualties, despite enormous challenges.” More information like this is found in my “Essential Guide to October 7th and Its Aftermath: Facts, Figures, History..”
And, as we sit down to the meal – finally – remember it’s the highly-caloric Jewish version of the half-time show: there’s more to come!
Still, while eating, learn from the last will and testament of another Jerusalem soldier who fell, Shachar Fridman, 21. He urged: “Be good people – smile – strive to make every person you meet smile too….”
That’s a life lesson to remember, forever. Of course, that’s why the seder has long proved so resonant. It was relevant then. It was relevant last Pesach. It feels not just relevant but urgent today. And its Jewish, Zionist, freedom-loving and humanity-affirming lessons resonate every day of the year, for Jews and non-Jews alike.
Professor Gil Troy is a Senior Fellow in Zionist Thought at the JPPI, the Jewish People Policy Institute. His supplement to “Zionize the Seder” can be found at www.giltroy.com
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