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The Seder Plate 
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“I
will bring you out from the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you
from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with
great judgments; and I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a
God…” Exodus
6:6-7 |
| The Passover Seder is a symbolic ritual meal, built
around a real meal. The point of the Seder is the telling of the story of the
exodus from Egypt, and all participants are supposed to regard themselves as
personally experiencing the going out from Mitzrayim, which in Hebrew means a
tight spot, a narrow place, and is the word used for Egypt. These symbols of Passover
are often presented on a special plate as part of the Seder table. The plate is
frequently ornate and beautiful, having been especially designed for its
function. It is supposed to be placed before the person leading the Seder. |
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On most Seder plates, arranged in convenient slots (sometimes with painted representations of the symbols) and on the table itself, are the following: Three pieces of Matzah, representing the Lechem Mishneh, the two loaves of bread that were set out on a special altar in the Temple during Shabbat and Festivals, with the third matzah being a symbol of the Passover; Zeroa, the symbol of the Passover sacrifice in the Temple, usually represented by a roasted lamb shankbone; Karpas, parsley, lettuce, or other somewhat bitter green vegetable, for dipping in salt water, used as a representation of spring, hope, and renewal; Maror, the bitter herb, recalling the bitter helplessness and degradation of slavery (on most Seder plates there are two types of bitter herbs: the top part of a horseradish root, and prepared or grated horseradish to be eaten together with matzah as part of the rituals); Charoset, a combination of wine, chopped nuts, apples, and raisins to represent the mortar used by the Children of Israel to build Pharaoh’s projects (Why is charoset so sweet? Perhaps to remind us that Israel preferred slavery to the hardships and tests of a free people?) Beitseh, a roasted egg, recalling the Chagigah, the festival sacrifice offered in Jerusalem on the three pilgrimage festivals of Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot. |
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The Seder table includes goblets for wine and the
cup of Elijah. Four cups of wine are required to be drunk at the Seder,
corresponding to the four divine promises of deliverance quoted at the head of this
article. Because there is also a fifth promise (Exodus 6:8: “ I will bring you
into the land… and I will give it to you as a heritage”), there was a
disagreement among the rabbis as to whether a fifth cup of wine was required.
The compromise was to fill a fifth cup that would not be drunk from and over
which a blessing would not be said. Because it was believed that Elijah the
Prophet would resolve all controversies in a future time, that fifth cup came
to be known as Kos Eliyahu, Elijah’s Cup. Over time this cup has stood for the
belief that Elijah will surely one day appear to announce the messianic
redemption, which would take place in the Month of Nisan as did the redemption
from Egypt. |
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| For Further Reading: | Blessings |
Religious Objects is produced by Steve
Butterfass and Eric Bonnell