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Jewish Life & Celebrations

Passover

A Children's Haggadah

Rabbi Daniel Friedman
Rabbi Daniel Friedman, Rabbi Emeritus of the Kol Hadash Humanistic Congregation in Chicago, created this haggadah for children, with an abridged version appearing below.
"A Children's Haggadah" originally appeared in Humanistic Judaism, A Passover Manual, a publication of the Society for Humanistic Judaism, copyright 1984.

Ideally, the Leader will conduct the seder in an informal style, encouraging everyone to participate by singing the songs, asking questions and adding comments as appropriate. The seder is meant to be an open, creative experience rather than a fixed ritual.

LEADER: We are here together to celebrate the holiday of Passover. This is the holiday of springtime and freedom. We are happy that after the long, cold winter, the beautiful sunshine and flowers of spring can brighten our lives. And we are happy that we are free people in the land of America.

LEADER: We welcome the festival of Passover by lighting the holiday candles. Just as they bring joy and light to our seder, so may we bring joy and light to our families and friends and to the world!

EVERYONE: Ba-ruch ha-or la-olam
Precious is light to the world

Ba-ruch ha-or la-adam
Precious is light to humanity

Ba-ruch ha-or shel haz’man ha-zeh
Precious is the light of this season

(The candles are lit)

LEADER: On Passover, we drink wine or grape juice. A gift of the earth, it reminds us of nature’s abundance. It also is a sign of human warmth and friendship. We take only a small sip of it, as we need to save some for later. Before we drink, we recite these words:

EVERYONE: Ba-ruch ha-chayeem ba-o-lam

Blessed are the life, health and wisdom that enable us to enjoy the happiness of this beautiful holiday.

(The wine or juice is sipped)

LEADER: We are here together to celebrate the holiday of Passover. This is the holiday of springtime and freedom. We are happy that after the long, cold winter, the beautiful sunshine and flowers of spring can brighten our lives. And we are happy that we are free people in the land of America.

LEADER: Why is the parsley on the seder plate?

Parsley or celery, with its green color, reminds us of Spring, when many growing things come to life. For all the vegetables that grow in the ground, we say:

EVERYONE: Blessed are all the fruits of the earth, which nourish and sustain and give us health.

EVERYONE: Blessed are all the fruits of the earth, which nourish and sustain and give us health.

(Eat vegetable dipped in salt water, while Leader explains dipping)

LEADER: Notice what we do with this matzah: We break it into two pieces, and one of the pieces is hidden for one of us to find. It is called the afikomen.

(A piece of matzah is eaten)

LEADER: I know a Hebrew word that means bitter. It is maror. Maror is a bitter vegetable such as horseradish which we eat on Passover to remind us how bitter was the life of our people when they were slaves in Egypt.

(The maror is eaten until tears flow)

LEADER: In case you are wondering why we are permitted to recline at the seder, I have the answer. Many years ago the Hebrews were slaves in Egypt. Moses, their leader, took them safely out of Egypt, and they were free! In olden times, free people would recline at the table, and we, too, recline on Passover to celebrate our freedom.

LEADER: I see two things on the seder plate that haven’t yet been explained: The lamb bone and the egg.

The lamb bone reminds us of the sacrifices that our people would offer many, many years ago at this season. Today, of course, we do not offer sacrifices, but we still put a lamb bone on the seder plate so that we will not forget the story of our people.

And the egg also reminds us of sacrifices that were brought to the Temple many years ago. Today, when we look at the egg, we think of all the new life that we see around us at this time of the year.

(The egg is dipped in salt water and eaten)

The meal is served.

LEADER: Now let’s find the Afikomen! (Whoever returns the special matzah to the leader is rewarded with a prize. Everyone then partakes of a piece of matzah as “dessert”)

(We drink our third sip of wine)

LEADER: There is one cup of wine on the table that no one has touched. It is called Elijah’s Cup. An ancient legend taught that one day, Elijah will join us at the seder, and when he arrives he will bring peace to all the world.

So each year we set aside a cup of wine for Elijah, and we open the door to welcome him. This is our way of saying: May the day soon come when every man and woman, every boy and girl wherever they live, will know the blessing of peace!

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