Pesah, Exodus #9 of 9, p.

The Haggadot of the Kibbutzim: A Study in Alternative Ideology

‫עבדים היינו‬ We Were Slaves

‫עבדים היינו לפרעה במצריים‬... We were slaves to Pharoah in
Egypt...
TRADITIONAL Haggadah KIBBUTZ Haggadot

... but the Lord our God
took us out of there with a
mighty hand and an
outstretched arm. If the
Holy One, blessed be He,
had not brought our fathers
out of Egypt, the we, our
children and our children's
children would still be
enslaved to Pharaoh in
Egypt.
and the Lord took us out
of Egypt. Not through an
angel, not through a seraph
and not through a
messenger, but the Holy
One, blessed be He, He
alone ...
... and we went out from there in the month of Aviv (Spring)
with our children and elders. And if we had not gone out of
there, then we and our children and our children's children
would still be enslaved to Pharaoh in Egypt.
(Kibbutz Kfar Gil`adi 1941)
"Go, return to Egypt" (Ex. 4:19) and make Me a nation. Do
you know how a nation is formed? Call unto you the workers
and the miserable and all those who groan from work and toil
and who are tortured at the hands of the taskmasters and
clerks who have no heart left and in it little feeling. Speak to
them and take them out of the house of bondage and redeem
them and give them laws and ordinances and make from them
a people.
Go to them and tell them that they are slaves--and they
will not understand ... and open their eyes with a mighty hand
... and redeem them. And from amongst your brethren many
people will follow you ... and you will become the father of
many men, the head of their tribes. You will make of the
worms--men, and of the men--a people, and from the sands--a
land.
By David Frischmann (Kibbutz Na`an 1940)

On Crossing the Souf (“Red”) Sea ‫קריעת ים סוף‬

TRADITIONAL Haggadah
Thus how much more so do we owe
thanks to the Ever-Present for all His
manifold favors! He brought us
forth from Egypt, executed
judgments upon them and upon their
gods, slew their first-born, gave us
their wealth, divided the sea for us,
led us through it on dry land and
drowned our oppressors in it,
supplied our needs in the wilderness
for forty years ... brought us into the
Land of Israel...
KIBBUTZ Haggadot
It is taught: Rabbi Meir said: At the moment when the
children of Israel were standing at the edge of the sea,
the tribes were arguing with one another. One would
say: "I'm going into the sea first." And another would
reply: "I'm going into the sea first!"
When the tribe of Benjamin jumped in first, they were
stoned by the leaders of Judah.
It was not so, said Rabbi Yehudah. Rather one would
say: "I'm not going into the sea first." And another
would reply: "Neither am I going in first!"
At just that moment Nahshon ben Aminadav jumped
into the sea and was first.
(based on B. Talmud, Sotah 36b-37a)
 Pesah, Exodus #9 of 9, p.2

‫בכל דור ודור חייב אדם לראות את עצמו כאילו הוא יצא‬
. . . ‫ממצרים‬
‫שנאמר "ואותנו הוציא משם למען הביא אותנו לתת לנו את הארץ אשר נשבע‬
".‫לאבותינו‬
In Every Generation one is obligated to see oneself as if s/he, personally, went
out of Egypt … as it says, “for God took us out of there to bring us to the land which
was sworn to be for our ancestors.” (Deut. 6:23, not in Kibbutz Haggadot)
continuation:
TRADITIONAL Haggadah KIBBUTZ Haggadot
‫בים‬ִ ָ ‫חי‬
ַ ‫חנו‬ְ ַ ‫אנ‬
ֲ ְ ‫פיכָך‬
ִ ‫ל‬
ְ ‫בים‬
ִ ָ ‫חי‬
ַ ‫חנו‬
ְ ַ ‫אנ‬
ֲ ְ ‫פיכָך‬
ִ ‫ל‬
ְ
‫להודות להלל לשבח לפאר‬ ,‫ לנטע‬,‫ לזרוע‬,‫ לעבוד‬,‫לבנות‬
‫לרומם לגדל ולהדר ולנצח‬
‫למי שעשה לנו ולאבותינו את כל‬ ‫ לנטור‬,‫לעדר‬
‫הנסים האלו‬ ‫ולשאוף לצאת מעבדות לחרות‬
‫והוציאנו מעבדות לחירות‬
‫ומשעבוד לגאולה‬ ,‫מיגון לשמחה‬
‫ומיגון לשמחה‬ ,‫מאבל ליום טוב‬
‫ומאבל ליום טוב‬ ‫מאפלה לאור גדול‬
‫ ונאמר לפניו‬,‫ומאפלה לאור גדול‬
..‫שירה חדשה הללויה‬ ‫ומשעבוד לגאולה‬
Therefore we must ‫ונאמר לפניו שירה חדשה‬
thank, sing, praise, glorify, exalt, raise up,
acclaim [God] who did all these miracles .‫הללויה‬
for us and for our ancestors and brought us 1941 ,‫קיבוץ חולדה‬
out from slavery to freedom,
from sorrow to joy, from mourning to Therefore we must
festivity, from darkness to great light and build, work, sow, plant, plow, guard and
from enslavement to redemption! strive to go out from slavery to freedom,
And we shall sing before God a new song, from sorrow to joy, from grief to holidays,
Halleluyah! from darkness to great light and from
enslavement to redemption!
And we shall sing before God a new song,
Halleluyah!
‫בכל יום ויום חייב אדם לראות את‬
‫עצמו כמי שמכריע את הכף‬
‫ליציאת מצרים או להארכת‬
.‫הגולה‬
1944 ‫כפר גלעדי‬

On every single day one musst see oneself

as if s/he tips the scales between going out
of Egypt or prolonging the golah
(Diaspora).
Kibbutz Kfar Gil`adi 1944
 Pesah, Exodus #9 of 9, p.3

Why are these Haggadot Different from all other Haggadot?

(Then) Current Events Reflected in the Four Questions:

Ma nishtana??
A. For at all other times they would embitter our lives only in some parts of the
world, but at this time all is bitter.
B. For in all other times were were amongst some who strangled us while others
were lenient, but at this time there is only strangulation.
Kibbutz Glil Yam 1939

B. For at all other times there are tribes of Israel at peace and those who are
persecuted, at this time there is destruction of tribe after tribe.
Kibbutz Tel Yosef 1939

A. Why is so much blood spilt in the world today?

B. Why do they hate the Jews throughout the world?
C. Why is the path of the wicked successful?
D. What are the obstacles on the path to our revival?

D. Ma nishtana -- Why is the people of Israel different from all other peoples?
For the gates of other peoples' lands are open to them to return home, but the
remnants of our people knock on our locked gates.
Kibbutz Ein Harod 1944

C. Ma nishtana. How does this night in our land differ from the night of the
Festival of Freedom in the Diaspora? For here we have thrown off the yoke of
the Diaspora and our freedom is real. There the people of Israel are in exile and
there can be no redemption other than in Eretz Yisrael.
D. Ma nishtana halayla hazeh mikol haleylot?
For on this night the message of the future will resound within us, that there will
come a time, a day of liberty and rebirth, a day of brotherhood and equality,
termination of evil and an end to enslavement, a day in which the supremacy of
Labor shall flourish everywhere.
Kibbutz Na`an 1950
 Pesah, Exodus #9 of 9, p.4

Preparatory Homework

Compare these three versions fo the Four Questions:

The Original Four Questions
(From the Mishna) (Pesahim 10:4 ‫)פסחים‬
They filled a second cup for him. At this stage the son ‫מזגו לו כוס שני וכאן הבן שואל‬
asks his father; if the son is unintelligent, his father
instructs him [to ask]:
‫ ואם אין דעת בבן אביו‬,‫אביו‬
‘Why is this night different from all [other] nights. :‫מלמדו‬
For on all [other] nights we eat leavened and ‫מה נשתנה הלילה הזה מכל‬
unleavened bread, whereas on this night [we eat] ‫הלילות שבכל הלילות אנו‬
only leavened bread. On all other nights we eat all
kinds of herbs, on this night bitter herbs. On all ‫אוכלין חמץ ומצה הלילה הזה‬
other nights we eat meat roast, stewed or boiled, on ‫כולו מצה שבכל הלילות אנו‬
this night, roast only. On all other nights we dip once, ‫אוכלין שאר ירקות הלילה‬
but on this night we dip twice.’ And according to the
son's intelligence his father instructs him. He
‫הזה מרור שבכל הלילות אנו‬
commences with shame and concludes with praise; and ‫אוכלין בשר צלי שלוק‬
expounds from ‘a wandering aramean was my father’ ‫ומבושל הלילה הזה כולו צלי‬
until he completes the whole section. ‫שבכל הלילות אנו מטבילין‬
‫פעם אחת הלילה הזה שתי‬
.‫פעמים‬
‫ולפי דעתו של בן אביו מלמדו‬
‫מתחיל בגנות ומסיים בשבח‬
‫ודורש מארמי אובד אבי עד‬
:‫שיגמור כל הפרשה כולה‬

THE “TRADITIONAL” FOUR QUESTIONS

‫מה נשתנה הלילה הזה מכל הלילות‬ ?

Ma nishtana halayla hazeh mikol haleylot?
Why is this night different from all other nights?
‫שבכל הלילות‬ .1 A. For on all other nights we
‫אנו אוכלין חמץ‬ eat either hametz or
matzah, on this night we
‫ הלילה הזה‬,‫ומצה‬ eat only matzah.
.‫כולו מצה‬ B. For on all other nights we
‫שבכל הלילות‬ .2 eat any kind of vegetables,
on this night bitter herbs.
‫אנו אוכלין שאר‬ C. For on all other nights we
‫ הלילה הזה‬,‫ירקות‬ do not dip (our vegetables)
.‫מרור‬ even once, on this night
we dip twice.
‫שבכל הלילות‬ .3 D. For on all other nights we
‫אנו מטבילין פעם‬ eat either sitting upright or
reclining, on this night we
‫ הלילה הזה‬,‫אחת‬
 ‫‪Pesah, Exodus #9 of 9, p.5‬‬

‫שתי פעמים‪.‬‬ ‫‪all recline.‬‬

‫שבכל הלילות‬ ‫‪.4‬‬
‫אנו אוכלין בין יושבין‬
‫ובין מסובין‪ ,‬הלילה‬
‫הזה כולנו מסובין‪.‬‬
 Pesah, Exodus #9 of 9, p.6

KIBBUTZ VERSIONS:
A. Ma nishtana ... Why is this night different from all
other nights?
B. For on all other nights some eat early and others
later, tonight all eat together.
C. For on all other nights our members are dispersed
all over the country, tonight we are gathered
together.
D. For on all other nights the children are seated at
their own table, tonight they are seated at their
parents' table.
Kibbutz Kfar Gil`adi 1941

C. For in all the world each household conducts a

seder, and we are conducting a seder together?
D. For in all the world there are rich and poor,
but in our kibbutz all are equal.
Kibbutz Alonim 1949