Selecting a Haggadah
Siegel, Richard
Selecting a Haggadah Richard Siegel "In every generation," reads a crucial passage in the Passover Haggadah, "each person is obliged to regard himself as though he personally left Egypt, as it is...
...It is essential to examine carefully the Haggadah you are going to use at your Seder...
...It is usable, inspirational, authentic and contemporary without being intrusive...
...1. The most ubiquitous Haggadah seems to be the one published by Shulsinger Brothers (21 East 4th St., New York City 10003), and a number of businesses, including Goodman's Matzos and Barton's Candies, have used this edition for promotion...
...Poetry and prose already endowed with the authority of durability speak to our present preoccupations far better than could an explicit current reference...
...2. By contrast, the Passover Haggadah edited by Rabbi Morris Silverman, and published by Prayer Book Press (1363 Fairfield Ave., Bridgeport, Conn...
...But because it tried to deal with "present-day idealism and aspiration" when it was first published in 1941, it is now seriously outdated...
...This passage, which today sounds like a parody of Reconstructionism, was obviously well-intended...
...2. The text should be typographically clean...
...they tend to knock over the wine cups...
...Each group or family will want to find the Haggadah that is most appropriate for its own needs...
...Make certain, however, that the commentary opens up the text, offering various alternatives and expanding options rather than reducing them...
...We need to be reminded that the Exodus from Egypt, the movement from slavery to freedom, from chaos to order, did not happen only long ago and far away...
...And space is added to write in your own commentary...
...First, my criteria for selecting a Haggadah: 1. It must be of manageable size...
...For Passover is a reaffirmation of the breaking out from limitations and a renewal of the movement toward liberation...
...With a keen grasp of his medium, Podwal presents his commentary not only through notes and readings, but also through his illustrations, which force a confrontation with the text within this contemporary framework...
...5. By contrast, A Passover Haggadah, prepared by the Central Conference of American Rabbis (838 Fifth Ave., New York City 10021) and edited by Herbert Bronstein with drawings by Leonard Baskin, is a remarkably successful attempt to present a Haggadah faithful both to the tradition and to the principles of Reform Judaism...
...If you will be celebrating Pesach in Russia, make sure to take this Haggadah along — and leave it there...
...All references to events, real or imagined, in the Exodus story which might conflict with our own highest ethical standards have been omitted...
...This edition is a good, basic standby...
...07207...
...This edition held much promise in its conception, but has, in my view, utterly failed in its implementation...
...Instructions are terse and to the point...
...It is hoped rather that the Haggadah will be a gateway to the actual experience of redemption, new and different each year, yet ever permanent in the realities of our history...
...3. In addition to the standard text and translation, the Haggadah should contain clear instructions, intelligent explanations, sensitive and interesting commentaries, inspirational graphics, all in a package that is thoughtfully and clearly assembled, and generally attractive to look at and to read...
...Not only is it utterly bereft of inspiration, but it destroys any potential for an inspirational response from the reader...
...Thus it appears with varying covers, and in some cases, with an advertisement on the inside...
...It is a book that tells our story in capsule form, and we must necessarily depart from it to fill in the details...
...gadahs...
...Some of the deluxe editions are simply impractical for use at the Seder table...
...My most pleasant surprise was to discover a responsive reading format that is neither obtrusive nor demeaning, because the selections were written with intelligence, with respect for the reader, and with an understanding of the emotional potentials inherent in responsive reading...
...Not only is it beautifully designed (and Baskin's drawings are commentaries in their own right), but the new, added commentaries are introduced with a tastefulness that greatly enhances both the text and the Seder experience...
...There are, however, hundreds of various Haggadahs, or, more properly, hundreds of editions of the basic Hebrew text...
...The calligraphy is delightful, the text clear, the format varied...
...The story of Pesach that we are commanded to tell is our own most intimate story — one that reviews how each of us, with the help of God, has broken out of his particular Egypt and toward his particular Promised Land...
...We can view the Hageadah, then, as an outline, a coach, a series of cue cards...
...It is recommended neither for the Seder itself nor for any of the educational frameworks to which it tries to appeal...
...Its design is non-obtrusive and its stylized graphics are surprisingly interesting...
...Space does not allow for a complete analysis of every available Haggadah, and several good editions are not evaluated here...
...Podwal is an imaginative and highly original artist who has designed and illustrated the book with great care...
...This is The Haggadah for Pesach: Kol Yisroel Chaverim, for American and Canadian tourists in Russia, edited by Rabbi Pinchas Teitz (607 Park Ave., Elizabeth, N.J...
...Like the creation itself, it continues to the Here and Now, affecting not only our ancestors, but us...
...And because so much of the Seder is designed to appeal to children, the graphics are also crucial for their interest...
...Although it is slightly oversized for table use, I would recommend it...
...The commentary relates to the plight of Soviet Jews, who have adopted the command of Moses to Pharoah as their slogan...
...But, regardless of one's religious orientation, every Seder table can benefit from-a copy of this Haggadah...
...Unfortunately, many of us have forgotten our stories...
...Making the story too explicit can alter the Haggadah's function as an outline to our personal tales...
...7. My personal favorite is the 4th World Haggadah, edited by Joel Harris and Jack Schuldenfrei, published by the World Union of Jewish Students in London, and available through their American counterpart, Network (36 W. 37th St., New York City 10018...
...4. Because the function of the Haggadah is to act as a stimulus, it should be graphically interesting...
...Selecting a Haggadah Richard Siegel "In every generation," reads a crucial passage in the Passover Haggadah, "each person is obliged to regard himself as though he personally left Egypt, as it is said: [Exodus 13:8] 'And you shall tell your children on that day, saying, This is because of that which God did for me when I came out of Egypt.' " The imperative to tell and to retell, from personal experience, as it were, the story of the Exodus from Egypt, forms the basis of the Passover Seder...
...Glatzer, published by Schocken Books (67 Park Ave., New York City 10016...
...06605), while attempting to serve as a basic guide and text, is so simplistic as to be insulting to an adult's intelligence and demeaning to the magnificence of the celebration...
...Although this technique renders the Exodus account more readable, the break from tradition is unnecessary...
...For a generation as sophisticated about media as ours, this element ought not be overlooked...
...Its modest but functionally handsome design allows for a wide variety of uses...
...My only major objection to this edition is that instead of using the traditional Pesach story (drawn from rabbinic commentary) it reconstructs the story from various parts of the Bible...
...Recommended for those who want the basics done with clarity, style, and in a size (5x8 inches) that is ideal for a crowded table...
...Were the substitutions, the exegesis, or even the design in any way superior, I could commend this effort...
...Richard Siegel is director of the Hillel Foundation of SUNY at Stony Brook...
...All but two are recommended for use at your Seder...
...To quote from the introduction: "It is not intended that this Haggadah provide a series of inspirational preachments or intellectual discourses...
...It is difficult, if not presumptuous, for a committee to decide what does and does not have a "special message," and while it may be commendable to balance Jewish tradition with "our highest ethical standards," to take the route of excision rather than open confrontation with the text is spiritually debilitating...
...It is a book that describes oppression, resistance, liberation, and freedom, historically and personally...
...5. Most people prefer that their Haggadah have some kind of commentary...
...This edition contains more of what a Haggadah should contain and less of what it should avoid than any other edition I have encountered...
...In an effort to make the Seder comprehensible, this edition has reduced it to trivialities, meaningless responsive readings, and childish graphics...
...6. The Haggadah with the best English notes, explanations, and quotations from traditional commentaries is The Passover Haggadah, edited by Nahum N...
...So we have striven for the archetypal rather than the current reference, for the allusive and suggestive rather than the didactic and explicit...
...Unfortunately, this edition seems to be in short supply and your local Jewish bookstore probably doesn't carry it...
...While these criteria seem simple enough, it is surprising how few published Haggadahs fulfill more than two or three of them...
...Amazingly, the book which follows actually accomplishes what the editor has intended...
...The story belongs to the reader, not to the editor...
...Unfortunately, it frequently is...
...The pictures, drawings, or illustrations should not simply depict scenes, but should make a statement about them...
...most recently, as people have become increasingly aware of the holiday's overt psychological and personal dimensions, these aspects of Pesach have begun to appear in HagThis column derives its title - and its editor - from THE JEWISH CATALOG...
...The editor has succeeded in fulfilling his hope that "with this Passover Haggadah as a guide, the reader can construct a traditional Seder service or adapt the wealth of historical and liturgical sources to the modern temper...
...This Haggadah also includes a miniature Jewish calendar for the next 20 years...
...6. The editor's commentary should be clearly marked as such...
...4. The New Haggadah, edited by M. M. Kaplan, Eugene Kohn, and Ira Eisenstein, is published by Behrman House (1261 Broadway, New York City 10001), and is the Reconstructionist Haggadah...
...The book reads from left to right, which is not so much an impediment as a curiosity...
...We are not accustomed to such self-revelation at the dinner table, and we need assistance to begin...
...8. Finally, a Haggadah in a special class, one with no graphics, and whose only translations and notes are in Russian...
...and the Holocaust and the modern Jewish national rebirth find their place in this Haggadah because the tragedy and the exaltation of our historic existence have already provided a place for them within the Seder, this story of our life whose shining conclusion is yet to unfold...
...The following guide is an attempt to survey some of the more popular Haggadahs on the market...
...3. Of the Haggadahs which stress a lively commentary, one of the best is Let My People Go: A Haggadah by Mark Podwal, published by Darien House (37 Riverside Drive, New York City 10023...
...The English and Hebrew should be easy to read, and any other elements in the book, such as instructions and commentaries, should be set in a different type style...
...They differ in many ways...
...To quote from its introduction: "We have retained the traditional framework with its archaic charm, but we have filled it with the living compelling content of present-day idealism and aspiration...
...the book is composed with a four-column format, containing, respectively, the Hebrew text, the English translation, the traditional commentary, and a contemporary insight...
...especially as a second Haggadah at the Seder...
...I have selected the following to evaluate either because they fulfill a number of my criteria, or are very popular, or promise something new and better, and also because they are fairly different from each other...
...But about the only aspect of this book that I can praise is that it includes musical notations for the songs sung during the Seder...
...You may find yourself questioning the perspective of a particular illustration...
...There is no reason why the reading of the Haggadah should not be the highlight of the evening, and it is therefore worth a little extra effort to choose the right Haggadah...
...On the other hand, many of the attempts to clarify the meaning of Pesach have resulted in obscuring it, and some of the enthusiasm for new style Haggadahs that was in the air five years ago has now dissipated...
...As a set text it cannot possibly incorporate the full story of each person's religious and personal odyssey, but as a book of allusions and symbols it can awaken the dormant storyteller in each of us...
...The book features dramatic photographs and a clear variety of typefaces...
...As a study guide, a source of inspiration, or as a basic table Haggadah, this is an excellent and highly recommended edition...
...But it has no transliteration, no commentary, and only a minimum of explanation...
...The reader should not be carried along inadvertently and unknowingly on somebody else's trip unless he is certain that he wants to be there...
...Among the innovations in this Haggadah are the omission of those exegetical passages contained in the traditional Haggadah that convey no special message, and the inclusion of entirely new readings...
Vol. 1 • March 1976 • No. 8
