Background The Haggadah is a medley of materials taken from various parts of rabbinic and medieval literature. The author (or, better yet, the editor) of the Haggadah often borrows passages from this literature and uses them for his own purpose. Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah’s passage comes from the first chapter of Mishnah Berachot which deals with the laws related to the daily recitation of the Sh’ma, our Jewish pledge of allegiance. The Sh’ma is made up of three passages: “Hear O Israel the Lord our God the Lord is one…You shall love the Lord your God…” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9) “You shall hearken diligently to the Lord….” (Deuteronomy 11:13-21), and the passage concerning placing tzitzit, fringes, on the corners of one’s garments (Numbers 15:37-41.) This final passage ends, “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the Land of Egypt…”). Since the sages concluded that the commandment to wear fringes is only an obligation during the day time(when one can see them), the sages debated whether or not one had to mention the Exodus (which is included in the last part of this passage) in the evening. The Haggadah quotes most, but not all, of the Mishnaic passage. Most importantly it leaves out the first and most important part of the Mishnaic statement: One should mention the Exodus from Egypt at night. The sages disagree with this conclusion with which Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah struggles. This leads Rabbi Lorberbaum to raise the following questions and offer the following interpretation that distinguishes between the daily custom of mentioning the Exodus vs. actually telling the story on Passover night. What is the connection between mentioning the Exodus as part of the daily liturgy and retelling the story of the Exodus on the eve of Passover? There are two different Mitzvot in the Torah related to how we recall the story of the Exodus: one is to mention or ‘to remember’ the Exodus from Egypt each day, and the other is to tell the story of the Exodus on Passover eve. The purposes of these two sacred acts are different from one another. The telling of the Exodus from Egypt can be compared to the reading of the Megillah; it is an act performed in conjunction with the anniversary or the locality of an important event. We recall it and describe it in all its details as a way of holding on to the importance of the event each year. The daily mentioning of the Exodus serves a different purpose. If the purpose of mentioning the Exodus was simply to recall the Exodus, it would actually be demeaning to God. After all, why place so much emphasis on one particular act of divine grace when God has performed so many acts of kindness toward us? The purpose of mentioning the Exodus each day is to remind us that God redeemed us in order to acquire us as His people. The details are not as important as simply the memory that God redeemed us to make us His nation. This idea is reflected in the word Geulah, “redemption,” which has this connotation: to redeem is to take ownership of something. (This is true both in English and in Hebrew. When we redeem something, we take possession of it.) When we mention the Exodus each day, then, we are making a statement of our unique relationship to God. The daily recollection of the Exodus is not to contemplate God’s manifold acts of kindness but to celebrate our relationship to God. Ben Zoma was of the opinion that one should make mention of this fact both day and night with the recitation of the Sh’ma. Why does the editor of the Haggadah bother to quote the opinion of the sages when his primary concern seems to be with supporting the opinion of Ben Zoma, that one should mention the Exodus from Egypt at night? The statement in the Mishnah is concerned with the mitzvah of ‘mentioning the Exodus’ daily rather than the commandment of retelling the story of the Exodus on Passover eve. Rabbi Elazar and the sages disagreed on when this commandment should be fulfilled: are we obligated to mention the Exodus both day and night or is it sufficient to make mention of the Exodus only during the day? The sages followed the opinion of Rabbi Joshua ben Levi who said that the actual redemption took place during the day and therefore we are only obligated to mention the Exodus during the daylight hours. Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah, drawing on the interpretation of ben Zoma, claims that the redemption began at night and was completed during the day. We should mention the act of redemption both day and night. By leaving out the opening passage in the Mishnah which supports ben Zoma’s opinion, the Haggadah makes the debate between the sages and Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah more even handed. The author of the Haggadah quotes the Mishnah (Berachot 1:5) in order to teach us that we are obligated to mention the Exodus from Egypt even at night, following the opinion of Ben Zoma and Rabbi Elazar Ben Azariah. And yet the Haggadah leaves out the very first line of the Mishnah statement that explicitly makes this statement (“One must mention the Exodus at night. Rabbi Elazar Ben Azariah said…”)? Why does the Haggadah only quote part of the Mishnah and not the whole thing? Earlier in the Haggadah we said, “We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt.” We learned that the Haggadah begins with this statement so that we will realize that the Exodus is the very foundation not only of the Passover Seder but of all the commandments in the Torah. The debate in this passage further deepens this fundamental principle of faith. It provides us with an understanding not only of Passover but of the importance of God’s redemption of the Jewish people in general. It places in a larger context.

• It teaches us why we must constantly reiterate the fact that God took us out of Egypt not only in relationship to Passover but to all the commandments.
• The redemption is about more than miracles: it is a statement of the unique relationship that Israel has with God. God acquires us.
• This statement from the Mishnah is not the basis for telling the story of the Exodus on Passover night, but for understanding the need to reaffirm this basic idea each day (and night).
• This controversy is about whether or not the affirmation must take place in conjunction with the time of day when the actual redemption of the Israelites took place. Thus we have the controversy between the sages and ben Zoma. The rationale for retelling the story of the Exodus on Passover eve is not this Mishnah (even though it might appear that way) but rather a simpler notion. One should retell the story of ones miraculous salvation from slavery at the time when the event took place. The Passover Seder, then, is a historical recollection rather than a theological affirmation of why we observe the commandments. It is a time to recall rather than a time to affirm. The daily recollection of the Exodus reminds us of our unique relationship to God. We are commanded to see ourselves “as if we personally went forth from Egypt” for this reason. The Exodus has shaped our very existence. A miracle is not a historical event but an event that continues to shape our essence and being. This is what the psalmist means when he says “His kindness is forever.” God’s redemptive acts continue to influence and change the world. Ben Zoma was of the opinion therefore that we must constantly remember the miraculous events associated with the Exodus because these events continue to shape our self -perception and identity.