לימוד פסח כיתה ו' - שלושה דברים של רבן גמליאל

Rabban Gamliel was accustomed [used] to say, Anyone who has not said these three things on Pesach has not fulfilled their obligation, and these are them: the Pesach sacrifice [today we use the shank bone on the seder plate for this, since we no longer have the Temple in Jerusalem], matsa and marror [bitter herbs].

(1) ... Why does Rabban Gamliel single out these three Mitzvot as needing some type of explanation? In point of fact he was of the opinion that Mitzvot [commandments] in general need “Kavanah,” “intention,” which means that if we can’t explain why we are doing them then we haven’t really fulfilled them properly. To act without some sense of purpose was not sufficient to fulfill the obligation. These three Mitzvot, however, are different. While other Mitzvot need “Kavanah,” these three Mitzvot demand both inner intention as well as some form of verbal expression of why we are performing them. ...

(1) Pesach, Matzah, Maror and Transformation
... We learn that when we tell the story of the Exodus, we reveal the mystery of redemption [the act of being saved from sin]. Heavenly beings [like angels] and earthly beings [people] come together to listen to the story, to give thanks to the Holy One of blessing [God], and to rejoice. Israel strengthens their Heavenly Ruler [God] through the telling of this story. From this we learn how important it is to retell the story slowly and deliberately and not to do so in an apathetic [without enthusiasm or interest] and drowsy manner. By telling the story in a dignified fashion, we express our gratitude to God and show that we are not ungrateful for what God has done for us. We tell the story with the awareness that each telling brings wonders into this mighty exile [period since the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE] and brings us closer to a time similar to the original Exodus [when God brought us out of Egypt].

(2) ... It is not enough to think about the story of the Exodus. As the commandment suggests, one must explicitly tell the story: “You shall tell it to your child on that day. ” The word Pesach means that we should do so with a peh sach, an open mouth. It is a commandment to pour out the bitterness of one’s soul before his creator and to declare songs and praises to God. At other times such expressions would be considered impudent [not showing proper respect] and overbearing [unpleasantly overpowering], as it says in Psalms: “But to the wicked person, God says, “How can you declare my statutes [laws] or place my covenant [agreement between God and the Jews] in your mouth? ’” But tonight it is not only permissible but it is a commandment to do so. Yet the story must be told with deep concentration and inner spirit. To tell the story without inner intention is no better than mumbling idle [pointless] chatter. Such words are like a body without a soul, and if one does it this way one has not fulfilled one’s obligations. The person must learn how to tell the story of the Exodus from the three Passover symbols which we now explain.