The modern seder
draws on elements of its mystical predecessor.
By Yosef I. Abramowitz and Rabbi Susan Silverman
There is no set
liturgy for the modern Tu Bishvat seder. This is a ritual that is still in
flux. Each year, more haggadot for Tu Bishvat (books detailing the liturgy and
rituals of the seder) become available. Some have a particular focus: ecology,
Israel, family activities. The varying texts for the seder may quote from
different Jewish books in addition to the Bible. The common elements are the
drinking of four cups of wine and the eating of different fruits. While these
customs go back to the mystical Tu Bishvat seder, the elements may be
interpreted differently in the modern celebrations.
The seder presented
here serves as a model of a modern liberal seder, and different communities,
especially traditionalist ones, use alternate versions. For example, other
sedarim (the plural of seder) include the Shehecheyanu, a blessing that thanks
God for the ability to celebrate the joyous occasion. This blessing would be
done when eating a new fruit of the season. The Shehecheyanu at the beginning
of the seder would link the ceremony to the kabbalist seder and its message of
rebirth and time change. One could add a concluding reading, blessing, or a
portion of the Hallel (Psalms of praise). Between the different sections of the
seder, it is possible to include readings associated with Israel, fruit, and
trees from both traditional and modern sources. Many sedarim include songs
associated with these topics. Reprinted with permission of the authors from Jewish
Family and Life: Traditions, Holidays, and Values for Today's Parents and
Children, published by Golden Books.
Set up your table as for Passover: white or other nice
tablecloth, good dishes, flowers, wine, and juice. There is no requirement to
light candles, but scented candles add a nice touch and a festive glow. Either
one person can lead the seder, reciting each reading and making the blessings,
or everyone can take turns. The directions concerning which fruit to locate and
the mix of the wines should be read aloud. As each piece of fruit and each cup
of wine is being considered and blessed, that object is held by the reader.
After each blessing, the participants taste the fruit or sip the wine.
Hand Washing
Fill a large bowl with flower-scented water and float a
small cup in it. Carry the bowl from person to person or set up a washing
station in a corner. Feel how nice it is to place your hands over the bowl and
have someone pour warm water over your fingers. Have towels ready.
Say this blessing [though some may choose to forego this
blessing, since it is traditionally recited upon washing the hands before
eating bread, which is not eaten here]:
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, asher kidshanu b'mitzvotav, v'tzivanu al
netilat yadayim.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Who commands us to ritually wash our hands.
Reader: And God said: Let the earth put forth grass,
herb-yielding seed, and fruit-tree-bearing fruit after its own kind, wherein is
the seed thereof, on the earth. (Genesis 1:11)
Reader: In the 16th century in northern Israel, in the
spiritual town of Tzfat (Safed), the Jewish mystics created the Tu Bishvat
seder. They recognized the many and varied dimensions of God's creation and
used the fruits of Israel to symbolize their existence.
The First Cup of Wine
This cup of white wine or grape juice symbolizes winter and
the mystical dimension of atzilut, or
emanation, at which God's energy infused the creation process with initial
life.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam borei peri ha-gafen.
Blessed are you, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the vine.
Reader: For Adonai your God is bringing you into a good
land. A land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths springing forth in
valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley and vines and fig trees and
pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land wherein you shall eat
without scarceness, you shall not lack anything in it; a land whose stones are
iron and out of whose hills you may dig brass. And you shall eat and be
satisfied, and bless God for the good land, which is being given unto you
(Deuteronomy 8:7-10).
The First Fruit
Fruit that is hard on the outside and soft on the inside,
such as walnuts, coconuts, or almonds. The hard shell symbolizes the protection
that the earth gives us and reminds us to nourish the strength and healing
power of our own bodies.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, borei peri ha-etz.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the tree.
The Second Cup of Wine
This cup of wine or grape juice is mostly white, with a
little red mixed in, to symbolize the passing of the seasons and the mystical
concept of formation and birth, often associated with water.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, borei peri ha-gafen.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the vine.
Reader: Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall
you be in the field. Blessed shall you be in the fruit of your body, and the
fruit of your land, and the fruit of your cattle, and the young of your flock.
Blessed shall you be in your basket and your kneading trough. Blessed shall you
be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out (Deuteronomy
28:36).
The Second Fruit
This fruit is soft with a pit in the center--olives or dates
[or peaches, apricots, etc.]--and symbolizes the life-sustaining power that
emanates from the earth. It reminds us of the spiritual and emotional strength
that is within each of us.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, borei peri ha-etz.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the tree.
The Third Cup of Wine
This cup of wine is mostly red with a little of white mixed
in and symbolizes once again the change of seasons and the mystical concept of beriah, or creation.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, borei peri ha-gafen.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the vine.
Reader: Then God formed the human from the dust of the
ground, and breathed into the nostrils the breath of life; and the human became
a living soul (Genesis 2:7).
The Third Fruit
This fruit is soft throughout and is completely edible, such
as figs, grapes, and raisins. This type symbolizes God's omnipresence and our
own inextricable ties with the earth.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, borei peri ha-etz.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the tree.
Serve a Vegetarian Dinner
A favorite is vegetarian lasagna and noodle kugel with fruit.
Eat other exotic fruits that are placed around the table.
The Fourth Cup of Wine
This cup is all red, symbolizing the mystical concept of
fire and the idea that within all living things dwells a spark of God.
Reader: And the angel of God appeared to him in a flame of
fire out of the midst of a bush; and Moses looked, and behold, the bush burned
with fire and the bush was not consumed (Exodus 3:2).
The Fourth Fruit
This has a tough skin on the outside but sweet fruit
within--mangos, bananas, avocados, or sabra, a desert pear--and symbolizes the
mystery of the world and our study of Torah. We are constantly seeking to
uncover her secrets, and are continually nourished by her fruits.
Barukh
ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh ha-olam, borei peri ha-etz.
Blessed are You, Source of all
life, Creator of the fruit of the tree.
At the end of the seder, ask everyone to plant parsley seeds
in a pot with soil. The parsley will be fully grown in time to be dipped in
salt water at your Passover seder.
Yosef I. Abramowitz
and Rabbi Susan Silverman are cofounders of Jewish
Family & Life!, of which he is CEO. They live in Newton, Massachusetts.
