(Kate & Thomas)
Tonight we drink four cups of wine. Why four? The cups can represent our matriarchs—Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah—whose virtue caused God to liberate us from slavery. The cups can represent the Four Worlds: physicality, emotions, thought, and essence. The cups can represent the four promises of liberation God makes in the Torah: I will bring you out, I will deliver you, I will redeem you, I will take you to be my people (Exodus 6:6-7.) And the four promises, in turn, can hint at four stages on the path of liberation: becoming aware of oppression, opposing oppression, imagining alternatives, and accepting responsibility to act.

ָבּרוּךְ ַא ָתּה ְי ָי, ֱאלֹ ֵהינוּ ֶמ ֶלךְ ָהעוֹ ָלם, בּוֹ ֵרא ְפּ ִרי ַה ָגּ ֶפן.

Baruch atah, Adonai, eloheinu melech ha’olam, borei p’ri hagafen.

Blessed are you, Adonai our God, Ruler of the Universe, creator of the fruit of the vine.



 


haggadah Section: Kadesh