Passover is quickly approaching, the perfect time to shake the dust off our Haggadot or perhaps even to purchase new ones for the festival seder (or sedarim if you live in the Diaspora).

The Haggadah is the most frequently published Jewish book; we have more than 7000 different publications of this very short document. Nahum Goldmann Fellowship Online, in conjunction with the Jewish Heritage Online Magazine is happy to present to its alumni an online course focusing on several selections from the Haggadah.

The course is conducted via email to registrants. It may also be viewed as a threaded discussion online by date, author, and topic, at this url: http://lists.ngfp.org/pipermail/ngfp-bookclub/.

LESSONS

The five-week course will be structured around five passages:

Lesson 1: Ha Lachma Anya – This is the Bread of Affliction: the Aramaic passage that opens the Haggadah.

Lesson 2: Verses that call for the destruction of the enemy “Shefoch Hamatcha” – Pour your Wrath.

Lesson 3: The group of verses included from Sefer Devarim, the book of Deuteronomy: Arami Oved Avi (My father was a wandering Aramean and so forth).

Lesson 4: Ehad mi Yodea? Who Knows One?

Lesson 5: The famous story of the wise sages gathered in Bnei Brak.

Each lesson will begin by the reading of the weekly passage; the Hebrew text and various English translations will be provided. Participants will then be asked to examine and discuss:

• The meaning and relevance on such passages in the modern world;
• Ethical questions that may arise from the “pour your wrath” passage;
• Thoughts and suggestions for amending or modifying the haggadah;
• Differences between Israeli and Diaspora haggadot and the significance of these differences;
• Reasons for varying interspersed rituals such as opening the door for Elijah.

• The history of each particular passage;
• When it was introduced into the haggadah;
• Where and by whom; how it evolved;
• Whether attempts were made to change the passage and why.
  

* Individual lesson description and reading assignments  

* Email options and email etiquette