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Which of my children should ask the Four Questions?

by Rabbi Naftali Silberberg

  

Library » Holidays » Passover » Seder » Laws and Rituals | Subscribe | What is RSS?

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Technically, only one of the children needs to ask the Four Questions (Ma Nishtana). However, it is customary for all the children (and grandchildren, if applicable) under the age of bar/bat Mitzvah to be included in this beautiful custom.1

What better way to get the children involved in the Seder proceedings than by having them all ask these age-old questions?

What better way to get the children involved in the Seder proceedings than by having them all ask these age-old questions
As for the order, some have the custom of starting with the youngest and working up to the oldest, and others do the opposite.

Chabad custom is that after the children conclude reciting the Four Questions aloud, all the assembled adults repeat the questions in unison. On a deeper level, these questions are also addressed to our Father in Heaven -- whose young children we all are -- "Why is this night different than all others?" Why is this dark exile so much more difficult than all those which preceded it? When, oh when, will the dawn of the redemption arrive?!

Footnotes

  • 1. If there are no children present at the Seder, the questions should still be asked -- by a friend, spouse, or oneself (if alone).

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Mitzvah
(pl. Mitzvot). A commandment from G-d. Mitzvah also means a connection, for a Jew connects with G–d through fulfilling His commandments.
Chabad
Chabad, an acronym for Wisdom, Knowledge, and Understanding, is the name of a Chassidic Group founded in the 1770s. Two of the most fundamental teachings of Chabad are the intellectual pursuit of understanding the divine and the willingness to help every Jew who has a spiritual or material need.
Seder
Festive meal eaten on the first two nights of the holiday of Passover (In Israel, the Seder is observed only the first night of the holiday). Seder highlights include: reading the story of the Exodus, eating Matzah and bitter herbs, and drinking four cups of wine.