OBJECTS OF RELIGIOUS CEREMONIAL 11 



the synagogue. In the home the evening meal is of the nature of 

 a commemorative service, called seder — order, arrangement, or pro- 

 gram. At the head of the table are cushioned chairs or lounges 

 for the master and mistress of the house to recline on, as was done 

 and is still customary in the Orient among the high and free-born. 

 On the table are the articles emblematic of the events commemorated. 

 These are: Three maccoth, or cakes of unleavened bread, baked in the 

 shape of large, thin, round crackers, the "bread of affliction" (Deu- 

 teronomy xvi, 3), a piece of roasted meat, usually the bone of a 

 lamb, representing the Passover lamb; bitter herbs, usually horse 

 radish {maror), in commemoration of the "embittering of life," 

 which Israel suffered in Egyptian servitude (Exodus i, 14); a roasted 

 egg, in memory of the festal sacrifice (Jiagigdh) offered in the temple; 

 a compound of almond, apples, and sirup, which has the color of 

 brick clay (haroseth), in commemoration of the labor of brick- 

 making the Israelites performed in Egypt (Exodus i, 14 and v, 7 

 and following), and into which the bitter herbs are dipped before 

 they are partaken of; green herbs — parsley or lettuce Qcarpas) — as 

 the "food of poverty;" a cup of salt water, in which the green herbs 

 are dipped to represent the hyssop dipped in the blood of the paschal 

 lamb (Exodus xii, 22), There are, besides, wine in cups or glasses 

 for each at the table, as everyone assisting at the celebration is 

 supposed to partake of four cups of wine. An extra cup stands 

 ready filled during the seder for the prophet Elijah should he come in 

 an unbidden guest to honor the feast and as protector of the house- 

 hold whenever the door is opened on that night. 



The service begins with IciddusJi, as on Sabbath and other festivals. 

 (See above on p. 9.) The family then sits down and the Tiagadah, 

 that is, narration, consisting of an account of the sufferings of Israel 

 at the hands of the Egyptians and their miraculous deliverance by 

 God, accompanied by psalms and hymns, is recited. At appropriate 

 passages of the hagadaJi the articles mentioned above are partaken 

 of, symbolical ceremonies performed, and the evening meal is eaten. 



28. Liturgy of the Passover meal, Tiagadah. — In 'Hebrew and Span- 

 ish, with maps and illustrations. Printed in London, 5573 A.M., 

 ( = 1813 A.D.). During the semiritual meal of the Passover feast, 

 called seder, the hagadah, that is, narration, consisting of an account 

 of the sufferings of Israel at the hands of the Egyptians and their 

 miraculous deliverance by God, is recited, accompanied with psalms 

 and hymns. London, England. (Cat. No. 217678, U.S.N.M.) 



29. Passover cloth.- — Made of white silk, in Jerusalem. Stamped 

 with the principal prayers recited at the Passover meal, or seder, 

 and illuminated with representations of the Temple Mount and 

 other buildings of the city of Jerusalem; as also with the cities of 

 Jericho and Shechem; with the candlestick (menorah); and the tables 



