The Rational Passover Haggadah

First, I want to express the enormous gratitude I have to own this finally as someone who enjoyed Dennis’s commentary on the first two books of the Torah being myself an observant Jew. If I don’t forget, I might end up writing more details about the content but so far, having read the first pages, I think it’s good. This book, as I expected, is primarily targeted at Jews even though he also invites non-Jews to give it a try. So, for those who wonder why the book is “backwards”, let me explain: Jews, generally, read their books, sacred and non-sacred literature from right-to-left, especially when it includes Hebrew in the pages, this is how we traditionally print our books, so this is intentional. I hope that helps. Good luck.

For once a book I ordered from Amazon wasn't damaged upon arrival. Love Dennis Prager. This is a great collection.

60 years ago I coined the line, "I don't believe in any god any human tells me about." "Pascal's Wager," was a bit challenging, but "out of sight, out of mind." Yes, this book reads from back to front. By page 3 I was used to it, by page 5 I didn't notice it. I've lived a good life, earned a good living, but never made a good family -- I didn't know how. The rituals of the Seder are mildly interesting, I now understand the importance of their purpose, as that purpose is beautifully presented, by Mr. Prager. He's a good story-teller -- The Haggadah man. It is the "Discussions" and Essays that got me. During the second reading, I experienced the bitter-sweet feeling that I had missed...everything. But, all is not lost. I now have the quest of getting this book to every 24 year old I know. Yes, that's about the age of last chance. You've got to read it, to believe it. On page one, "Seder" is defined, in Hebrew "b'seder," literally means "in order." I remembered that from another work: "We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union...."

I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book, and I have had a few weeks now to read and ponder the text. The Rational Passover Haggadah is in some respects a continuation of Dennis Prager’s Old Testament (i.e., Torah) commentary series; it is only this in some ways since this new book is not a commentary on an Old Testament book per se but is instead the traditional Jewish Passover “Seder” (a traditional dinner gathering of observant Jews to celebrate Passover, one of the “big 3” holidays in Judaism, along with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) with accompanying commentary on the service. For those who do not know, Passover commemorates the Exodus of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt under the leadership of Moses. Passover Seders have a special place of nostalgia in my heart, and so I have relished the opportunity to read this book. In living with this book for almost a month now, I cannot help but note that much of the commentary and the text of the Seder service itself has been incredibly meaningful and powerful for me personally. The book, in essence, is an incredible distillation of eternally profound wisdom. Over the course of reading the book, I took copious notes. What these notes have told me was that there is simply too much within the book that is pure, eternal wisdom to be able to neatly summarize the tome (to the extent that one can refer to a 135-page book not counting notes and added portions of commentary from the Torah books already published, The Rational Passover Haggadah is very much a tome) in a few sound-bite worthy lines. While one may look at observant Jews as the primary target audience of this book, it is also meant for secular Jews and frankly, individuals of all religious, or no religious, faiths. If individuals, regardless of individual religious beliefs, political affiliations and ethnic/cultural background, were to take the time to read The Rational Passover Haggadah and honestly reflect, in an unbiased manner, on what is written within, this book could have the potential of immeasurable positive impact on humanity. Here is just a brief summary of some of the countless vital and sage affirmations within this book: 1) Gratitude is key to happiness; 2) Freedom and liberty are values rather than the product of the hearts' desires of human beings (which is crucial to understand because this certainty should disabuse anyone of the notion that any "free" nation is destined to remain so); 3) What it means when one says the Jews are "The Chosen People" and that this state of chosenness is an open invitation from God to anyone who seeks to embrace it; 4) The nature of empathy; 5) What does it mean to truly be "good;" 6) The concept of a nation's or a people's "collective guilt" for atrocities; and finally, 7) the very nature of God. All of which is covered in a mere 135 pages. ...