Exodus Rhapsody

Our second night seder was painfully dull, and occasionally just painful. On the plus side, I was able to use the time to write this:

Exodus Rhapsody
To the tune of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody"

Me: Is this the real life
Is this just fantasy
Caught at the Seder
But no food is in front of me

Out of Mitzra'im, but I'm just tryin' to eat...
Read my Hagadah, cheered when they crossed the sea
Because I was a slave, now I know,
Moses said we must go

So we cooked the matzah, doesn't even have time to rise,
To rise.

Slaves: Yaweh, just killed a lamb,
Put its blood upon my door
(This is worse than Yom Kippur)

Moses, once he had to run
But we knew that he'd come back again some day.

God: Moses, oo oo oo, go and see that Pharaoh guy,
This burning bush thing can’t go on forever
Hurry up, hurry up, but first you must cut off your foreskin.

Me: Empty plate, no food has come
And I’ve drunk two cups of wine, head is spinning but I’m fine.
Goodbye, ev’rybody, I’ve got to go,
Gotta find some eggs or maybe chicken soup.
Matzah, oo oo oo, the afikomen we did hide
I really wish we could have eaten it…

Moses: I see a little burning bush around my lamb

Slaves: "Moses go, Moses go, will you go talk to pharaoh?"

Moses: Hello mister pharaoh will you set my people free?

Slaves: Mr. Pharaoh, Mr. Pharaoh, Mr. Pharaoh, Mr. Pharaoh
Mr. Pharaoh let us go!

Pharaoh: You shall not go!

God: I’ll send some frogs, blood, hail, lice, and wild beasts
Darkness and boils, locusts and anarchy
But harden your heart so you won’t set them free!

Moses: Plagues have come, God’s strength show, will you let us go?

God: (Harden heart!)

Pharaoh: No, I will not let you go!

Slaves: Let us go!

God: (Harden heart!)

Pharaoh: No, we will not let you go!

Slaves: Let us go!

God: (Harden heart!)

Pharaoh: No, we will not let you go!

Slaves: Let us go!

Pharaoh: Will not let you go!

Slaves: Let us go!

Pharaoh: Will not let you go!

Slaves: Let us go!

Pharaoh: Um.. No, no, no, no, no, no, no!

Moses: Oh mighty pharaoh, mighty pharaoh, mighty pharaoh let us go.
‘Cause Adonai has a worse plague set aside, you’ll see!
You’ll see!
You’ll see!!!!!

[Instrumental break by frogs]

Moses: So you thought you could break us but now you’ll see your first born die!

Pharaoh: Now I know why I shouldn’t upset Adonai!

Moses: Oh, Pharaoh; set my people free Pharaoh!

Pharaoh: Go on and get out, go on and get right out of here…

Me: Pescah really matters
It’s how we were freed...

Pesach really matters,
But I still am waiting
To eat…

Slaves: Have a Happy Pesach!

Misheberach for Debbie Friedman

For those that have not heard, Debbie Friedman is very ill with pneumonia, not responding to medication against whatever infection she is struggling with. Her condition seems to be worsening. She is in an induced coma and family members are asking our prayers, for Debbie and for them.


Debbie Friedman is pretty much the voice of modern Reform Jewish music; before she did a version of the Misheberach (prayer for healing & renewal) most Reform Jews didn't even know what the prayer was; now it's a weekly staple in most congregations. I learned the Shema, V'ahavta, Mi Chamocah, Oseh Shalom, Shalom Rav, and many other prayers by singing her songs, and they're still among my favorite pieces to sing, in and out of prayer.


My prayers go to her and her family; she has had a permanent and positive impact on my life.

Leading Prayer vs. Praying For

At a recent service I was reminded of how thin the line is between leading prayers for the congregation, and praying on behalf of them. It doesn't help that the line is very changeable based on the individual and their mood that day. Still, I believe that a proper understanding of the difference is one of the keys to a successful congregation.

I've often had the feeling, especially in congregations with a strong cantor, that I was being prayed for. This is not to fault the cantor; most professional cantors are quite good at what they do; they're so good, in fact, and pray so well on my behalf that I'm not sure I even need to be there.

Just to illustrate that fine line I mentioned, I like my services full of music and song, so clearly getting rid of the cantors would not be the answer. And it's not only cantors that cause this feeling; they are just the most common, and most noticeable, cause.

The music hold another issue; if the melody is not singable, it is very difficult for me to get involved. Some people find some melodies so inspirational that they meet their spiritual needs by sitting and reflecting while they listen to it; I am a much more active prayer. If I can't sing along (and I have a lot more singing experience than most congregants, so you have to really work at this one), I lose interest. This does tend to be a problem of, and for, the cantors. Understandably so; they encounter so much incredibly beautiful sacred music, and want to share it with the congregation. That's laudable, but can also change it from a prayer service to a concert.

I also believe the prayer book plays a large role in it. Despite being a staunch non-traditionalist, I love the traditional prayers, and traditional melodies. I feel they have gained a certain power and familiarity over the generations of their use (even though some of them have been around for many fewer generations than we'd expect); take those away, and you're left with some random piece of poetry or music that I will like or dislike. If I dislike it, or even like it but find it lacking in "meaning", the service becomes a lot less intimate, a lot less personal. If all we're doing is reading poetry from some book, well, you can do that just as well without me.

Prayer leading, by contrast, works a lot like song leading does at camp. You, the song/prayer leader, are not the star; the congregation is. No one came to hear you pray/sing; they came so they could do it. Your job, as leader, is to set the key (one that most people can hit), hold the tempo, and use a loud, clear voice so anyone that forgets the words can pick it up from you.

The best song/prayer leaders add another level of excitement, energy, and connection. I used to see this at camp; both song leaders knew the lyrics and melody, and were technically as proficient. But one always seemed to get the group dancing harder, singing louder, and smiling more than the other. Sadly, this is the hardest part to teach. As Miyamoto Musashi would say, "Practice this diligently."