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Post by alon on Apr 30, 2016 12:48:19 GMT -8
[Rav S did a d'rash on this, and I did some further study, and this is an interesting sidelight to our Pesach studies. In his Rav S also did a bit about its' having been called nightshade in the TNK; but I failed to get the connection so I've left it out. Still, very interesting short topic.]
Maror/merorim- from mar, meaning bitter.
The question is asked every Pesach “Why do we eat bitter herbs?” And the answer “Because the Egyptians made our lives bitter in mortar and bricks.”
However looking at various seder plates, there is no consistency in the place for maror. Armenian plates have a place for horseradish as well as bitter herbs and maror. Others have places for karpas, charoset, maror and lettuce. Others still, and the most common in this part of the US at least, has place only for karpas, maror (not specified which) and for charoset.
Shemot 12:8 (OJB) And they shall eat the basar in that night, roasted over eish, and matzot; and with maror they shall eat it. [See Yochanan 6:53-54 where Moshiach alludes to this verse and Isaiah 53:7.]
Many customarily use both romaine lettuce and horseradish to fulfill the obligation to eat maror (bitter herbs) on Erev Pesach.
The earliest mention of acceptable herbs is from the Mishana, @ 200 CE (Pesachim 39a), “And these are the vegetables a person can meet his requirements on”:
• lettuce (probably similar to Romain)
• olshein (possibly endive)
• cardoon (artichoke)
• arango
• seaside thistle
Unfortunately, it is difficult identity most of these vegetables by their ancient Hebrew names.
The first mention of horseradish is from 1100 CE, but it is an ingredient in the charoset. The first real reference to it as a bitter herb was in 1300 CE. Rabbi Sussland said that when lettuce is not available they may use horseradish. This was due to many of the Ashkenazi’s living in climates where the growing season is shorter. However it sort of morphed into the way they all did it. So commonly Ashkenazis use horseradish and Sephardic’s use lettuce.
So two of them, horseradish and lettuce, have a clear Talmudic tradition regarding their identity. The Talmud does say that the preferred one for use is lettuce.
Horseradish, when eaten on a piece of matzah completely overpowers the senses. In Jewish tradition, one must eat enough bitter herbs (Hebrew maror) to bring tears to the eyes. The tears and the effect of the horseradish remind each Seder participant how great was the affliction the Jewish people endured. Failing to remember the bitterness of our slavery in Egypt might induce us to return to our bondage in and enslavement to sin, which of course Egypt represents. And eating even a little bit too much recalls the great pain endured by Jewish nation during their slavery!
Horseraddish is not even native to the mid-east. However now even those in Israel refer to horseradish as chatseret, which in Biblical Hebrew is lettuce.
Our halacha at Beit Aveinu is now to keep it simple and use either horseradish or romaine lettuce for the maror. At some later time we may have a ruling on it, which probably will be to use lettuce.
Romaine lettuce starts off sweet in the mouth, then turns bitter. This more accurately depicts the life of the Hebrew people in Egypt. It started off sweet under Joseph, then turned into bitter bondage later on. Alternatively, romaine left too long in the field gets very bitter, and could be used.
My personal preference is to use both. This gives the full effect, and since the entire seder, including manmade traditions, points directly to Yeshua, both these elements fulfill that requirement. The sweetness of the gospel turning to bitterness on the cross; and the horseradish a potent symbolic reference to the high cost of sin- the pain endured there by HaMoshiach as He died for us.
Dan C
