What’s the Message of Leil Haseder

15 What’s the message the seder

We would expect the name of the yom tov to reflect one of the positive aspects of the geula (redemption), either our freedom from slavery, the miracles of Yetzias Mitzrayim, or the miracles of Krias Yam Suf. Instead, the name Pesach emphasizes Hashem “passing over” our homes, seemingly focusing on what didn’t happen rather than what did.

Giluy Shechina

This perspective reframes our understanding of Leil Pesach and why the yom tov is named Pesach. The night of Yetzias Mitzrayim was about a revelation of Shechina—a reality far beyond our grasp. It was such an overwhelming Divine presence that it caused the death of the Egyptian firstborns. Yet, Hashem, in His love for Klal Yisroel, made space for us to survive and thrive within this revelation. This, the giluy shechina,  is about our partnership with Hashem in bringing down this transcendent reality into our world. Hashem’s pesicha—His “passing over”—was not just about sparing us from destruction, but about making space for us to receive and integrate His presence. This is why so many mitzvos are zecher l’Yetzias Mitzrayim—because Leil HaSeder represents the essence of all mitzvos. Giluy Shechina. We will continue to expand on this theme throughout the Vaad.

The purpose of mitzvos

The Gemara in Maseches Kiddushin [1] states that when Hashem declared the first two mitzvos, the nations of the world assumed the rules were for His own honor. However, when the mitzva “Honor your father and mother” was given, they realized the Torah was given to benefit Klal Yisrael.

The nations assumed that ratzon Hashem was about obedience—”Retzono shel adam hu kevodo,” meaning that fulfilling His will is what brings Him honor. By this logic, mitzvos would exist solely for the sake of compliance, and serving Hashem would mean unquestioning submission. However, the mitzvah of kibbud av v’eim shattered this assumption. This assumption, however, persists even today, with many of us believing that ratzon Hashem is primarily about obedience. We see Torah and mitzvos as a system of rules meant to be followed as a servant serves his King.

Klal Yisroel never made the nations’ mistake. Right before Mattan Torah, Hashem told Moshe to warn Klal Yisroel for a second time not to ascend Har Sinai. Moshe responded, “I already told them.” To Moshe, a tzivuy (commandment) was enough—Hashem commanded, and Klal Yisroel would obey. But Hashem insisted on repeating the warning, teaching that His concern goes beyond mere obedience—He cares for Klal Yisroel themselves. There is no doubt that He will be obeyed, and if His will is not followed, then the Jew who touches the mountain will die, glorifying Hashem and underlining the relationship of obedience. However Hashem does not want this to occur, Hashem is telling Moshe to tell Klal Yisroel a second time because Hashem does not want to be glorified through a Jew’s death, rather He wants that not even one Jew die! This communication to Moshe showed that mitzvos are not about Hashem demanding honor. Hashem seeks our partnership, our development, and our aliyah through Torah—not just blind compliance.

The chidush of Yetzias Mitzrayim

We often misunderstand the true purpose of Torah and mitzvos. A clear example of this is the widespread success of the “Thank You Hashem” movement in America, which frames our relationship with Hashem as one in which He exists primarily to give us good. In this mindset, our role is simply to express gratitude, and when challenges arise, we reassure ourselves that they are merely “preparing us for future blessings.” But this is not true emunah. 

Real emunah is recognizing that Hashem does not exist to serve us—He wants to be with us. This is not just a comforting thought; it is a profound and even dangerous reality. When Hashem’s presence is revealed, it can be overwhelming. As we said, the giluy Shechina on Leil Pesach was so intense that it killed the Egyptian firstborns.

With Yetzias Mitzrayim, Hashem descended to be with us, and being with us means we are not just obeying Him—we are active partners in revealing His presence in the world. True cheirus (freedom) does not mean we can do whatever we want as long as we stay frum. That would imply Hashem remains distant, merely giving us rules to follow without truly being present in our lives. Rather we are an active partner in each mitzvah that Hashem reveals Himself in.

This concept is seen clearly in the unique nature of kibud av v’em. Hashem’s message is not just “obey Me,” but rather, “even when your father tells you what to do, this is My will.” In other words, Hashem wants our partnership and growth in that mitzvah, and within that mitzvah itself we are bringing the hashra’as hashechina (Hashem’s presence into our tangible reality).

Each Jew partners with Hashem in a unique way

Leil HaSeder serves as the very foundation of Torah, mitzvos, and emunah, a cornerstone we must revisit each year. It is the night when Hashem “enters the picture” of our lives—what we call hashra’as hashechinah. Without Hashem entering our reality, there would be no possibility for us to actively participate in bringing hashra’as hashechinah into the world. Leil Haseder teaches us that our physical world is the place where we partner in revealing Hashem’s presence. The outside world misunderstands this. We find that even non-religious Jews think that “spirituality” simply means “prayer”—they believe ruchniyus is about being detached from the world around us. But we know the truth: that avodah, which itself is ruchniyus, means being actively involved in this world.

Active participation in the hashra’as hashechina at the highest level is what nevuah (prophecy) truly is. After all, if two prophets were to say the exact same words and in the same style, we would know they are lying! Each prophet has his own unique style, because the prophecy is being transmitted through him – the unique him, which is being a partner in hashra’as hashechina. 

Freedom from Mitzrayim is only possible as a partner with Hashem

Many explain that there was a potential to make a mistake and to think that maybe Hashem took us out of Mitzrayim in order to be “free.” Therefore the pasuk says “you are being taken out as servants to Hashem.” The natural follow up question is “how can you be a servant to Hashem and then be called “free” – which is what we call ourselves Seder night?”

But the answer is clear. The only way to escape the impurity and slavery of Egypt is through and with Hashem – i.e. “being a partner with Hashem.” It is only by joining with Hashem in this way that we can have a geula and leave the slavery/impurity of Egypt behind.

We often get so caught up in the ‘obedience’ approach to Torah that we miss a deeper truth: something far greater reveals itself beyond what we can easily grasp down here. It’s a pnimiyus—an inner essence, a recognition that reaches higher and runs deeper than the tangible world we see. This is exactly what unfolded on Leil HaSeder: Hashem stepped into the picture! That night showed Klal Yisroel that Hashem Himself entered their reality, and that’s the very tachlis of the universe.

The purpose of the mitzvos and Mattan Torah is to bring a higher, intangible world into our physical existence, making it a felt reality within the here and now. Ultimately, the goal is the presence of the Shechina in Eretz Yisroel—a state we haven’t yet fully experienced in its truest, ultimate form.

Preparing the Haggadah

We need to prepare our Haggadah in a way that brings out this powerful message for ourselves and allows us to share it meaningfully with our family at the Seder. The goal is to see, through the Haggadah’s words, how Hashem wants us to be active partners with Him.

Take, for example, a moment we see in the Haggadah: the Jewish people cried out in their pain while trapped in Mitzrayim. The Ramban brings a fascinating insight about this. The Torah tells us that Klal Yisroel was in Egypt for 430 years, but if you count the years carefully, it only adds up to 400. The Ramban explains this gap with a deep yesod: when someone’s in jail and stays a rasha, stubbornly unchanged, they serve their full sentence—no early release. But Klal Yisroel got out 30 years early! How? They didn’t even do teshuva, and by all accounts, they were still reshaim, not yet worthy of leaving Egypt. So what changed? They davened! They cried out to Hashem, showing they believed He wanted a connection with them, even in their lowly state. And that faith, that tefilla, brought the geula.

The point being – even when we’re not on the highest madreiga, Hashem wants us to be active partners with Him.

Even a rasha is a partner with Hashem

The Haftorah of Parshas Metzora tells the story of the four mitzoraim—Gechazi and his three children. Klal Yisroel is facing starvation, on the brink of dying out, desperate for a yeshua (salvation). And where does the yeshua come from? Gechazi, who is a complete rasha and doesn’t have a chelek (portion) in Olam Haba! Without him, there would be no Klal Yisroel!

This is parallel to what we see in Mitzrayim. The Ramban says Klal Yisroel were reshaim back then—undeserving of redemption by their actions. But Hashem took us out anyway! Why? Because He wanted to be with us. A rasha might not be ‘obedient’ in the classic sense, checking all the boxes, but Hashem’s connection with us goes way deeper than obedience, to a place beyond our understanding.

Contrast this with the rasha at Leil HaSeder, whom we tell, ‘If you were there, you wouldn’t have been redeemed.’ That rasha is a different type altogether. He’s a new breed, born Leil HaSeder—he keeps all of Torah and mitzvos, but he pulls himself out of Klal Yisroel. Klal Yisroel in Mitzrayim however, were reshaim according to the Ramban, but they were still part of Klal Yisroel.

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[1] Editor’s Note: This gemara is approached from an entirely different angle in the Vaad entitled “09 – The proper Rebbi-Talmid relationship which promotes growth: Mattan Torah and Purim”