The Pintele Haggadah in J Weekly

At J Weekly (The Jewish News of Northern California), David A. M. Wilensky has included The Pintele Haggadah in his annual roundup of new Haggadahs.

Wilensky is not entirely on board with my approach, but I think his criticisms are fair and reasonable. He’s right — if you don't like the idea of a funny seder, or one which expresses ambivalence about religion, then it’s probably not the Haggadah you’ll want to use at your seder (though I think you’d still enjoy reading it, and looking at the pictures, especially my drawing of Hillel at the Carnegie Deli).

Wilensky writes:

Where [Diamond] loses me is his insistence on pointing out what “our ancestors” did, removing himself and his audience from the equation of what we all do on the seder night. In the opening pages of the haggadah, Diamond has the leader read out: “When our ancestors lit candles, they would say a prayer in Hebrew.” He places the practice in the past, but then he writes out the blessing for lighting Passover candles anyway. Why not just print that blessing on its own, without implying that it’s a silly thing from the past? People can choose to say it or not, object or not. 

Of course, “just print[ing] that blessing on its own” is something I wouldn’t consider doing, because I fundamentally object to prayer. I’d be much more likely to dispense with the prayers entirely than to include them without comment. My rationale for including them is stated in my introduction to the book:

Despite the absence of a god in these pages (and in the universe), some traditional Hebrew prayers (with English transliteration and translation) are included, so you can incorporate them into your seder if you want to. I don’t think we have to believe in a literal god to find power in these ancient sounds, or in the idea that Jewish people have said these words for thousands of years. Believers who are confident in their beliefs needn’t be offended when nonbelievers express spiritual doubt; nonbelievers likewise need not feel affronted by the sound of prayer.

So, The Pintele Haggadah’s take on prayer isn’t quite so dismissive as “it’s a silly thing from the past” — though it is indeed a silly thing from the past, so this small bit of pushback to Mr. Wilensky’s review doesn’t push very hard.

I assume he’s consciously referencing the story of the Four Sons when he says I’m “removing [my]self and [my] audience from… what we all do on the seder night.” I’m the Wicked Son! What does all this mean to you?

Anyway, I’m pleased that the book has been included in this roundup, and of course it’s not news to me that my approach to Passover is unusual and not for everyone. If you’d like your own copy of The Pintele Haggadah, so you can decide for yourself whether my “ambivalence and cute jokes” are your cup of kosher wine, you can order one right here.