why the GR"A objected to reading haggadah on shabbos ha'gadol

I've seen some folks referring to this Shabbos as Shabbos ha'Gadol.  Technically, next Shabbos is Shabbos haGadol, but the MB (430:2) writes that the Rav should give his derasha this Shabbos.  If the Rav starts teaching hilchos pesach in a derasha next Shabbos, it's too late to make a difference. 

The Rama writes that the minhag is to read the haggadah mincha time on Shabbos haGadol.  GR"A quoted in Biur Halacha objects.  We read in the haggadah יכול מר״ח...בּעבור זה- בּשעה שׁמצה ומרור מונחים לפניך .  On Shabbos haGadol there is no מצה ומרור מונחים לפניך.  The question is, "So what?"  Of course you can't fulfill the mitzvah of haggadah on Shabbos haGadol because it's not the time for matzah and maror, but that's not the intent.  It's just a minhag b'alma, to familiarize oneself with the text beforehand.  Why does the GR"A read the derasha as a *prohibition*?   

 

My SIL Aryeh sent me a mareh makom to a Yaavetz who suggests there may be a problem of bal tosif here.  I don't understand how that can be.  Bal tosif does not apply outside the zman ha'mitzvah when one has no kavanah for a kiyum mitzah (see R"H 28).  Also, if that was the GR"As intent, he should say "bal tosif." 

 

Perhaps one can explain the GR"A based on a Terumas haDeshen quoted in Rama 471:2 (in the MB it says in parenthesis next to this din that it is in Th"D siman 7.  I'll save you a lot of time.  It's in siman 125 here.) that says if a katan is too little to really understand what is going on on pesach night you can feed him early.  However, if the katan is within chinuch age and understands, you should make him wait and not give him matzah too eat early.  Why?  Explains the Th"D: כיון שׁאין המצה חידושׁ הוא לקטן.  If he eats matzah early, what he sees at the seder is old news.  There is nothing striking that will elicit his curiosity.  (See as well the Th"D in 137 regarding starting the seder before nighfall: והשׁינוי נמי אין כּאן when the right time is reached.)

 

We see from the Th"D that eating matzah early is not just a chisaron in the kiyum of matzah, like Rashi writes in the beginning of Arvei Pesachim (99b) that you can't eat matzah on erev Pesach from mincha time onward כדי שיאכל מצה של מצוה לתיאבון, but it's a chisaron in the kiyum of sipur and haggadah because it turns the experience into something stale.  The sipur also has to be לתיאבון.

 

I don't want to repeat my entire post from 5 years ago, so I'll just give you the punchline from the Ramban at the end of P' Mishpatim (24:1): ולא יאמר ׳ויספר׳ אלא בחדשות אשר יגיד.  The word "sipur" means you are relating something new.  Old news doesn't count.  I wanted to suggest that based on this Ramban we have a new insight into what the goal of "sipur" yetzi'as Mitzrayim is.  It's not just to tell the story of what happened, but it is to make that story fresh, exciting, relevant – something new.   

 

R' Akiva Medlov suggests that this is pshat in the GR"A as well.  To come back to the Th"D:

 

דאין להאכילו מצה דדרשינן והגדת לבנך כו' ובעבור זה לא אמרתי אלא בשעה שיש מצה ומרור מונחים לפניך ואם ימלא הבן כבר כריסו מן המצות היאך שייך לומר בעבור זה כיון דאין המצה חידוש לו לקטן:

 

Leil ha'seder is the birthday of the Jewish people.  If you got a peek at your birthday present in advance, it spoils the surprise when you open the box; kal v'chomer if you got a slice of birthday cake in advance, it's just not the same.  Matzah is our birthday cake or birthday present; sipur is like singing "Happy Birthday" at the party.  If you have a slice of matzah in advance and sing the song beforehand, whether it is the afternoon beforehand or the Shabbos haGadol beforehand, the party isn't much of a party.  The cake is not as fresh, the excitement of opening the presents and finding out what you got isn't there  That's what bothered the GR"A.  Don't ruin the party.  Don't ruin the freshness and excitement of leil ha'seder. 

 

Even if you follow the Rama and not the GR"A, that's a goal to keep in mind.

the avodah of the nasi vs the avodah of the eved

Rashi comments on the korban of a nasi/melech ⁠אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָשִׂ֖יא יֶֽחֱטָ֑א (4:22) that לשון אשרי, אשרי הדור שהנשיא שלו נותן לב להביא כפרה על שגגתו, קל וחומר שמתחרט על זדונותיו.  It's a wonderful thing when leaders own up to their mistakes.  Yet earlier in that same perek, in discussing the korban of the kohen gadol, Rashi comments on  אִ֣ם הַכֹּ⁠הֵ֧ן הַמָּ⁠שִׁ֛יחַ יֶחֱטָ֖א לְ⁠אַשְׁמַ֣ת הָעָ֑ם (4:3) that כשכהן גדול חוטא, אשמת העם היא, שזה שהםב תלוים בו להתפלל בעדם ולכפר עליהם, נעשה מקולקל, it's the people's fault if their leaders mess up.  Why by the nasi/melech is it "ashrei" when the leaders fess up, and no blame is assigned to anyone but themselves, but by the kohen it is "ashmas ha'am," a terrible thing and the fault of the people?  Two leaders, yet two very different reactions!

The gemara in Brachos 34b relates as follows:

 

ת"ר מעשה שחלה בנו של ר"ג שגר שני ת"ח אצל רבי חנינא בן דוסא לבקש עליו רחמים כיון שראה אותם עלה לעלייה ובקש עליו רחמים בירידתו אמר להם לכו שחלצתו חמה אמרו לו וכי נביא אתה אמר להן לא נביא אנכי ולא בן נביא אנכי אלא כך מקובלני אם שגורה תפלתי בפי יודע אני שהוא מקובל ואם לאו יודע אני שהוא מטורף ישבו וכתבו וכוונו אותה שעה וכשבאו אצל ר"ג אמר להן העבודה לא חסרתם ולא הותרתם אלא כך היה מעשה באותה שעה חלצתו חמה ושאל לנו מים לשתות ושוב מעשה ברבי חנינא בן דוסא שהלך ללמוד תורה אצל ר' יוחנן בן זכאי וחלה בנו של ריב"ז אמר לו חנינא בני בקש עליו רחמים ויחיה הניח ראשו בין ברכיו ובקש עליו רחמים וחיה אמר רבי יוחנן בן זכאי אלמלי הטיח בן זכאי את ראשו בין ברכיו כל היום כולו לא היו משגיחים עליו אמרה לו אשתו וכי חנינא גדול ממך אמר לה לאו אלא הוא דומה כעבד לפני המלך ואני דומה כשר לפני המלך:

 

What is it that made R' Chanina's prayers more efficacious that those of R' Yochanen ben Zakai?  What is the meaning of the answer to Rabbanit ben Zakai's question  אמרה לו אשתו וכי חנינא גדול ממך? 

 

While a sar, a nasi, a member of the cabinet, has access to the king to discuss heady and weighty matters, there are always protocols to be followed.  Cabinet meetings are scheduled, there is an agenda drawn up, there are official minutes and records; because important matters are at stake, nothing is just done off the cuff. 

 

The palace janitor does not need to make an appointment to enter the king's office.  He has no protocol to follow as to when he can or cannot enter.  He goes where he wants, when he wants, doing his job as needed, privy to the most private discussions, able to enter the most private chambers as needed.  True, he does not get to weigh in on lofty matters of state like the sar or cabinet member, but he also suffers no restrictions on his access.

 

We look up to the sar as above us, not one of us.  The palace janitor, on the other hand, is just like you and me. 

 

Rav Kook, R' Tzadok (Pri Tzadik in P' Eikev) and others explain that R' Yb"Z's avodah was through limud haTorah.  That's the sar, the nasi, the member of the cabinet.  He was engaged in contemplating and opining on lofty things.  However, his access to the King was governed by strict protocol.  R' Chanina was the palace janitor.  He didn't need to follow protocol, he didn't need to make appointments to see the king. 

 

When Rav Chanina prayed הניח ראשו בין ברכיו. R' Yochanan ben Zakai's head was in the clouds working on the great problems that need addressing.  R' Chanina's head was down here on earth and his prayer came from the heart.

 

When Aharon and Miriam spoke against Moshe, Hashem came to them and said  וּמַדּ֙⁠וּעַ֙ לֹ֣א יְ⁠רֵאתֶ֔ם לְ⁠דַבֵּ֖⁠ר בְּ⁠עַבְדִּ֥י בְ⁠מֹשֶֽׁה׃.  The Chofetz Chaim (al haTorah) comments on the use of the double description -- בְּ⁠עַבְדִּ֥י בְ⁠מֹשֶֽׁה -- that Moshe's greatness was that he shared both qualities.  He was Moshe Rabeinu, the greatest teacher of Torah who ever lived, but he was also ְ⁠עַבְדִּ֥י, just like a simple servant of Hashem. 

 

R' Yosef Yehuda Leib Sorotzkin says that this is the difference between the nasi and the kohen gadol.  Because of his importance, when the nasi admits mistake, it is a real a blow to his ego and pride. It carries weight.  Therefore, אשרי הדור שהנשיא שלו נותן לב להביא כפרה על שגגתו.  It has nothing to do with the people because he lives in a world apart from them.

 

The kohen gadol, on the other hand, was a like the palace servant.  He was a man of the people.  The kohen's job was to be the oheiv shalom v'rodef shalom and be makareiv others and to daven for the nation.  The gemara in Makkos writes that a murderer b'shogeg had to stay in the ir miklat until the death of the k'g because the k'g is at fault for not davening better.  When you're just a regular Joe in the palace, if you make a mistake, it reflects on all the other regular Joes who are just like you and whom you represent.

5 years since the Covid outbreak -- have we learned anything? Has there been a hischadshus?

The name "parshas hachodesh" is somewhat of a misnomer given that there is exactly one pasuk that relates to kiddush hachodesh and the entire rest of the parsha is aboue the laws of korban pesach.  We call it "hachodesh" in recognition of the fact that the mitzvah of korban pesach would be impossible to receive or observe unless it was preceded by a hischadshus, a renewal -- of spirit, of outlook, of commitment.  That is what the mitzvah of kiddush hachodesh teaches us.  It's like when you want to paint an old wall.  You won't get the optimal results if you just slap a new coat of pain on top of all the old layers.  You have to scrape the all paint off, prime the wall, restore it to shape, and only then apply the new paint.

The 5 year anniversary of Covid has been in the news lately.  I don't want to revisit all the stupid things done and said by people back then.  (Those things should be revisited at some point, but it's not my job and it's not for now.)  I want to focus on hischadshus.  You remember all those weddings in backyards, in small halls, in all kinds of venues, sometimes with only a minyan present?  Remember when people said that it's about time we scale back simchas and do away with the lavish, expensive and unnecessary things that go into a simcha?  How long did that commitment last once Covid was over?  People who really can't afford it are back to going into debt to keep up with the Cohens, people are back to vorts and l'chaims that are the size of weddings, people are hiring party planners and decorators for halls for things like a weekday bris.  And where is the voice of the establishment, the rabbinical organizations?  Where are they when they should be decrying the return to ab-normalcy?

 

Remember when shuls re-opened and people were talking about making a commitment to respecting kedushas beis ha'knesses, a commitment to showing how much we value our places of worship?  How quickly that faded as well.  How many times is your shmoneh esrei interrupted by the sound of a cell phone going off?  I happened to see on shabbos -- and this is not a yotzei min haklel -- someone who had a giant cup of iced coffee parked right there at their makom, right next to the siddur.  There is no sense of busha about it, and why should there be?  This has become the new normal.  (The truth is that if you don't teach proper behavior when your kids are chinuch age, I fear it is a lost cause.)  You think the Rav or a gabbai is going to dare come over and tell that person this is not how to behave in a shul?  Yet during Covid when shuls finally started to have minyanim you can bet that in certain places the gabbai or Rabbi would come over bounce you out if you had no mask.  Mai sh'na? 

 

Remember when people made pesach at home, surrounded by their immediate family members?  These days people like myself who do that must seem nuts.  There is the l'chatchila of spending thousands of $ per person to go to some exotic hotel, and bdieved, there is Orlando, where instead of staying in your own kosher home, shopping in your own local kosher grocery, you ship your kitchen kelim to some 100& treif home, kasher it, ship your food and wine, all so that you don't have to be in your own neighborhood.  When I say "kol dichpein..." I don’t have no worry lest anyone will actually show up at the door because where I live, there is hardly a soul left in town over the chag.  What Rav is going to tell people to stay home when many of them also look to grap a slot on the lecture circuit at these hotels?  Who doesn't want a free vacation in exchange for a "lecture" given between the cabaret show and the golf?

 

Covid should have been a renwal.  The old paint should have come off, new primer put on, our house should look like new.  But instead, what happened is a thin coat of cheap paint got thrown on top of all the old layers, with all the same cracks still there, all the flaws inevitably set to resurface -- and indeed, in many places, they have.

It's always dangerous to write critical posts, so I hope everything here is just hyperbole and exaggeration and none of it applies to any of our shuls or communities and we should all be zocheh to daven in quiet, mekomos kedoshim, to have simchas that fulfill the spirit of "hatzne'a leches," and we should all enjoy Y"T in whatever wonderful kosher places we find ourselves.