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Bais HaVaad on the Parsha, Parshas Vayikra

No Bless Oblige

Excerpted and adapted from a shiur by Dayan Yehoshua Grunwald

March 23, 2023

 

When we recite the Hagadah, we fulfill the mitzvah de’Oreisa of sipur yetzias Mitzrayim (telling the story of leaving Egypt). Why don’t we make a bracha on this mitzvah as we do on others?

The Me’iri (Brachos 12b) cites one view that a bracha should in fact be made. The Tashbeitz maintains that “Baruch Hamakom” in the Hagadah serves as the bracha. (According to his approach, perhaps one should have this intent when reciting it.)

Rabeinu Peretz and the Shibalei Haleket answer that we already fulfilled the mitzvah of sipur before the Seder—either in kiddush with the words “zeicher litzias Mitzrayim” or in Ma’ariv with the bracha of “ga’al Yisrael”—so we may no longer recite a bracha on the mitzvah. Although the mitzvah of sipur may include reciting the entire Hagadah, perhaps these Rishonim understood that to be required only mideRabanan, while the mitzvah de’Oreisa is fulfilled with just a few words.

The Abudraham answers that no bracha is recited on mitzvos without a minimum requirement. The Maharal answers that no bracha is made on mitzvos fulfilled primarily in the mind, and this one is mainly about thoughts of gratitude to Hashem. The Sfas Emes answers that no bracha was instituted for mitzvos sichliyos (logical mitzvos)—which this one is, because we would be expected to praise Hashem for taking us out of Mitzrayim even without an explicit command.

 

 

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