Question:
This question concerns a woman’s obligation for Seder on Pesach. The person wishes to remain anonymous. She is sincerely trying to find a family to host her for Pesach as she is not within walking distance to shul and does not want to drive on Shabbat. If she finds it difficult to attend the Seder is she obligated to do so even if she will observe all the other mitzvot for Pesach like kashering oven, cleaning, selling chametz etc. She also cannot invite someone to lead the Seder because she has no room to house her guests. What should she do?
Thank you Rabbi
Answer:
Women are obligated in the Seder Night proceedings, just as men are.
Therefore, the lady in question should either find a host that she’ll be comfortable with — for Seder Night many are happy to invite others, and I imagine that this will be possible through the local rabbi/shul/community center — or she can go through the Seder on her own.
If she will be doing the Seder on her own, and needs further guidance as to how to go about it, another question can be submitted. The entire Seder is a little lengthy, and if this is hard, it can be cut down to the “essentials.”
Best wishes.
[There is discussion among poskim as to the obligation of women in the mitzvah of telling the tale of Yetzias Mitzrayim (hagaddah). Some rishonim write that women are not obligated on a Torah level in this mitzvah, whereas the Chinuch writes that women are fully obligated. Either way, women are rabbinically obligated in this mitzvah, and are likewise obligated in the other mitzvos of Seder Night, such as Matzah, Maror, Korech, Afikoman, and so on.]
