Prepare for Passover with Ritualwell, by Rabbi Deborah Glanzberg-Krainin, Ph.D.

Check out our PassoverPassover is a major Jewish holiday that commemorates the Jewish people's liberation from slavery and Exodus from Egypt. Its Hebrew name is Pesakh. Its name derives from the tenth plague, in which God "passed over" the homes of the Jewish firstborn, slaying only the Egyptian firstborn. Passover is celebrated for a week, and many diaspora Jews celebrate for eight days. The holiday begins at home at a seder meal and ritual the first (and sometimes second) night. Jews tell the story of the Exodus using a text called the haggadah, and eat specific food (matzah, maror, haroset, etc). resources and you will find a wide variety of readings, songs, and poems.  And, as  you prepare for your sederLit. Order. The festive meal conducted on Passover night, in a specific order with specific rituals to symbolize aspects of the Exodus from Egypt. It is conducted following the haggadah, a book for this purpose. The mystics of Sefat also created a seder for Tu B'shvat, the new year of the trees., please remember to share your materials with us. 

The Passover seder is the most observed Jewish occasion of the year. All kinds of Jews in all kinds of situations join together to drink wine, eat matzahThe unleavened bread eaten on Passover that recalls the Israelite's hasty escape from Egypt when there was no time for the dough to rise. Matzah is also considered the "bread of our affliction," eaten while we were slaves., and recount the formative story of our people. That means that most of you will be hosting or attending a seder. Over the next few weeks, Ritualwell will help you prepare. Next week we will host a guest blog from writer and high school student Emily Goldberg. Emily writes about the need to expand our tables during Passover, and consider community-building an important moral obligation. We also will feature a piece by acclaimed Jewish musician Craig Taubman; he writes about how both music and silence can add texture to the seder experience. Finally, poet and ritual artist Matia Rania Angelou will share the origins of Miriam’s cup and offer suggestions for its use at our Passover tables.

Check out our Passover resources and you will find a wide variety of readings, songs, and poems.  And, as  you prepare for your seder, please remember to share your materials with us.