“The story of the seder, the story of freedom and justice, is a universal story. It’s not too much of an exaggeration to say that just about everything we do stems from this story—this idea that we were slaves, and we were freed, and now it’s our responsibility to work for freedom for people all over the world,” says Rabbi Shira Stutman, director of Jewish programming at Historic Sixth & I Synagogue. More →

April 3, 2015

The haggadah is the book that guides Jews through the ritual of the Passover Seder, the meal commemorating their ancestors’ exodus from slavery in Egypt. The Sarajevo Haggadah is famous for its artistically illustrated manuscript pages. Created 600 years ago, “It went through so many different cultures,” observes composer Merima Kljuco, “and so many different people took the care of the book and helped it survive.” More →

April 11, 2014

This New Year celebration of trees, observed on the 15th day of the Hebrew month Shevat, has grown in popularity because of its connection to the environment. We spoke last year with Eldridge Street Synagogue educator Mattie Ettenheim at a Tu B’Shevat observance. More →

January 10, 2014

“The ancient words take on the power they were supposed to take on all along,” says Rabbi Jamie Korngold, who leads a Passover seder in the Utah desert. “We’re trying to take this spiritually rich experience and ignite our Judaism.” More →

March 22, 2013

“When we walk through the desert, we really get that idea of freedom, of being out in the wilderness and all the spiritual moments that are possible in the wilderness.” More →

March 22, 2013

“The tradition of the prophets said whatever you are doing is not really working as long as there are people who are hungry, who are without clothing, who are without shelter. That’s how you judge a society.” More →

November 16, 2012

“New Haggadahs will be written until there are no more Jews to write them. Or until our destiny has been fulfilled, and there is no more need to say, ‘Next year in Jerusalem.'” More →

March 30, 2012

Rabbi Sharon Brous, founder of IKAR, a Jewish spiritual community in Los Angeles, says Passover is “the centerpiece of the Jewish moral imagination and the Jewish collective memory.” More →

April 15, 2011

“The idea that it’s possible to move from slavery to freedom and from darkness to light and from despair to hope—that is the greatest Jewish story every told.” More →

April 15, 2011

Passover’s ancient themes of freedom, liberation, and transformation are sacred to Jews and shared by everyone, says Rabbi Amy Eilberg. More →

March 26, 2010