This Shabbat, we will announce the new month of Nisan, due to arrive Wednesday night. Nisan brings Passover, our Jewish springtime festival, marking the season of renewal and rebirth. We celebrate our ancestors’ Exodus from Egypt and commemorate the struggle for liberation–our own and that of all who yearn to be free. As the Jewish poet, Emma Lazarus, wrote, “Until we are all free, we are none of us free.”
Each year, as we see the earth waking up around us and blossoming anew, the holiday of Passover reminds us of the possibility of redemption. A central observance of the holiday is the seder, a ritual meal held in homes, during which we retell and reenact the story of the Exodus using all of our senses. Our sages teach that we tell and taste the story at the seder each year so that we will see ourselves as part of it. Our ancestors ate flat, unleavened bread as they hurried away from a life of servitude under Pharaoh toward a life of freedom, and so we, too, eat matzah, remembering the hardships our ancestors endured and their hope for a better future.
We bring the memory of our formative narrative of the Jewish people to life, and we recommit to building a society of justice and love for all. As our Torah teaches, “Love the stranger for you were strangers in the Land of Egypt.”
As we gear up for this season of hope and renewal for all, take a look below for our schedule for the festival as well as resources to support you in your preparation and celebration.
