Welcome to our haggadah! 

Let all who are hungry come and eat - but first, let's talk. It's what we do. 

The story of Passover is one that has and can be interpreted to fit into many ideological frameworks, but here is where we'd like to focus: 

Collective Liberation

Jews were slaves in Egypt back in the day. Nowadays, the presumption is that Jews are a free people, and that Passover is an opportunity to bask in our freedom. Lo dayenu - it's not enough. While it's important to acknowledge the past, it's also important to remember that the same sorts of suffering exist today, and we have a civic duty as Jews and as people of privilege(s) to fight for liberation everywhere we can. 

Spring Anxiety

Another aspect of some interpretations of Passover is that of the spring harvest. It's fitting; spring is a time of (re)birth and joy and newness. Freedom feels like spring. But we know that spring does not always feel like spring should. We want to respect and honor that disconnect tonight.

With that, we'll move on to the rest of the seder. If we get to a part you're uncomfortable with you have a few options:

  1. Ask questions - ask yourself why you're uncomfortable, ask others for clarification in case of a misunderstanding;
  2. Resist - something really not sitting right with you? Call us in and we can talk about it;
  3. Skip it - if the thought of starting a heavy conversation with a bunch of strangers or friends in the middle of a long road to dinner just makes you tired, by all means feel empowered to zone out, take a break, and deal with it later.

Apart from that, generally, be present, ask questions, have fun, and (eventually) eat! 


haggadah Section: Introduction
Source: Ollie DeMeio