Category: Passover

Victims and Victimizers: Acknowledging Our History of Slave Ownership on Passover

On Telling and Not Telling Our Full Story In Part 1, we spoke of the Passover Haggadah’s two origin stories. One, in accordance with Shmuel, ...
January 13, 2026 Passover

Victims and Victimizers: A Social Justice Reading of the Haggadah’s Two Origin Stories

On Telling and Not Telling Our Full Story The Passover Haggadah promotes two Jewish origin stories. The dominant story is Avadim hayinu, which relates how ...
January 13, 2026 Passover

Rain Insertions Part 1: Inserting “Mashiv HaRuach” or “Ten Tal”

In the first part of our series on the insertions to pray for rain, take a look at inserting "Mashiv HaRuach" or "Ten Tal" into ...
November 18, 2025 Amidah Every Day
Dayenu A Passover Message

Dayenu: A Passover Message

This Passover, and beyond, may we have the blessing of adding a few more verses of Dayenu for the miracles in our lives, and our ...
April 10, 2025 Holidays October 7th and Israel-Hamas War
Partial Deliverance is Still a Blessing

Partial Deliverance is Still a Blessing

Dayenu reminds us to appreciate the steps toward redemption, and we must continue taking small but meaningful steps too.
April 6, 2025 Holidays October 7th and Israel-Hamas War
Pessah en français

Pessah en français

Pessah commémore l'exode d'Égypte, le voyage vers la rédemption, et nos chemins personnels vers la liberté.
April 1, 2025 Holidays Passover
Pesaj en Español

Pesaj en Español

Pésaj conmemora el éxodo de Egipto, el viaje hacia la redención y nuestros caminos personales en la búsqueda de la libertad.
April 1, 2025 Holidays Passover
Passover Printables

Passover Printables

Check out these Passover printable resources for this year! From preparation, to the seder, to even counting the Omer!
March 27, 2025 Holidays How to observe Passover
What do we do differently at a Saturday Night Seder?

What do we do differently at a Saturday Night Seder?

When Passover begins on Saturday night, the schedule of preparation shifts and there are additional adjustments made on Saturday night too.
, March 26, 2025 Holidays How to observe Passover
What Medicines May One Take During Pesah?

What Medicines May One Take During Pesah?

If medicine is not food, why should there be any restrictions on taking it during Pesah? The question arises because although medicine is not food, ...
March 26, 2025 CJLS Halakhah

Juneteenth and Pesach Sheni

Juneteenth celebrates delayed liberation. What does a delayed celebration of liberation, Pesach Sheni, teach us about celebrating Juneteenth?
January 7, 2025 Holidays Juneteenth (US)
Why Doesn’t This Sephardi Jew Eat Rice on Passover?

Why Doesn’t This Sephardi Jew Eat Rice on Passover?

There is a powerful meaning in continuing traditions that I inherited directly from my family. Kitniyot is only a part of that story.
April 17, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
Recovery and the Four Cups

Recovery and the Four Cups

For many of us, freedom is choosing four cups of grape juice: Look at the four cups on Passover through the lens of addiction recovery.
April 16, 2024 Holidays Passover
A SEAT FOR THOSE WHO CAN'T COME HOME

A Seat For Those Who Can’t Come Home

This year, as we prepare the seder, we encourage an extra setting at your table—an empty chair for our family still in captivity in Gaza.
April 15, 2024 October 7th and Israel-Hamas War Passover
Embracing Kitniyot on Passover

Embracing Kitniyot on Passover

This essay advocates for Ashkenazi Jews to embrace kitniyot on Passover, to enhance dietary diversity and align with modern interpretations.
April 15, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
Pesaj en la Sinagoga

Pesaj en la Sinagoga

Hay servicios vespertinos y matutinos en Pesaj, como en todos los festivales, con algunos cambios litúrgicos.
, April 11, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
Pessah à la synagogue

Pessah à la synagogue

Il y a des offices du soir et du matin à Pessah, comme pour toutes les fêtes, avec quelques changements liturgiques.
, April 11, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
El Séder: Un Resumen

El Séder: Un Resumen

El Séder de Pesaj es, para muchos judíos, la fiesta ritual más importante del año.
, April 11, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
Le Seder Un Aperçu

Le seder : un aperçu

Le seder de Pessah est pour de nombreux juifs, le repas rituel le plus important de l’année.
, April 11, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
La Cacherout de Pessah

La cacherout de Pessah

Toutes les règles habituelles de cacherout s’appliquent à Pessah, auxquelles s’ajoutent une exigence supplémentaire : l’interdiction de hamets dans une maison juive.
, April 11, 2024 Guidelines for a Kosher Kitchen Holidays
Kashrut en Pesaj

Kashrut en Pesaj

Todas las leyes normales de kashrut se aplican en Pesaj con un requisito adicional: la prohibición de jametz en un hogar judío.
, April 11, 2024 Guidelines for a Kosher Kitchen Holidays
Que Es Jametz

Que es Jametz?

La sustancia prohibida, jametz, se define como la mezcla del grano de cualquiera de las cinco especies de cereales (trigo, cebada, avena, espelta y centeno) ...
, April 11, 2024 Passover Pesaj en Español
Qu’est-ce que hamets?

Qu’est-ce que le hamets?

Le hamets est toute nourriture faite à partir des 5 espèces de céréales (blé, orge, avoine, épeautre, seigle) humidifiées, et cuites après 18 minutes.
, April 11, 2024 Passover Pessah en Français
Thèmes de Pessah et du jeûne des premiers-nés

Thèmes de Pessah et du jeûne des premiers-nés

Ces trois concepts : liberté – rédemption - printemps interviennent ensemble dans les différents aspects de l’observance de Pessah.
, April 11, 2024 Passover Pessah en Français
Temas de Pesaj, Nisán, y el Ayuno de los Primogénitos

Temas de Pesaj, Nisán, y el Ayuno de los Primogénitos

Estos tres conceptos (libertad, redención y primavera) se combinan en diferentes aspectos de la observancia de Pesaj.
, April 11, 2024 Passover Pesaj en Español
Reparations: The Difficulty and Bravery and Asking

Reparations: The Difficulty and Bravery of Asking

Look at reparations and the difficulty and bravery of asking, through the lens of slavery in Egypt, slavery in America, and the Holocaust.
April 5, 2024 Holidays Passover
How I Dip Maror In Charoset

How I Dip Maror in Charoset

Wrapping and dipping maror in charoset at Seder can be part of a family tradition. Explore this one to add more to your own Seder ...
April 5, 2024 Holidays Passover
4 Questions Hotline Cover 2025

The Four Questions Hotline

Welcome to the Exploring Judaism Four Questions Hotline, with Passover Cleaning Support! We are here to answer your questions.
March 28, 2024 Holidays Passover

The Secrets of Matzah

There are so many secrets hidden away within Matzah that ask to be uncovered, offering us spiritual wisdom.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
Every Year We Must See Ourselves As If We Were There

Every Year We Must See Ourselves As If We Were There

Every year at Passover, we must see ourselves as If we were there in Egypt and take on what that means for ourselves.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
B'khol Dor Vador In Every Generation

B’khol Dor Vador—In Every Generation

What does "b'khol dor vador—in every generation" mean in light of the events of October 7? How does this connect us to Passover?
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
Why Couldn't Moses Enter the Promised Land?

Why Couldn’t Moses Enter the Promised Land?

Current events help us understand why Moses couldn't enter the Promised Land and remind us the importance of innocent lives.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
A Very Waystar Royco Seder: How a Show Like “Succession” Illuminates the Four Children

How a Show Like “Succession” Illuminates the Four Children

How can a show like "Succession" illuminate the Seder? Compare the Four Children of our haggadah with the four Roy children.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
Back to Our Roots

Back to Our Roots

Learn about the Wicked Child of the Four Children by going back to our roots and looking at the meaning of the Hebrew word itself.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
The Living Room Seder

The Living Room Seder

Hosting a living room Seder can allow us to experience a Seder closer to the way that the rabbis thought of it.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
Dip Your Karpas in Salt Water and Honey?

Dip Your Karpas in Salt Water and Honey?

Dipping Karpas into salt water at the Passover Seder has a mysterious history that invites us to create new dipping and meaning opportunities!
March 27, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
On Passover, We Are All Jews-By-Choice

On Passover, We Are All Jews-By-Choice

On Passover, we are all Jews-by-Choice when we choose to remember what it is that brings us together for the holiday.
March 27, 2024 Conversion Holidays
The Magic of Bedikat Hametz

The Magic of Bedikat Hametz

Use this guide to bring the magic of bedikat hametz to your children. It can be a fun ritual with your kids, of any age.
March 27, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
Slavery, Social Justice, and Family History

Slavery, Social Justice, and Family History

Reflecting on a "Pilgrimage to the South" on a Movement social justice trip as a Black Jew and how it has changed who I am.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
All Who Are Hungry and In Need Come Eat

All Who Are Hungry and In Need, Come Celebrate Pesach

Through the seder, we learn the importance of hospitality and inviting all who are hungry and in need, to come celebrate Pesach.
March 27, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
The Seder as a Lived Experience

The Seder as a Lived Experience

We use the Seder as a lived experience by reenacting the exodus, not just recounting it. Therefore, we can all connect to Passover.
March 27, 2024 Holidays Passover
Embracing Change: A Call to Rethink the Passover Seder Plate

Embracing Change: A Call to Rethink the Passover Seder Plate

How and why can you create a plant-based seder plate? We embrace change during Passover, especially in rethinking the seder plate.
, March 13, 2024 Holidays Passover
Fury and Fermentation: A Hasidic Teaching for Pesach

Fury and Fermentation

Learn about fury and fermentation, the concept that our anger could be spiritual hametz during Pesach and all year-round.
March 13, 2024 Every Day Holidays
Engaging Kids of All Ages in the Passover Seder

Engaging Kids of All Ages in the Passover Seder

Engaging kids of all ages in the Passover seder can feel daunting. Here are my top five tips for engaging everyone at the seder.
March 13, 2024 Holidays Passover
Pesah and Continued Kashrut Slavery: A Conceptual Reflection

Pesah and Continued Kashrut Slavery: A Conceptual Reflection

A conceptual reflection of Pesah and Kashrut can bring more meaning to how we follow the halakhah of food on Pesah.
March 12, 2024 Holidays Passover
How to Incorporate Kitniyot into Your Passover

How to Incorporate Kitniyot into Your Passover

Though the Conservative Movement has allowed eating kitniyot on Passover, many still do not. How can we incorporate kitniyot this year?
February 29, 2024 Every Day Food
Passover Kashrut Questions and Answers

Passover Kashrut Questions and Answers

Answering key and specific questions about kashrut, kashering utensils, and food in the context of Passover.
February 28, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
The Passover Preparation Checklist

The Passover Preparation Checklist

We know that preparing for Passover can feel like a daunting task. With this handy checklist, you will be ready for Passover in no time!
February 28, 2024 Holidays Passover
Not A Haggadah Post Image

Passover Reader 5784: Not A Haggadah

Exploring Judaism's 2024 (5784) Passover Reader, Not A Haggadah, includes essays to inspire a meaningful Passover.
February 25, 2024 Holidays How to observe Passover
Charlton Heston Speaking

Charlton Heston Speaking

We can learn about leadership from Moses, as well as from Charlton Heston speaking, as he plays Moses in the Ten Commandments movie.
January 31, 2024 Holidays Learning
The Weird and Wacky World of Kosher for Passover

The Weird and Wacky World of Kosher for Passover

The weird and wacky world of keeping Kosher for Passover is confusing and overwhelming, especially when you're new to it. Start here!
December 26, 2023 Holidays How to observe Passover
This is the Bread of Affliction

This is the Bread of Affliction

This is the bread of affliction: Matzah adorns our Seder plates and nourishes our souls, as well—this food is fulfilling.
December 26, 2023 Food Holidays
Remembering Our Loved Ones Before Us

Remembering Our Loved Ones Before Us

When our loved ones die, who remembers those they remembered? Here's a way to remember all of those that came before us.
September 21, 2023 Death and Dying Family
Yachatz Brokenness and Wholeness

Yachatz: Brokenness and Wholeness

One explanation offered by the Sages for Yachatz in the seder is that it helps promote making the world less broken, if not completely whole.
April 3, 2023 Holidays Passover
Climate Disruption and Passover

Climate Disruption and Passover

Let’s do more than remember our refugee origin story and include how climate change and disruption are leading to new refugees.
April 3, 2023 Climate and Environment Climate change
Mujaddara on Passover

Mujaddara on Passover

How my family created and passed down cultural traditions, and how the Conservative Teshuvah on Kitniyot impacts our life outside the academy.
March 19, 2023 Food Halakhah
Why Is Diversity Important at the Passover Seder?

Why Is Diversity Important at the Passover Seder?

This is why I think my family's tradition of inviting a non-Jew each year to the Passover seder is important.
March 19, 2023 Holidays How to observe Passover
When Can a Passover Seder Start Early?

When Can a Passover Seder Start Early? Other Festivals?

When is the earliest time that we can begin observing Jewish festivals, on first or second day of Yom Tov, in particular, the Passover seder?
March 19, 2023 CJLS Halakhah
A Guide To Your First Passover Seder

A Guide To Hosting Your First Passover Seder

It can be daunting to prepare for your first seder. We've put together a collection of great posts that will help you get started.
February 20, 2023 Holidays Passover
Special Shabbats leading up to Purim and Passover

What are the Special Sabbaths Before Purim and Passover?

A series of special Shabbatot with special Torah readings precede Purim and Passover.
, February 5, 2023 Observing Purim Passover
blurry image of dishes and the words The Important Thing That Keeps our Family “Doing Jewish”

The Important Thing That Keeps our Family “Doing Jewish”

The most important thing to teach the next generation is how to make a seder, including what comes before the festival candles are even lit.
April 13, 2022 Food Passover
Blurry image of an open ark with four Torahs and the words: The Concluding Days of Passover

The Concluding Days of Passover

What do we do in synagogue on Passover? What Torah readings and haftarot do we read? We outline that for you here.
, April 13, 2022 How to observe Passover Passover
Blurry image of a Torah scroll and the words Passover Torah Readings: An Explainer

Passover Torah Readings: An Explainer

Though Pesach is thought of as the quintessential home-based holiday, the Torah is read on each of the mornings of Pesach in the synagogue.
April 13, 2022 Intermediate Days of Passover Passover
Blurry image of an open ark with four Torahs and the words: Passover in the Synagogue

Passover in the Synagogue

What do we do in synagogue on Passover? What Torah readings and haftarot do we read? We outline that for you here.
, April 13, 2022 How to observe Passover Passover
blurry image of someone cleaning a table with the words When the COVID Plague Threatens Your Seder (Again)

When the COVID Plague Threatens Your Seder (Again)

Here are 10 tips on how to make Pesah meaningful and kosher (enough) even when the plague of COVID continues to threaten our celebrations.
April 13, 2022 Passover Passover Reflections
blurry image of a table with the words The Four Children and Racial Justice

The Four Children and Racial Justice

We approach the Haggadah at a time of profound racial reckoning in our country. How might the four children help us relate to racial justice?
April 6, 2022 Passover Passover Reflections
Blurry image of a firepit and the words Biur and S’mores: Have Fun As You Get Rid of Hametz

Biur and S’mores: Have Fun As You Get Rid of Hametz

There is lots to do to get ready for Passover. We may ask, where am I going to have Seder? How long or short will ...
April 6, 2022 Passover Preparing for Passover
Blurry image of countryside with the words Mah Nishtanah: How Is This Moment Different?

Mah Nishtanah: How Is This Moment Different?

Mah Nishtanah: How is This Moment Different by Rabbi Rachel Ain is a reflection on her recent trip to Ukraine in 2022.
April 6, 2022 Passover Passover Reflections
blurry image of a book with the words The Sunflower on Our Seder Table

The Sunflower on Our Seder Table

The Sunflower on Our Seder Table by Rabbi Ilana Garber on behalf of the people in Ukraine in 2022.
April 6, 2022 Passover Passover Prayer
blurry image of a book with the words All Who Are Hungry: A Prayer for Action, A Prayer for Ukraine

All Who Are Hungry: A Prayer for Action, A Prayer for Ukraine

All Who Are Hungry: A Prayer for Action, A Prayer for Ukraine by Rabbi Mark Greenspan on behalf of the people in Ukraine in 2022.
April 6, 2022 Passover Passover Prayer
blurry image of a set table How to Make a Seder for Everyone

How to Make a Seder for Everyone

The key to hosting a successful seder for everyone is to articulate a bold purpose in gathering and map the journey.
April 5, 2022 Passover Preparing for Passover
blurry image of a book with the words Dedication for First Cup of Wine

Dedication for First Cup of Wine

Dedication for the First Cup of Wine at the Passover Seder by Rabbi Martin S. Cohen on behalf of the people in Ukraine in 2022.
April 5, 2022 Passover Passover Prayer
close up image of gas stove with the words Leveraging Anger for Change this Passover

Leveraging Anger for Change this Passover

While anger and frustration can lead to stress and dissatisfaction, mindful approaches to our anger can move our lives out of complacency.
April 3, 2022 Passover Passover Reflections
Image of a desert with the words Passover: An Invitation to Get Free

Passover: An Invitation to Get Free

Spiritually preparing for Passover not an intellectual exercise. It’s a spiritual invitation to ask ourselves: am I willing to get free?
April 3, 2022 Passover Preparing for Passover
blurry zoom meeting with the words How to Make your Zoom Seder not Suck

How to Make your Zoom Seder not Suck

Hosting a Zoom seder is not just putting a webcam on your seder plate. These tips will ensure your guests won’t succumb to Zoom fatigue.
April 3, 2022 How to observe Passover Passover
Blurry image of a set table and the words Hosting a Seder for People New to Judaism or the Seder

Hosting a Seder for People New to Judaism or the Seder

The Seder is a potpourri of powerful rituals, wise rabbinic aphorisms, and opportunities to elevate the mundanities of eating into holiness.
April 3, 2022 How to observe Passover Passover
Ask the Questions and Dig Deeper

Ask the Questions and Dig Deeper

Combining lessons from the Mishnah and Human Resources, we realize that asking questions is the path to greater understanding.
April 3, 2022 Passover Passover Reflections
Blurry image of rice with the words What are Kitniyot and when can I eat it?

What are Kitniyot and when can I eat it?

In the early medieval period, it became customary for Ashkenazi Jews to not eat a category of foods called kitniyot. What are they?
March 31, 2022 CJLS Halakhah
The Four Questions and Living with Mental Illness

The Four Questions and Living with Mental Illness

We have the opportunity to help teens create long-lasting positive connections to the very traditions they are appropriately questioning.
March 31, 2022 Health Illness
Blurry image of cleaning supplies with the words Spirtually Cleaning the Hametz within our souls

Spiritually Cleaning the Hametz Within Our Souls

With all of this physically taxing work, it can be easy to miss the spiritual preparation for this celebration of our collective redemption.
March 31, 2022 Passover Preparing for Passover
Blurry image of child's hand painting with the words Tips for Passover with Toddlers

Tips for Passover with Toddlers

After all of the preparation, all that’s left to do is celebrate the holiday. How do you do that with your young children?
March 31, 2022 Passover Passover with Children
blurry image of seder plate with the words 7 Tips for Hosting Your First Passover Seder

7 Tips for Hosting Your First Passover Seder

If this is your first-time hosting a Passover Seder, here are seven tips to make it a memorable and meaningful experience!
March 30, 2022 How to observe Passover Passover
blurry background of a grocery store with the words freedom and food allergies

Freedom and Food Allergies

How is one with food allergies supposed to feel free when they can’t partake in the matzo balls, charoset, cake, or anything else?
March 29, 2022 Food Health
blurry picture of a table with the words Bringing Teens to the Seder Table

Bringing Teens to the Seder Table

We have the opportunity to help teens create long-lasting positive connections to the very traditions they are appropriately questioning.
March 29, 2022 Passover Passover with Children
blurry cloth with the words: Including non-Jewish guests at our Seder: A reflection on top

Including non-Jewish guests at our Seder: A reflection

Reflecting on the universal nature of the Exodus, as "eternally contemporary; it’s the story of too many peoples."
March 29, 2022 Passover Passover Reflections
blurry image of lots of bread with the words What is hameitz and what do we do with it?

What is Hameitz and what do we do with it?

Hametz, is defined as any food made of wheat, barley, oats, spelt, and rye—that has been made wet and left unbaked for more than 18 ...
, March 22, 2022 Passover What is Passover?
Image of matzah, matzah cover with the word pesah on it in hebrew, and a kiddush cup with the words: Passover, Nisan, and the Fast of the Firstborn: Before Passover Begins

Passover Themes, The Month of Nisan, and the Fast of the Firstborn

Passover, commemorates the exodus from Egypt. On a spiritual level, the festival confronts us with the notion of redemption.
, March 22, 2022 Passover What is Passover?
Image of a seder plate with the words The Seder an overview

The Seder: An Overview

The Passover seder is the cumulative result of untold generations of Jews telling the same story, the Exodus from Egypt.
, March 22, 2022 How to observe Passover Passover
image of bread roll for eiruv tavshilin

What is an Eiruv Tavshilin?

One is only permitted to cook on festivals to make food for the holiday itself, not for other days. There is an exception: eiruv tavshilin.
, March 22, 2022 Holidays Passover
blurry image Hand placing utensil into boiling pot of water with the words How to Kasher Your Kitchen: A Simplified Guide of lots of bread

How to Kasher Your Kitchen: A Simplified Guide

This is a simplified guide on how to kasher (make kosher) various items in your kitchen, especially for Passover.
March 17, 2022 Guidelines for a Kosher Kitchen Holidays