Setting the Table
Rabbi Pini Dunner, Rabbi of Young Israel of North Beverly Hills teaches that every year you have do do something new and change things up from the previous year so that it doesn't lose its impact by getting old and jaded. He says that if we do, we are entirely missing the point of the Pesach seder! We have to have the experience the story as if it was new and we were coming out of Egypt ourselves. We tend to fall into habits and traditions like sticking with the same menu or using the same decor. While it wouldn't feel like a seder without my Mom's sephardic Charoset and homemade Chrein I do change things up when it comes to the Haggadot. Every year I wrap the Haggdaot with new decorative paper and stick a name tag on the top to serve as a place card for our guests. As I was them wrapping this year, I realized that I was doing exactly what Rabbi Dunner was instructing us to do! The beautiful thing about this ritual is that I reminisce the previous year as I remove the name tags and remember who joined us at our Seder table in years past. It can be especially moving after the decline or loss of a loved one to recall their participation when they were able to join us at our table.
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Passover Guide
Hosting your first Passover Seder? Not sure what food to serve? Curious to
know more about the holiday? Explore our Passover 101 Guide for answers
to all of your questions.