Individuals in interfaith relationships often find that their religion takes on more meaning when they describe and/or share their traditions and rituals with someone they love. They take their own religion less for granted. Celebrating both Easter and Passover is one way to think globally--about the need for peace and understanding between nations--and act locally--by working to foster tolerance within yourself, your marriage and your family. Both Easter, which is traditionally celebrated at sunrise, and Passover, traditionally celebrated at sunset, are...

Dipping the bitter herb in sweet charoset | maror |מָרוֹר In creating a holiday about the joy of freedom, we turn the story of our bitter history into a sweet celebration. We recognize this by dipping our bitter herbs into the sweet charoset. We don’t totally eradicate the taste of the bitter with the taste of the sweet… but doesn’t the sweet mean more when it’s layered over the bitterness? ברוּךְ אַתָּה יְיַָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל...

Pesach is many things to many people. Its customs are familiar and can be viewed with many lenses. The symbols are universal and are subject to almost any reading: social justice, class, the Holocaust, Middle East politics, American politics, agriculture, the environment, the list is endless, and the proliferation of interpretations is evidence that this is fertile territory. A few things – maybe only two – about the holiday are unavoidable, as in, Pesach wouldn't be Pesach if not for these...