Ancient Plague: Blood Modern Plague:Upheaval and Oppression in Home Countries Ancient Plague: Frogs Modern Plague: Poor Access to Education Ancient Plague: Lice Modern Plague:Language Access Barriers Ancient Plague: Wild Beasts Modern Plague:Wage Theft Ancient Plague: Pestilence Modern Plague:Unemployment Ancient Plague: Boils Modern Plague:Fear of Law Enforcement Ancient Plague: Hail Modern Plague:Housing Obstacles Ancient Plague: Locusts Modern Plague:Racism and Racial Profiling Ancient Plague: Darkness Modern Plague:Inability to Secure Documentation   Ancient Plague: Slaying of the Firstborn Modern Plague:Separation of Families  

One: What would it take for this community to be different from all other communities? What would it mean to commit to leaving no on behind in our exodus from the narrow places to freedom?  Two: What is one way you can nourish/take care of yourself starting tonight? (On this night we eat matzah.)  Three: What is one way you can make the sometimes bitter work of fighting for freedom sweeter for yourself and others? (On this night we eat maror.)  ...

Leader: Chaverim vachaveirot n'vareich! Let us praise God! Group: Y'hi shem Adonai m'vorach mei-atah v'ad olam. Praised be the name of God, now and forever. Leader: Y'hi shem Adonai m'vorach mei-atah v'ad olam. Birshut hachevrah, n'vareich Eloheinu she-achalnu mishelo. Praised be the name of God, now and forever. Praised be our God, of whose abundance we have eaten. Group: Baruch Eloheinu she-achalnu mishelo uv'tuvo chayinu. Praised be our God, of whose abundance we have eaten, and by whose goodness we live....

A Cup to Ourselves, to all of us who are at this seder tonight, to the present moment. We must love ourselves, for we are holy, and we have been created out of all that is. Let us take this moment to honor our bodies, our lives, and our communities. Let us honor all the things that have made us who we are- the pain and the pleasure. Let us savor our bodies in all their uniqueness: our skins and our...

Welcome, one and all, to the Smith College Jewish Community Passover Seder 2018! Chag pesach sameach and shabbat shalom (happy passover and a restful shabbat)! We hope this seder provides opportunities for comfort, growth, and inspiration. We welcome you into this vibrant community and hope that each of you find spiritual and/or personal meaning in our shared rituals. Tonight, let's experience the joy of tradition and tradition of joy in celebrating our liberation from enslavement in Mitzrayim, which literally means the...

In the Jewish tradition, Moses is the highest example of a leader. Many have been compared to him. A Hasidic tale urges us not to compare ourselves to Moses. In the tale, Rabbi Zusya tells his students that when he leaves this life and arrives in the World to Come, he will not be asked, “Why were you not Moses?” but rather, “Why were you not Zusya?”

1. Once upon a time our people went into exile in the land of Egypt. During a famine our ancestor Jacob and his family fled to Egypt where food was plentiful. His son Joseph had risen to high position in Pharaoh’s court, and our people were well-respected and well-regarded, secure in the power structure of the time. 2. Generations passed and our people remained in Egypt. In time, a new Pharaoh ascended to the throne. He found our difference threatening, and...

The Four Daughters The daughter in search of a usable past. Ma hi omeret ? What does she say? "Why didn't the Torah count women among the '600,000 men on foot, aside from children,' who came out of Egypt? And why did Moses say at Sinai, 'Go not near a woman,' addressing only men, as if preparation for Revelation was not meant for us, as well?" Because she already understands that Jewish memory is essential to our identity, teach her that...

The Exodus: A Story In Eight Short Chapters 1. Once upon a time our people went into exile in the land of Egypt. During a famine our ancestor Jacob and his family fled to Egypt where food was plentiful. His son Joseph had risen to high position in Pharaoh’s court, and our people were well respected and well-regarded, secure in the power structure of the time. 2. Generations passed and our people remained in Egypt. In time, a new Pharaoh ascended...

Freedom. It isn’t once, to walk out under the Milky Way, feeling the rivers of light, the fields of dark— freedom is daily, prose-bound, routine remembering. Putting together, inch by inch the starry worlds. From all the lost collections. Adrienne Rich

With the taste of bitterness just before our lips, we remind ourselves of the bitterness that led to the enslavement of our ancestors in Egypt. Tonight, we force ourselves to experience the stinging pain of the maror so that we should remember that, appallingly, even centuries later, the bitterness of xenophobia still oppresses millions of people around the world, forcing them to flee their homes. As we taste the bitter herbs, we vow not to let words of hatred pass through...

הָא לַחְמָא עַנְיָא דִּי אֲכָלוּ אַבְהָתָנָא בְאַרְעָא דְמִצְרָיִם. כָּל דִכְפִין יֵיתֵי וְיֵיכֹל, כָּל דִצְרִיךְ יֵיתֵי וְיִפְסַח. הָשַּׁתָּא הָכָא, לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בְּאַרְעָא דְיִשְׂרָאֵל. הָשַּׁתָּא עַבְדֵי, לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בְּנֵי חוֹרִין. Ha lachma anya di achalu avahatana b'ara d'Mitzrayim. Kal dichfin yeitei v'yeichul. Kal ditzrich yeitei v'yifsach. Hashata hacha, l'shanah haba'ah b'ara d'Yisrael. Hashata avdei. L'shana haba'ah b'nei chorin. This is the bread of anya that our ancestors ate in the land of Egypt. Anyone who is famished should come and eat, anyone who...

Next Year In... It is traditional to end a seder with L’shanah ha-ba’ah b’Yerushalayim—Next Year in Jerusalem! The call speaks to a feeling of exile which characterized the Jewish Diaspora for centuries. How might we understand this today? A close look at the word Yerushalayim suggests an answer. The name can be read as deriving from Ir Shalem (“City of Wholeness”) or Ir Shalom (“City of Peace”). No matter where we are or what our politics, we all slip into exile...

What else does the afikomen hunt teach? It teaches that finding requires seeking. That seeking, in and of itself, is worthwhile and fun. That discovering new meaning demands that we keep looking. That we can’t bring anything to a satisfying conclusion without the patience and persistence needed to get there. Rabbi David Wirtschafter

Tonight, we must also acknowledge the struggles of our neighbors in humanity. Just as we were once a refugee population after we were freed from Egypt, so too are members of these nations outcasted in our own time and in our country. We understand the struggle of living under a tyrant and the oppression of an innocent people both as a result of Jewish enslavement in Egypt and in more modern waves of immigration and expulsions. Please join us in removing...

Go Down Moses Chorus: Go down, Moses Way down in Egypt land Tell old pharaoh to Let my people go! When Israel was in Egypt land Let my people go! Oppressed so hard they could not stand Let my people go! *chorus* The Lord told Moses what to do Let my people go To lead the Hebrew children through Let my people go *chorus* As Israel stood by the waterside Let my people go At God's command it did divide Let...