91快播

Does Judaism Oppose Slavery?

Mar 26, 2015 By David C. Kraemer | Short Video | Pesah

Elijah’s Cup: A Time For Family Reunion

Apr 8, 2014 By Daniel Nevins | Short Video | Pesah

鈥淭his Year We Are Slaves鈥�: How and Why Do We Celebrate Freedom in the Face of Oppression?

Apr 18, 2014 By Eliezer B. Diamond z”l | Commentary | Pesah

What does it mean to celebrate Passover in the shadow of death?

Purim Reversals

Mar 11, 2014 By Julia Andelman | Commentary | Purim

A few months after college graduation, I arrived in Israel as an eager new yeshiva student.

Mah Nishtanah . . . A Seder for Yom Ha鈥檃tzma鈥檜t

May 16, 2014 By Samuel Barth | Commentary | Yom Hazikaron-Yom Ha'atzma'ut

In recent weeks, Medinat Israel (the State of Israel) was celebrated by citizens, residents, and the worldwide Jewish community with an array of observances for Yom Ha鈥檃tzma鈥檜t (Israel Independence Day). In synagogues of the Conservative/Masorti Movement, morning minyan included the Hallel prayer and a special Torah reading, affirming the understanding that the establishment of Israel is not merely an item in the political history of the mid-20th century, but a vital step in the spiritual story of our people and, perhaps, the world. The 鈥淧rayer for the State of Israel,鈥� included in the Shabbat morning service in almost all synagogues, speaks of Israel as 鈥�reishit tzemichat ge鈥檜lateinu鈥� (the beginning of the flowering of our redemption).鈥淩edemption,鈥� here, must be understood as the Messianic Era of universal peace and understanding.

Preparing for Seder Part 3鈥擵isual Midrash on the Four Children

Apr 11, 2014 By Samuel Barth | Commentary | Pesah

The four children (formerly known as the four sons) are among the most provocative part of the seder鈥攆or children provoke their parents. That is why Elijah is needed to restore peace between the generations. The evolution of the text as we find it in our Haggadah is complex, and interesting explanations can be found in the recent 91快播 collection of Sound Bytes of Torah for Passove on YouTube. I have long been fascinated by the interpretation in imagery that offers four books, presumably each book representing one of the four 鈥渢ypes鈥� of child. But which one is which?

Elijah鈥擣amilies and the End of Days

Mar 27, 2014 By Samuel Barth | Commentary | Pesah

Elijah is an enigmatic and beloved figure in the Passover seder, with a myriad of explanations for his appearance and role. It鈥檚 worth noting that Elijah appears first in our liturgical texts even before we sit down to begin the seder: the haftarah for Shabbat Hagadol (the Shabbat before Pesah) is from the end of Malachi, and concludes with the haunting words, 鈥淏ehold, I will send you Elijah the Prophet before the coming of the great and awesome Day of Adonai; and he will return the hearts of parents to their children, and the hearts of children to their parents.鈥�

Pesah: A Liberating Experience for Women

Mar 4, 2013 By Judith Hauptman | Commentary | Pesah

There is no festival more home- and family-oriented than Pesah. Sukkot may run a close second, but the seder places Pesah way ahead. Although celebrating at home with a lavish family meal should make this holiday a pleasure to anticipate, for many women this is not so. The painstaking conversion of the kitchen from leaven-filled to leaven-free status has turned the Festival of Freedom into an intense period of domestic labor rather than a celebration of personal and national liberation. That was not the intention of the halakhah.