On Monday, Chalutzim organised a Seder Feast to mark the start of eight days of Passover. The event was held in the Quad and attended by about a hundred people.
Rabbi Howie Stein and student readers begun the evening by telling the Biblical story of the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. They augmented this with songs and prayers in both English and Hebrew.
Once the first part of the story had been told, guests shifted their focus to the Passover plate which contained different foods which were symbolic of different aspects of the story being told. These included Matzo bread, bitter herbs—horseradish and romaine lettuce, eggs, cooked meat and salt water amongst others. After guest enacted different rites in keeping with the story of Passover such as sharing the matza and spilling ten drops of wine to symbolise the different plagues, the Passover meal begun.
Guests included members from and outside of the Jewish community.
“There were many more students there than I recall ever attending, which was great to see. I love that students of all faiths and backgrounds felt comfortable partaking in such an important Jewish tradition,” said Emma Willenborg ’11 “ … [it] is different from what might typically be considered a smaller family gathering, but for me this support and understanding brings our community together in really meaningful ways. Meeting new people and talking about our faiths and traditions was not only a chance for me to share my experiences, but also to learn about other people’s beliefs and practices.”
Sapir Blau ’14 also enjoyed sharing this holiday with her friends but for her the realisation of being away from home was very clear.
“For me it wasn’t the same also because with my family we read it in Hebrew and we sing the songs a bit differently, it made me really miss my parents and my dad,” said Blau, “but being with friends and people who are learning about the dinner is fun.”
Overall, the Seder dinner proved a great success as it enabled all involved to experience an important holiday in an intimate community away from home
