Why Is This Night Different?
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AN EDUCATIONAL COMPANION FOR PASSOVER 2024
This year, the familiar words of the Haggadah will no doubt sound different. What does it mean to recite them today?
The iCenter’s resources offer reflections on 12 moments in the seder. From a reflection of a mother and daughter who have just returned to their home in Kibbutz Sa’ad, to an exploration of art created to remember the hostages, each piece contains questions to enhance discussion. There are even some interactive activities to do during the search for the afikoman.
Select a piece you’d like to print out or download them all. While this Passover will be different from all other Passovers, let this also be one that brings with it peace and the return of the hostages.
EDUCATIONAL COMPANION
In the Seder we retell and reenact the Exodus from slavery to freedom and invite you to reflect on your relationship to Israel in a year that is different than all other years.
This reflection written by two residents of Kibbutz Sa’ad who were just able to return to their kibbutz speaks of the relevance of dipping the green karpas in the saltwater this year.
The breaking of the middle matzah traditionally symbolizes the brokenness of our world, a feeling that seems more pertinent than ever as we grieve and try to also move forward.
Reading the four questions, we recall there are actually five, and the fifth—“Why is this night different from all other nights?”—leaves us much to reflect on this year.
Seder this year brings up painful parallels between the plight of our ancestors and those held hostage in Gaza. How can Israeli art help us find a place for them at the seder?
The lessons of the story of the four children can help us reflect on how we ask—and answer—questions in this heightened political reality.
October 7 and the ongoing war bring new insights and meaning to Pesach traditions around the ten plagues.
This ancient song helps us remember that we can be grateful for what we have, even when in the depths of trouble. Israeli poet Eliaz Cohen suggests how this song can guide us right now.
As we retell the story of the Exodus, an Israeli writer suggests how we choose to remember and retell the devastating stories of October 7 will have a marked impact on our future.
This light-hearted exploration includes four easy and meaningful activities to enhance this moment in the seder for all ages.
After concluding the seder’s timeless “journey” from slavery to freedom, consider the words of these Israeli poems and prayers to guide us on our way.
We grapple with a passage that was added during the Crusades, ultimately asking what it would look like if God were to pour out not only wrath but divine love.
As the seder comes to a close, the words of Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai and the music of Shai Tsabari can accompany us on our journey home and in the months and years ahead.
