He said the majority of the first night turnout will be comprised of University of Florida students, while the second Seder will bring in a more varied population from the community.
The eight-day Passover observance celebrates the anniversary of the Jewish people's liberation by God from slavery in Egypt and their freedom as a nation under the leadership of Moses. Jews throughout the world as families and communities observe and participate in a ritual prayer meal known as a Seder. According to Herbie Ziskend, another former staffer who helped found the White House Seder, Obama saw common themes in the Jewish story of Exodus and the US civil rights movement, a connection they often discussed around the table.
Two Sacramento-area rabbis are joining other Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Latino and African-American leaders in a unique Passover Seder, telling the biblical Exodus story interwoven with relevant, contemporary issues of social justice.
In the mood for a cracker?
It can take several days to prepare the dinner's key components, Rips said.
A number of contemporary scholars, including Jewish historians and archaeologists, believe the story of the Exodus is apocryphal and that the Israelites were never among the peoples subjugated by the ancient Egyptians. Instead, they eat matzah, an unleavened flatbread, to represent the slaves speedy escape, because they didn't have time to "let bread rise".
But don't worry - each matzo is only about 100 calories, so dig in!
Bottom line: Passover is the perverse celebration of an immoral and incompetent God killing innocent children.
Funeral held for music legend Chuck Berry in St. Louis
That sentiment was echoed Sunday by David Letterman's former band leader, Paul Shaffer , who spoke to the St. Berry was part of the inaugural class of musicians inducted into the Rock "n" Roll Hall of Fame.
Moses told him that if he did not release them, God would make awful things called plagues happen to the Egyptians. Each of the four cups of wine must be poured by another participant in the Seder. It is not sufficient, the seder seems to say, to think of the Exodus as history; it must be felt as experience.
Grossman points out the various items on the Seder plate, a platter containing items such as a hard boiled egg, bitter root vegetables and haroset, a kind of sweet fruit and nut mash. The youngest participant reads the Four Questions of the evening - the Mah Nishtanah - inquiring about the key practices of the night. There are two Seders everywhere but Israel where one is observed.
New this year, one rabbi even authored a kid-friendly Hogwarts Haggadah.
Feel like you could use a glass of wine?
But in bad news for booze-lovers, many other alcoholic beverages are forbidden on Passover, as grains and yeast are forms of chametz.
Passover is a time of "thanking for where we are" while reflecting on difficulty and looking forward to freedom and joy, said Rabbi Moshe Liberow, with Chabad Lubavitch of Southern Colorado.
And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.
This article comes from The USA TODAY College Contributor network. You have now viewed your allowance of free articles. "Being a small Jewish community, you get to know 99 percent of the group". He wants us to have to look deeper into the world to discover Him and to have to struggle to make the right choices.
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