It's a hard year. Not hard like COVID. Or hard like war in Ukraine. Or hard like school shootings and political dissent. It's a new kind of narrowness, of restrictions, of living in the straits. Every organization and synagogue seems to have published supplements that aim to address This Difficult Time, a moment of extreme, violent and disturbing family fractures, absences, empty places at tables, navigating across differences, negotiating strong opinions, etc. Universities are even starting to admit that on-campus anti-Jewish actions are endangering students to a point that the schools cannot guarantee the safety of Jewish students. So this group of clips is meant to be a different kind of conversation — an opportunity to see Jewish meaning in lighter pop culture texts, not in an attempt to escape the reality that has been ours since October 7th, but a chance to help us emotionally mirror the path from exodus and redemption, let the rituals guide us in creating a sense memory, seeing ourselves in history so vividly that we feel it in our bodies, and see it everywhere.


Even during moments of enjoyment or laughter, we know who we are, what we feel, what this year is. We also remember the past, the moments before this moment. And we trust that the future — which is bound to bring with it sadness and resolution before it attempts to restore a new normalcy — will also bring with it opportunities to smile, laugh, rejoice and renew our relationship with these classical Jewish texts.


May we meet again, next year — or sooner — in "Jerusalem," which is, indeed a specific place, but also means "city of wholeness" or "city of peace."


haggadah Section:
Source: https://Facebook.com/esther.kustanowitz