Shabbat Shalom and Chag Pesach Sameach! The compiler and occasional writer of this Haggadah has no business being in charge of this except for the fact that she minored in Religious Studies at NYU and periodically asks everyone she knows if she should be a Rabbi, but she doesn't want to talk about that right now. Maybe next year in Jerusalem (or Hebrew Union College).

Anyway, shall we go for it?

Passover tells the story of Moses ultimately leading the Jewish people out of slavery in Egypt. Passover happened around 1200 BCE, but it is far from the last time we, and others, have had to fight and escape for our rights and our freedom. Two quotes said by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky are as follows:

We Ukrainians are a peaceful nation. But if we remain silent today, we will be gone tomorrow!

It’s a victory when the weapons fall silent and people speak up.

Moses spoke up and asked the Pharaoh and then God to "let my people go." Again and again, the Jewish people have had to yell to be heard, and yet we persist and we persist and we persist into 2025. At a moment in our service, we will hear the phrase, Next year in Jerusalem. So many in our community and others are in a period of unrest, trying to make their way out of whatever their "Egypt" may be. "Next year in Jerusalem," whether taken literally or applied elsewhere, calls for a dedication to hope while holding room for patience. Perhaps this year, that is a message we need from Passover.

Anyway, speaking of patience, we have a long time until dinner, so let's keep going.


haggadah Section: Introduction