What's on a Seder Plate and Why?

In this column, various Bay Area experts will respond to your questions about family life and relationships between people of different faiths. If you have a question for our experts, please email us at bridges@sfjcf.org.

Pesach, known as Passover in English, is a major Jewish spring festival, commemorating the Exodus from Egypt over 3,000 years ago. The ritual observance of this holiday centers around a special home service called the seder (meaning "order") and a festive meal; the prohibition of chametz (leaven); and the eating of matzah (an unleavened bread). On the eve of the fifteenth day of Nissan in the Hebrew calendar (which falls on Saturday, April 19 this year), we read from a book called the hagaddah, meaning "telling," which contains the order of prayers, rituals, readings and songs for the Pesach seder. The Pesach seder is the only ritual meal in the Jewish calendar year for which such an order is prescribed, hence its name.

The seder plate contains various symbolic foods referred to in the seder itself. They are eaten in combination, alone, or sometimes just alluded to. Following are descriptions of these symbolic foods and the reasons for their inclusion in the seder... [continued]

By Suzan Berns

Of all the Jewish holidays, Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) is the one most widely celebrated by Jews the world over. The holiday has a compelling theme—the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt—that resonates in the hearts of all freedom-loving people. The primary observance, the seder, takes place at home with family and friends, in a more casual environment than some holidays, as explained in the answer to one of the “four questions” that asks why we recline on this night. And while there is a certain order to the seder (which is in fact the Hebrew word for order), there is also much opportunity to design your service to fit the character of your gathering. Here are a few suggestions to get your imagination going... [continued]

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