Passover
Ways to Make Your Seder Meaningful
Passover 2025 will be celebrated from April 12 until April 20
Serve appetizers starting at the beginning of the seder or starting after the dipping of the karpas (a vegetable, often parsley) in salt water so people can focus on the seder rather than being hungry and mainly thinking about “When can we eat?!”
Hold the seder, or the pre-meal portion of the seder, in an environment that evokes the story. Hang sheets from the walls to make a “tent,” sit on pillows in a circle, make a mural of Egypt or the desert to put on the wall, etc.
At the beginning of the Maggid, which is the section of the seder where the story is told, an adult or teenager can briefly leave the room to put on a simple costume, such as a robe. They can then return carrying a prop—like a staff or a bag of matzah slung over their shoulder. As they walk around the table, they can start telling the story and ask questions to engage the participants, encouraging everyone to contribute to the storytelling.so they help tell it as well.
Tamar Messer, The Passover Haggadah, 2004
Have a bag of items collected (perhaps by a child or children) from around your house. During the Maggid, which is the section of the Seder that tells the Passover story, each person takes turns reaching into the bag, pulling out an object, and explaining who they are and the meaning behind it, allowing us all to connect deeply to the Passover journey and its powerful lessons.
Ask people to role-play different characters from the story in the first person, using simple statements. For example, “I am Moses, and I am angry that Pharaoh won’t let the people go!” After each statement, others can interview that person about their role.
Slavery to Freedom: Mitzrayim, which means "narrow places" in Hebrew, symbolizes any form of oppression or confinement. What personal experiences do we have of feeling oppressed, trapped, or enslaved? What does freedom look like for us? Additionally, where do we see people still living in slavery today?
Share your family’s Maggid, or story, and feel free to explore as far back as you want, including extended family. Are there times in your family history that resemble “slavery”? An “Exodus”? Moments of freedom? You can illustrate your story with drawings, create a family tree, share photos, and save everything to revisit later. You might even want to add to it next year!
