On Wednesday April 4, North Central will be hosting a Passover Seder. Seder is a traditional Jewish service revolving around freedom. It takes place on the first night or first two nights of Passover. At this celebration, North Central will be conducting times of prayer, worship, storytelling and songs, as well as a traditional Jewish meal. Matzah will be included in this meal because it has great meaning to the story.
“It represents that when the Jews were leaving Egypt, they had to do so quickly, and they didn’t have time to wait for the bread to rise so they ate unleavened bread,” says Dr. Brian Hoffert, associate professor of religious studies and history.
The other foods included have a symbolic meaning which will be explained throughout the night. As the story is told, the foods will be eaten accordingly in order to better understand what it was really like during this time.
The hosts this year will be Hoffert, Dr. Suzanne Chod and Chaplain Eric Doolittle.
As her first year participating, Chod will be taking on the role of the matriarch by lighting the candles and praying over the Mitzvah. For the practicing Jewish faculty members, “it’s nice to be able to come together to help talk about traditions and introduce students and others to our traditions that are not familiar with it,” says Chod, associate professor of political science.
Anyone, no matter their religious views, is welcome to attend. In order to do so, sign-ups are required using the link attached. The cost for students is free and for anyone else, it is $15. The location will be at the A.A. Smith House and will be held from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
