Passover preparations begin with seder lessons

Preparing to host a Passover seder can be daunting: the anniversary of Jewish abandon from bullwork is abounding with bags of years of history, and anniversary allotment of the meal has its purpose.

So during a "Passover 101" series of workshops at Temple Hesed in Scranton on Saturday morning, adults learned how to start or enliven their family's seder tradition while children put together elements of the banquet, from matzah spread with melted chocolate to pillows made for reclining during the feast.

"There are so many traditions, so many rules and regulations, that it can really seem overwhelming," Rabbi Daniel Swartz, the temple's spiritual leader, told a small group of adults gathered in the sanctuary for seder lessons.

Temple board co-president Esther Adelman designed her family's seder years ago so her daughter, then 5, would grow up in a Jewish household.

"It was up to me, so I became a scholar," she said. "It's important, even if you've never done it before, to try."

The seven-day Jewish celebration begins today at sundown, and families throughout the region will retell the story of the exodus from Egypt, from slavery to freedom.

In the kitchen at Temple Hesed on Saturday, the youngest members were less intimidated by rules and tradition than their parents.

"Most of them are going rogue," said temple member Laurie Waskovich, wearing a blue apron printed with a seder checklist. She was charged with teaching the children recipes for charoset - the mixture of apples, nuts, sugar and wine that represents the mortar used by enslaved Jews to build Egyptian palaces.

Isabelle Spatt, 8, of Clarks Summit, peered at her own concoction. "That looks really good," she said. "I think I'll have a little bit more honey."

She added a healthy squeeze and listed her ingredients so far: apples, cinnamon, walnuts. "And that," she said, dropping in a dollop of pitted dates. "I don't know what it is."

In the auditorium, accession accumulation was decorating Miriam's cups - a almost contempo accession to some seders that represents Moses' sister and her adeptness to acquisition sources of beginning baptize during the Jews' 40 years of abnormality in the desert.

Jacob Weinberg, 9, of Clarks Summit, corrective his bottle with swirling, black lines.

"You can just go crazy," he said.

By Laura Legere (Staff Writer)
Contact the writer: llegere@timesshamrock.com

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