Thursday April 10, 2025 – י״ב נִיסָן תשפ”ה What are you going to add to your Seder Plate this year? On Tuesday morning, I sat around a table across from the parents, siblings, aunts, and uncles of several of the 59 hostages remaining in Gaza. I listened to their painful stories, the love and affection they had for their children, and their emphatic pleas to the American Jewish community to do everything in our power to Bring Them Home. Some of their loved ones, we know, are no longer among the living, and their bodies are being held, and some believe that their loved ones are alive. The thought of sitting down to a second Pesach Seder with a glaringly empty chair at their table is almost unbearable. Like last year, this year’s Seders will be different. We will sit down to tell the story of our own liberation, of our formation and becoming a people. Essentially, it is our story of independence while we are at war, and 59 of our brothers and sisters (the living and the dead) are still, literally, in the House of Bondage. This Seder will be different for some families because their loved ones have returned home. From January to March, we saw the return of 33 hostages as a result of the hostage release deal and ceasefire. As they sit down to Seder, they will omit one word from the Haggadah: “כאילו” (“as if”). When we read this passage, “In every generation, one must see themselves as if they went out from Egypt.” They will be compelled to omit the “כאילו” because they actually went out from captivity, out of מצריים (“Egypt” or “the narrow places”), and are now free. They will tell their harrowing stories of survival and recall their fellow hostages who did not make it out alive or are still there languishing in tortuous situations, waiting for an impending release. We must listen to their stories and remain singularly focused on the release of the others, reminding ourselves that when one person is not free, none of us are free either. While we hear and share stories, we also have a rich tradition of using foods as a symbolic manifest
“RESERVED: For One Who is Not Free”
ation of the embodiment of the various aspects of our shared memory, afflictions, and causes-du-jour. We all know what the matzah, haroset, salt water, and karpas symbolize. There is a lengthy and growing custom of adding symbolic foods to one’s Seder plate to highlight a particular affliction and to call attention to a relevant and contemporary issue. Many of us may be aware of the custom of placing an orange on the seder plate (chock full of urban myth) as a contrarian response to the rejection of female rabbis, but there are many more (and here). In addition, some seders feature ice cubes to remind us of global warming and climate change, a sheave of wheat in solidarity with Ukraine, etc… This year Rachel Goldberg-Polin, a Jewish educator and mother of murdered hostage Hersch Goldberg-Polin z”l, asks us to put a Lemon on our Seder plate. My friend and colleague Rabbi Gersh Lazarow of Melbourne, Australia, penned the following in the formulation of this new ritual: “This bright yellow fruit, like the ribbons tied in remembrance, represents both hope and the sourness that fills our hearts as we think of the 59 hostages still held in Gaza. Its sharp bitterness echoes the pain of their captivity—a powerful reminder of freedom still denied. This lemon, in addition to the Maror and Chazeret, is more than a symbol; it is a call to awareness and action. It urges us to weave their struggle into our ancient story of liberation. As its bite sharpens our resolve, may it kindle an unrelenting desire to see them safely returned. May this emblem of captivity become a symbol of celebration at their release.” We would like to share this beautiful and meaningful ritual of putting a lemon on the seder plate to call attention and raise awareness for those in captivity. An additional ritual from Rabbi Evan Shultz of Congregation Bnai Israel in Bridgeport, CT (and a Vote Reform #3 slate member) encourages us to break 59 pieces of Matzah as symbols of the fragments of the modern captivity of the hostages. This is a moment to read the names of the hostages, say their names, and take this moment to highlight the brokenness as Rabbi Shultz wrote: “We take a moment to read their names and pray that, like our ancestors, they, too, cross the sea to freedom.” We encourage you to adopt these new and hopefully temporary customs at your seders this year and post pictures of your ribbons, empty chairs, and lemons. We have heard many testimonies from freed hostages who say that the prayers, protests, and efforts to raise awareness gave them the strength and resilience to survive. Our Reform Movement has been steadfast in its efforts to bring the hostages home. Lee Siegel, a member of Kibbutz Gezer and Reform Congregation Birkat Shalom was reunited with his brother Keith, who was released after 481 days in Hamas captivity. Since his release, Keith has dedicated his efforts to pushing for the release of the remaining hostages – including speaking at the White House Pesach event. Lee has his own message for Reform Jews around the world: Vote Reform. “It was the Reform Movement that held me close and gave me support during this dark and difficult time. Now, I am asking you to support our Movement.” The value of freedom is at the center of our Pesach experience. We will pray for it, discuss it, hope, sing songs of freedom, and symbolize our freedom during the Seder. We will add new rituals to our ancient customs and take action. We need everyone to Vote Reform to advocate for the release of the hostages and to ensure a strong, secure, democratic Jewish State. May this Pesach bring meaning for you and your loved ones, and may we know no more empty chairs.