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Hillel Helps Keep Passover Traditions Alive at Campuses, Communities Worldwide
April 17, 2006Comments (0) | Add | E-mail this to a friend  The story of the Jews' exodus from Egypt echoed around the world last week as Hillels welcomed students to share in Passover Seders and celebrations. Thousands of students who opted to stay on campus during this year's holiday found a warm and festive atmosphere at their campus Hillels – along with everyone's favorite matzah ball soup, of course.
"Passover has shown to be the most celebrated holiday in the Jewish culture, and I imagine that is true for our population as well," said Amy Greenbaum, the director of Hillel at Miami University in the Oxford Press. "Even if students can't go home for the holiday, people here will feel tied and connected to their families during Passover."
Ranging in size from 30 participants at the Hillel at the University of Alabama to close to 900 for Cornell University Hillel's "Super Seder," the Seders gave students the opportunity not only to celebrate their heritage as a Jewish community, but to share them with others who are interested in learning more about Jewish traditions. University of Nevada - Las Vegas Hillel teamed up with the campus Catholic Newman Center for a second-night Seder in which Jewish and Catholic students discussed the beliefs and customs of their respective faiths. In New Orleans, an interfaith group of students from California State University – Northridge, who were in town for an alternative-break program, joined local students at the Hillel Foundation of New Orleans for a Seder, allowing the non-Jewish participants a chance to experience the Passover ritual along with their partners in hurricane relief. The trip was organized by CSUN Hillel, with support from the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles.
The Jewish students at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., opened their Seder to the entire local community and, to the surprise of many, sold out the 150 tickets for the event. Hillel at both the state and international levels and Appalachian State University's Center for Judaic, Holocaust and Peace Studies co-sponsored the special evening.
"Our goal was to sell 100 tickets, which we thought was a little far-fetched. It apparently was not. We had 165 guests, sold out our tickets and had people still wanting tickets," said Allison White, the president of Hillel at Appalachian State. "It was really great to see the campus-wide interest. I think that people were very pleased with the event and afterwards wanted to know more about Passover and Judaism."
"I felt that the group as a whole left with a new perspective on the Jewish religion and practices. As one family was leaving they told me that they were able to grasp an understanding of Passover and felt that it pertained to them as well. That in itself shows why we wanted to have the Seder to begin with," added student Amy Levine.
Some Hillels also offered students the opportunity to create their own Seders with the help of grants. At the University of Florida, in addition to hosting three first-night Seders and two second-night Seders, Hillel professionals expected to serve 800 students through the grant program.
"The response has been overwhelming. We always have more requests than we can handle," University of Florida Hillel Rabbi Jonathan Siger told the Independent Florida Alligator newspaper. "Most Jews get pretty excited about Passover. The chance to host a free Seder is an irresistible offer."
As Passover recalls the Jews' freedom from a life in slavery in Egypt, many Hillels saw the holiday as good time to call attention to those who are suffering from oppression in modern times. UCLA Hillel hosted a pre-Passover Seder for Darfur last week that helped to raise both awareness of the genocide and funds to help the victims of the violence throughout the war-torn region of Sudan.
And for the 10th year, Jewish communities throughout the former Soviet Union celebrated Passover with the help of Hillel student leaders. The annual Pesach Project allows thousands of Jews to re-establish holiday traditions that were often lost during the Soviet years during Seders that are organized and led by the students and young adults who are active in 27 Hillels in the FSU. This year, delegations from the Hillels at Georgetown University and in Cleveland and Palm Beach, Fla., joined local students to lead Seders in Kharkov and St. Petersburg.
WYPR, Baltimore's National Public Radio affiliate, visited Johns Hopkins University Hillel as it was preparing for its Seders last week. Listen to the full report at the WYPR Web site.
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