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Celebrating Pesach!4/11/2023 --by Rabbi Shoshana On Monday, I learned that the seder that I had been invited to on Wednesday night would need to be cancelled due to illness. I invited the three others who had been intending to celebrate to my flat, and got myself organised to put on a seder with a little over 48 hours notice. Luckily, in Birmingham, it’s not that hard: I drove the five or so minutes from Birmingham Progressive Synagogue to Central Synagogue, one of two Orthodox congregations in Birmingham. Central Synagogue houses the all-important Central Deli, with a vast selection of Pesach products for your seder table. I bought regular matzah (Rakusen’s of Yorkshire—flamed baked!), whole wheat matzah, vegetarian broth cubes, and a yahrtzeit candle. I got to take home a precious box of shmurah matzah for free, courtesy of the Chabad synagogue in nearby Solihull. Shmurah matzah is handmade, and the flour has been watched since the wheat was planted. The sealed box contained three round matzot, baked by Tiferet Ha’Matzot in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine! On the back of the box was a map of Ukraine in the colours of the flat, with the words in English and Cyrillic “Kindness brings redemption.” The seder at my home was simple but joyous. There was an abundance of food, thanks to my guests as well as a few tried-and-trued recipes from my back pocket. My guests were two recent converts to Judaism, and one husband. Neither of the two new Jews had ever attended a seder at someone’s home before. One had come to the second night seder held at the synagogue, while the other one had only other conducted a seder entirely by herself! I had already spoken with a number of synagogue members who had told me that they didn’t usually conduct a seder for the first night if they knew they would be attending at the synagogue on the second night. Others do hold a seder at home, but only for their immediate family. All of this was quite a contrast to what Passover looks like in Adelaide. On the one hand, matzah and just about any other kosher-for-Passover item can be a precious commodity. For the last number of years, we’ve relied on a single branch of the national supermarket Coles to magic up just the right quantity of Pesach products. They’ve failed to do so—repeatedly. Some years there’s an abundance of matzah; other years they sell out weeks before the festival and leave the Jewish community in a panic. I felt a bit like a kid in a candy shop wandering through the Central Deli with all of its products for sale. Next year, I think we’ll probably end up returning to old system of bulk-ordering before the festival to make sure that everyone has the Pesach foods that they need. On the other hand, Beit Shalom Synagogue has an abundance of Passover seders. A number of households open up their homes to 15, 20 and sometimes even more guests. The congregation’s leadership makes a point to check in with active members and make sure that they have a place for the first night seder. There’s a second night seder as well, but often those who attend are more peripheral to the community and so less likely to have a place. I was pleasantly surprised to see a note on the synagogue’s Facebook page just a few hours before the seder offering up a place for two people who were still looking for an invite. I can understand the reluctance of BPS members to put on large seders. It’s a lot of work. A lot! Even those who make and freeze dishes in advance end up working like crazy the last day or two before Pesach. But apparently, many feel it’s worth the effort, since they end up inviting guests back year after year. Both synagogues host second night seders, and these also require lots of work and planning. Beit Shalom’s seder is catered, often with different people being asked to prepare different components of the meal. This used to be the case in Birmingham, but for the last number of years the seder has been pot luck: everyone brings a dish from home to contribute to the celebration. I admit to being a little concerned about how well this would go, but the end result was fantastic. Who knew you could make so many delicious dishes that were also kosher for Passover? And the desserts were beyond amazing: the hazelnut meringue and the meringue filled with lemon curd were the standouts! Still so much work to coordinate the event, set the tables, and clean up the piles of dishes at the end of the night. BPS even has its own set of dishes just for the seder, stored in large plastic tubs the rest of the year. About sixty people ranging in age from 5 to 97 gathered for the evening, and I do believe a good time was had by all! There is a really big event coming up this weekend: a three-faiths Iftar (Ramadan break-fast) hosted by the synagogue. This evening is part of a larger effort by a number of BPS members to support asylum seekers in the UK, even as the government here moves in draconian directions on this issue. 20 asylum seekers will be part of the crowd, which will also include 30 Muslims, 20 Christians and 20 Jews. But I will sadly be absent, since this is the one and only weekend that it will be possible to travel to Scotland to meet up with a dear friend. I wish them every success on what sounds like a remarkable evening.
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Leave a Reply.Rabbi Shoshana Kaminsky has been the rabbi of Beit Shalom in Adelaide, South Australia for the last sixteen years. She's very happy to be serving Birmingham Progressive Synagogue for the next three months.
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