Celebrate Passover With Central

As we near the celebration of freedom and liberation, we share with you the many ways you can engage with Central this Passover. From our congregational in-person seder to virtual celebrations, services, member-hosted gatherings, and more, there will be something for everyone. We hope you'll join us in community, music, and remembrance for the holiday.

See our offerings below and check back for a few other special opportunities to embrace during the festival of freedom in the coming weeks. 

Evening Festival Service (open to all)

Wednesday, April 5, 2023, 5:30 pm, In Person (Main Sanctuary) and Virtual (Livestream)

Join us as we gather for a meaningful community Passover service led by Cantor Dan Mutlu and Rabbi Sarah Berman. The service will also be available via our website livestream, Facebook, YouTube, and JBS.  

Congregational First Night Seder 

Wednesday, April 5, 2023, 6:30 pm, In Person (REGISTRATION FOR IN-PERSON SEDER IS NOW CLOSED) and Virtual (Livestream is available to the general public)

After a short festival service in the Sanctuary at 5:30 pm, join Cantor Dan Mutlu, Rabbi Sarah Berman, and your Central family in the Pavilion for an unforgettable congregational seder full of music, memory, matzah, and more.

Morning Festival Service (open to all)

Thursday, April 6, 2023, 9:30 am, In Person (Main Sanctuary) and Virtual (Livestream)

Worship with your Central community in this meaningful Passover service led by Cantor Jenna Pearsall and Rabbinic Intern Andrew Kaplan Mandel. The service will also be available via our website livestream, Facebook, YouTube, and JBS.  

Second Night Seder (open to Central members only)

Thursday, April 6, 2023, 6:00 pm, Private Zoom

Sing together, find the afikomen, question, and rejoice with Rabbi Nicole Auerbach and Rabbinic Intern Andrew Kaplan Mandel at an interactive and musical second-night virtual seder for the whole family. Central members may celebrate with their fellow members on a private Zoom. Members, check your emails to register to receive the Zoom link.

Pesach Yizkor Service (open to the general public)

Wednesday, April 12, 9:30 am, In Person (Main Sanctuary) and Virtual

As Passover draws to a close, join Cantor Dan Mutlu and Rabbi Dan Ross for a Yizkor (memorial) service. The service will also be available via our website livestream, Facebook, YouTube, and JBS.  

About Passover

Passover (Pesach in Hebrew), is a seven-day, springtime festival beginning on the 15th day of Nisan. It commemorates the Jews’ exodus from slavery in Egypt to redemption in the Holy Land of Israel. It begins with a special seder at home where we retell the story of our journey from bondage to liberation using the Haggadah (a book meaning “telling”) and sharing a festive meal featuring many symbolic foods that help tell the story. Throughout the seven days of Passover, we are prohibited from eating chametz (leavened products) as a reminder of our hurried escape from Egypt when there was not even enough time to wait for bread to rise. Instead, we traditionally eat matzah (unleavened bread). 

At this time when we celebrate the freedom of our people, we are provided with an opportunity to stand with those who still suffer under the bondage of modern-day slavery. Rabbi Angela Buchdahl speaks eloquently about this in the clip above. In the video below Rabbi Buchdahl and Cantor Julia Cadrain combine the Passover favorite “Dayenu” (“It Would Have Been Enough”) with the spiritual “O Freedom” as a way of connecting the Jewish community with all who have suffered from oppression and bondage. At Central, we celebrate Passover with a festival morning service on the first day and a community seder on the first night. On the seventh day of Passover, we come together again for a festival morning that also includes a yizkor (memorial) service—an opportunity to remember and reflect on the lives of those who have passed away.