Passover 2025:Conversations in Community

Passover Seders, Classes, Resources, and more!

Passover, the springtime celebration of the Israelites' journey from slavery to freedom, from isolation to liberation, is known in Hebrew as "Pesach." Yet the ancient rabbis observed that "Pesach" is actually a combination of two Hebrew words: “peh” (mouth) and “sach” (speak), teaching that Passover is a special time to be in conversation with friends, family, and community about what matters most.

Gathered around the Seder table and throughout the holiday, we celebrate freedom, share stories, ask questions, and connect in deep, sacred ways. Below you will find many chances to do so at the Den and beyond, with Passover Seders, classes, and relevant resources to deepen your Passover experience.

In this time of uncertainty and struggle, Passover offers us a much-needed opportunity to heal, renew, and deepen our sense of belonging—with ourselves, loved ones, and community.

Chag Kasher v’Sameach - Wishes for a happy Passover. May we know healing and peace very soon.

Passover begins on Saturday night, April 12th and ends on Sunday night, April 20th

Also be sure to explore the Den’s upcoming year-round classes and gatherings.

 

Passover Seder Plate - Featured Clockwise: 1) Maror/Bitter Herbs - Horseradish, 2) Zeroah/Shank Bone, 3) Charoset - Apples+Raisins, 4) Maror/Bitter Herbs - Romaine Lettuce, 5) Karpas/Spring Vegetable, 6) Beitzah/Egg. Optional and Not Seen Here: Orange

 

Pre-Passover Classes + Gatherings:

Pre-Passover Shabbat Lunch + Learn

Saturday, March 29 • 12:30pm - 2:30pm

Join Rabbi Emmanuel to enjoy a home-cooked meal, Shabbat rituals, learning, and lots of opportunity for connection and conversation with community members. Together, we'll study a range of Jewish teachings on the upcoming holiday of Passover, reflecting on its varied themes and traditions while exploring resonances with our lives today. Sign up by 3/24.

Passover Deep Dive: Jewish Practices,Custom, and Law

Monday, March 31 • 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Join Rabbi Aderet for a night of learning and lively discussion as we explore the intersection of law, practice, and custom when it comes to Passover preparations and observance. You’ll walk away with a tangible understanding of the why, how, and what, as you prepare to enter the Festival of Passover. No experience necessary. All are welcome. We will gather in a central location determined by registrant sign ups. Sign up by 3/26.

Nights at the Seder Table: Capitol Jewish Museum X the Den

Tuesday, April 1 • 6:30pm - 8:30pm

The Den is thrilled to be participating as a partner organization at this year’s Nights at the Seder Table, hosted by the Capital Jewish Museum (CJM). Connect with the Greater Washington Jewish community as we read from CJM’s community Haggadah, clink glasses over stories old and new, connect over charoset and horseradish, and find inspiration all around the table. Sign up here.

17th Annual National Rainbow Seder

Sunday, April 6 • 6:00pm - 8:00pm

Join GLOE (the LBGTQ+ community at the EDCJCC) with support and sponsorship from the Den Collective and other DMV organizations at this annual event to celebrate Passover through an LGBTQ+ lens. Sign up here.

the Den’s Community-Led Passover Seders

Celebrate Passover with the Den Community

First Night Seder: Saturday, April 12th + Second Night Seder: Sunday, April 13th

We are so grateful when Den members host community-led Passover Seders for others at the Den. This is an excellent way to connect with old friends and make new ones! The Den rabbis are here to offer peer-hosts support, resources, and Seder tips + tricks as you craft a welcoming and uplifting Seder experience for all.

Want to Host a Seder?

  1. Complete this form by March 30 to let us know you plan to host a Seder open to Den community members. Our rabbis will reach out to offer support and resources as you plan your Passover Seder.

  2. If you've signed up to host a Seder on OneTable and haven't let us know, please also fill out this form if you would like to open your home to Den community members and receive Seder support from the Den rabbis!

Want to Join a Seder?

  1. Make sure to join the Den’s WhatsApp Community and our “Shabbat/Holiday Hosting” channel by 3/30. After 3/30, hosts will message the Den’s Whatsapp group with their Passover Seders and you can join in! Host addresses will be shared with registrants.

  2. If you find a Den Member’s Seder via the OneTable platform, when you sign up, please let your host know that you are part of the Den community!

Spring into Action: Post-Passover Gatherings

Bike + Learn: Riding into Spring

Sunday, April 30 • 10:00am - 12:00pm

Join Rabbi Emmanuel for a relaxed, scenic bike ride as we emerge from Passover and savor the season of renewal and rebirth with a day of nourishing our minds, bodies, and souls. We will meet at a bike path in DC, near a bike share for those without bikes, and enjoy a stop mid-ride for Jewish learning and conversation with our fellow cyclists. Sign up by April 27th.

Nature Walk + Learn: Spiritual Grounding During the Omer

Sunday, May 4 • 10:30am - 12:30pm

Beginning on the 2nd night of Passover, we count the Omer, for 49 days, until we arrive at the festival of Shavuot. Counting the Omer began as a count toward the spring harvest, and it has evolved into a spiritual accounting. The Omer is a period for introspection, grounding, and personal growth, in preparation for receiving the Torah on Shavuot. Walking and learning in nature will provide us with an ideal setting for looking inward and discovering new places for us to stretch and grow.

Join Rabbi Aderet for a natural walk in the great outdoors, where we’ll break for learning over snacks. Everyone is welcome. We will meet in a park in Maryland that is metroaccessible. Specific meet up spot will be shared with registrants. Sign up by April 28th.

Passover Resources: Deepen Your Seder Experience and More

Passover Learning Guides

  • Pardes’ Passover Companion: Discover a collection of thought-provoking essays by Pardes faculty members, offering fresh insights into the Passover narrative against the backdrop of a post-October 7th world. Explore the intersection of tradition and contemporary events as we reflect on these pivotal moments in Jewish history.

  • Jews of Color Initiative’s Passover Resource Lists: includes events, haggadah supplements, articles, recipes, music, and more that center Jews of Color.

  • If you’re worried about painfully charged conversations with family this year about Israel and Gaza, you are not alone. Rabbi Amy Eilberg provides a helpful framework to approach the topic in healthy ways and manage disagreement in a way that strengthens, rather than strains, relationships. You can view Rabbi Eilberg’s handout here.

  • Avodah Passover Resources: Avodah has collected Haggadot + Passover resources from partners and allies in their social justice work. You can use these materials to help foster dialogue, lead prayers, and build community during this holiday of liberation.

  • HIAS Passover Resources: Connect the Jewish experience of flight from persecution toward safety to the journeys of today’s refugees and asylum seekers with HIAS’ Seder Plate resource, Haggadah, and video.

  • Counting of the Omer: The 49 days between the exodus from Egypt (Festival of Passover) and the receiving of the Torah (Festival of Shavuot), known as Sephirat HaOmer, or the counting of the omer, a time for spiritual exploration and introspection. We begin counting on the second night of Passover.

  • Moon Messages: At the Well seeks to to enhance women’s well-being through ancient Jewish practices. The Hebrew calendar has always been tied to the cycles of the moon. In fact, marking time by the moon was the first commandment given after liberation from slavery in Egypt. Each month — even each day! — brings its own spiritual energy, and we’ll help you connect to that essence.

Passover Kitchen Prep, Foods, and Recipes

Seder Resources and Haggadot

  • Online Haggadot: Leading your first Seder? Your fifteenth? Check out these cool online Haggadah options from our friends at Haggadot.com.

  • Keshet Seder Resource: As LGBTQ+ Jews and allies, each of us is unique. This Passover, the Keshet team shares seder plate foods and objects to represent our communities.

  • NCJW’s Feminist Supplement to the Haggadah: From our friends over at the National Council of Jewish women, a new seder supplement with short readings honoring each of the 5 women of the Exodus story (Shifra, Puah, Yocheved, Batya/Bat Pharaoh, and Miriam) to be added for each cup of wine.

  • Blue Dove Foundation Seder Resources: The Blue Dove Foundation addresses mental illness + addiction in the Jewish community and beyond. Take advantage of the Passover season to bring more mental wellness to your community by purchasing mental health kippot, educational resources or the new Mental Health Passover Seder Companion.

  • AJWS Global Justice Haggadah: Download the AJWS Global Justice Haggadah—with readings, rituals and freedom stories from around the world. You can also use AJWS’s holiday resources to enrich your celebration of Passover by touching on relevant social justice issues.

  • The Friendseder Haggadah: Check out this cool Haggadah from our friends over at The Well, based out of Detroit.

  • The Velveteen Rabbi’s Haggadah: A seder text that cherishes the tradition and also augments that tradition with contemporary poetry, moments of mindfulness, and a theology of liberation.

  • Exploring Judaism’s: What Do We Do Differently at a Saturday Night Seder? Check out this clear step by step guide to support you through leading a Saturday night Seder this year. You can also print out this PDF Guide.

Pre-Passover Rituals + Candle Lighting Times:

Pre-Passover Ritual Prep:

NOTE: Because Passover begins on a Saturday night, after Shabbat has ended, this year the preparation for moving into Passover involves a classic “hurry up and wait situation,” in order to be ready to go before Shabbat, so you can move directly into Passover once Shabbat has ended:

Learn about the 3 Steps for Ritually Cleansing Your Home from Leaven (Chametz), here:

  1. Search for Leaven (Bedikat Chametz) on Thursday, April 10th after sundown

  2. Sell the Leaven (Mechirat Chametz): Grateful to our friends at Ohr Kodesh Congregation for graciously sharing in this ritual experience with us. Please complete this form before Friday, April 11th @ 12:03pm

  3. Burn the Leaven (Biyyur Chametz) by Friday, April 11th @ 12:00pm

  • Enjoying Shabbat and what to eat now that your home is cleaned from Leaven (Chametz):

    When Passover begins on a Saturday night, there is a tension between the need to dispose of chametz before the holiday and the desire to eat challah in honor of Shabbat before the holiday. While one is technically permitted to consume chametz until mid-morning on the Shabbat morning of April 12th, it is recommended to choose another option, because bittul chametz (the declaration nullifying chametz) must take place before.

    In light of this timing, the recommended practice is to recite HaMotzi (the blessing over bread) over two full pieces of Kasher l’Pesah (kosher for Passover) egg matzah, just as you would normally over two loaves of challah. Enriched egg matzah honors Shabbat and does not violate the prohibition of eating matzah shortly before Passover begins.

    Enjoy your chametz by: Saturday, April 12th @ 10:23am

  • Nullify your Leaven/Chametz with the following declaration: “All leaven and anything leavened that is in my possession, whether I have seen it or not, whether I have observed it or not, whether I have removed it or not, shall be considered nullified and ownerless as the dust of the earth.”

  • ”Maot Chittim: “Wheat Money,” this centuries-old Passover custom encourages food access to those in need. Jews collected wheat in order to provide matzah for the poor. Today, some communities hold food-drives or donate to food-related charities, like Mazon, as a way of honoring the tradition.

Candle Lighting Times + Blessings:

  • Candle Lighting - 1st Night Passover Seder: Sat., Apr. 12th @ 8:24pm

  • Candle Lighting - 2nd Night Passover Seder: Sun., April 13th @ 8:25pm

    The final two days of the week of Passover are also observed festival days. Candle lighting times are:

  • Candle Lighting - 6th Night + Shabbat: Friday, April 18th @ 7:31pm

  • Candle Lighting - 7th Night: Saturday, April 19th @ 8:32pm

Want In? Have Questions?