By Joseph Sikora, Secretary for Interreligious Dialogue
In April, Duncan MacLaren and myself attended the demonstration Passover Seder at the Glasgow Reform Synagogue in Newton Mearns.
Lead by Rabbi Pete Tobias, we were, along with a number of other guests representing various faith traditions and local civic society, taken through the rich symbolism and meaning of the Seder.
As a teacher of Religious Education for 30 years, I had often taught my students about the story of the Exodus and Passover but every day is a school day and I learned so much just from being with Jewish community and Rabbi Tobias.
The celebration of the Seder itself is based on one simple line from the Torah “And you shall tell your children on that day ‘This is what the Eternal One did for me when bringing me out of Egypt’”. In this short verse we find two of the most important elements of the Seder.
Firstly, that it is meant to be told to Jewish children by their parents so that they understand the importance of the that led to their ancestors being freed from slavery and secondly, that the struggle for freedom continues and that it is a responsibility for every generation of Jews.
With insight and humour Rabbi Tobias, ably assisted by members of the synagogue at the various tables, took us through the symbolism of the various food that are found on the Seder plate, the somewhat odd custom of leaning to the left to drink the cups of wine, and the various ‘tricks’ that are used to keep the children focused on the meaning of the celebration and the important messages that the Seder holds for the whole community.
A truly joyful occasion somewhat bizarrely rounded off with the singing of a song about the Matzah unleavened bread to the tune of Mama Mia. I didn’t see that one coming.
A grateful thanks to the community of the Glasgow Reform Synagogue for the invitation and a lovely evening.
The photograph above shows Rabbi Pete Tobias extreme right talking to some of the guests. Duncan can be seen at the rear centre of the photo and Joseph is to the left, back to the camera.