Rabbi’s Update 4/4/2025
- rabbi423
- 12 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Dear Friends:
I received an email yesterday from a colleague who teaches future rabbis at the Jewish Theological Seminary. They are trying to refine their course in “Practical Halacha” to deal with the kinds of questions that Conservative pulpit rabbis are actually asked and she wanted to know what are the areas of halacha about which I get questions from congregants. One of these is of course Passover preparation, mostly in terms of permitted and forbidden food and requirements of cleaning or kashering our kitchens and utensils. I have found that many members of Conservative congregations are fairly strict about Pesach even if they are more “flexible” in their kashrut observance the rest of the year. This extra level of strictness about Passover is not unusual; while I will eat vegetarian food in non-kosher restaurants the rest of the year, during Pesach I don’t consume anything not certified for Passover outside my home or the shul except for bottled water or fresh fruit.
But it is important that our food and kitchen concerns not prevent us from dealing with the more philosophical and existential questions of Passover. What is freedom? What does it mean to be free and how do we achieve that freedom? Chametz is not just about food -- our Sages and the Hassidic masters tell us that chametz is symbolic of pride, arrogance, and the sins or character traits which prevent us from living life as we should. What is the chametz in your life and how can you get rid of it?
Within the last couple of years, the Conservative Movement has created a website called “Exploring Judaism” and their section on Passover has a lot of material to help us think about the meaning of the holiday. Click here to access these resources:
A couple of other Passover reminders:
This year we will be saying Yizkor on both Day VII, Saturday April 19, and Day VIII, Sunday April 20. The service on Day VII will be in person and on Zoom, while the next day will be Zoom only. If you are joining the service on Zoom you’ll need a pdf of the Yizkor service which can be found here:
Also, we “reset” our MiSheberach list every year at Pesach and Rosh Hashanah. If you have placed a name on the list and want it to remain, please contact the synagogue office to do so. Any names not “renewed” by next Thursday will be removed from the list.
As a reminder, I am having drop-in hours on Thursday afternoons from 2 to 4 at the shul. For my drop-in hours, you do not need to make an appointment -- that would negate the whole point of drop-in hours -- but I’d urge you to check and make sure I am there regardless as sometimes there are unavoidable pastoral or other emergencies which might take me away from the building.
As always, if I can do anything for you or you need to talk, please contact me at rabbi@kehilatshalom.org or 301-977-0768 rather than through the synagogue office. I am happy to meet you at the synagogue by appointment; if you want to speak with me it’s best to make an appointment rather than assuming I will be there when you stop by.
Additionally, if you know of a Kehilat Shalom congregant or another member of our Jewish community who could use a phone call, please let me know.
L’shalom,
Rabbi Charles L. Arian
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