Jewish Passover Seder returns to Idaho Falls with visiting ‘Roving Rabbis’
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IDAHO FALLS – A Jewish tradition dating back to Biblical times is returning to eastern Idaho.
Chabad-Lubavitch of Idaho, a Boise-based Jewish outreach organization, is hosting Passover Seder, a festive ritual meal celebrating the Jewish people’s exodus from slavery in ancient Egypt, as told in the Bible.
Rabbis Yisroel Gutnick and Eli Salek from New York, a pair of young Chabad rabbinical students colloquially known as Roving Rabbis, will lead the Passover Seder event with the community on April 1 at the Shilo Inn’s Snake River Event Center. They will be in Idaho Falls beginning March 29 to interact with Jews in eastern Idaho and provide religious instruction.
In a conversation with EastIdahoNews.com, Rabbi Gutnick explains that Passover Seder dates back more than 3,000 years ago.
“The Jews were enslaved in Egypt for about 200 years. It was a very difficult period. Every Passover, we celebrate the redemption of the Jewish people and how God miraculously sent the 10 plagues and a messenger, Moses, to take us across the Red Sea and to receive the Torah in the Sinai Desert and bring us to the land of Israel,” Gutnick says.
According to Jewish belief, Abraham was the first Jew. The faith continued through his son, Isaac, and grandson, Jacob.
“That was the birth of the Jewish people. From there, the Jews came down into Egypt from Israel,” Gutnick explains.
The Passover, according to Exodus 12, is held on the tenth of the month, which Salek says is the Hebrew month of Nisan that typically happens in March or April.
“It coincides with April 1 this year,” Salek says.
It traditionally kicks off an 8-day celebration, but the community event will only last one night. Salek says they will likely have a second one for members of the Jewish community.
Rabbi Salek says Seder, which means order, is a lengthy meal that has 15 steps. Rabbi Mendel Lifshitz, founder of Chabad-Lubavitch of Idaho, explained some of the traditions to EastIdahoNews.com in 2023.
“It incorporates a lot of multi-sensory activities into the recollection of our liberation from slavery,” Lifshitz said. “One of the main objectives of the meal is to retell the story of the exodus.”
A book called Haggadah, which means to tell over, is a major feature of the meal.
Another major feature involves eating matzah, a type of unleavened bread, which Rabbi Gutnick says is like a biscuit. The purpose of eating unleavened bread, according to Lifshitz, is to honor the circumstances of the Jews in ancient times.
“They were in a rush to leave Egypt and their bread did not have time to rise, so they ate unleavened bread. As a commemoration of that, we do not eat any leavened products for all eight days of passover,” Lifshitz said in 2023.
Four glasses of wine or grape juice are also part of the meal. The purpose of this is to remind the Jewish people of their liberation and freedom and it’s meant to be a celebration of that reality.
Maror, or bitter herbs like horseradish, are eaten as well. These help “induce tears” in memory of “the back-breaking labor and suffering our ancestors endured during the painful times in Egypt.”
In ancient times, Lifshitz says another important component of the passover involved offering a sacrificial lamb in the temple. Lifshitz explained that they don’t have authority to sacrifice a lamb outside of the temple. This part of the tradition has been suspended until the coming of the Messiah, according to Jewish belief.
“It’s a night of remembering, reliving and celebrating altogether. One of the telling messages is that we should never take freedom for granted, whether it’s physical freedom or spiritual freedom. We want to make sure we incorporate that into our lives in a very tangible fashion,” he says.
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This event comes on the heels of the Jewish Chanukah Celebration in December. Chubad-Lubavitch of Idaho has held Jewish celebrations in Idaho Falls for the last several years.
‘Beacons of light for the community’
Chabad-Lubavitch of Idaho is the umbrella organization that oversees the Jewish faith across the state. It was formed in Boise in 2004 and is one of 4,000 nonprofit outreach chapters worldwide, according to its website.
Lifshitz, who was ordained at rabbinic academies in Jerusalem and New York, moved to Boise in April 2004 after serving as a student, or “roving rabbi,” in 30 countries.
Chabad “has been instrumental in molding the landscape of Jewish life in Idaho,” Lifshitz’s bio on the website says. “Rabbi & Mrs. (Esther) Lifshitz (a native of South Africa) serve as mentors and leaders to countless Jews and non-Jews throughout Idaho.”
In December, Lifshitz’s son, Zali — who is also a Jewish rabbi — told us there are about 3,000 Jews in Idaho and several hundred live in the Idaho Falls area.
The Boise outreach organization has since grown to include a Jewish Center, that includes a synagogue, the state’s only Kosher commercial kitchen and other amenities.
Since the 1950s, Salek says Chabad has sent hundreds of student rabbis throughout the world to “strengthen Jewish life and traditions,” including places like Idaho Falls that do not have an officiating rabbi or Jewish center.
“That’s why we’re going to come out and hold a Seder for the Jewish community,” says Gutnick.
“We’re trying to have the Seder at the correct time … for the community,” Salek adds. “Our mission is to be beacons of light for the community and to spread messages of goodness and kindness.”
The Passover will begin at 7:15 p.m. The event is free, but donations are encouraged. Those wanting to attend need to make a reservation here.
WATCH OUR INTERVIEW WITH THE ROVING RABBIS IN THE VIDEO ABOVE.
