The Forward asks: Is the Passover Seder Zionist?
It concludes:
Undergirding this Zionist/anti-Zionist Seder debate is whether the Passover Seder is about liberation generally, or Jewish liberation specifically. This question reflects a broader tension between universalism and particularism in Jewish tradition, according to Rabbi Mel Gottlieb, President Emeritus of the Academy of Jewish Religion–California….
In Gottlieb’s view, the Passover story has room for particularism and universalism, and thus, both Zionists and anti-Zionists belong at the Seder table. But they shouldn’t start a food fight.
“When one side gets too extreme, it throws off the balance,” Gottlieb said. “But we grow through this tension. If people would listen to each other, we can expand our consciousness.”
If you too, prefer consciousness expansion to food fights, you might want to add Rabbi Gottlieb's Torah Travels: A Psycho-Spiritual Journey Through the Weekly Torah Portion to your library.
