Nina Amir's Thoughts on Human Potential, Personal Growth and Practical Spirituality
Each year during the Passover holiday Jews tell the story of how the Pharaoh in Egypt enslaved the Israelites. Sometimes we talk about what modern day pharaohs exist in the world. I, however, think most of us live with personal pharaohs every day–those in our minds. I know I struggle with the chains put on [...]
It’s almost Passover, and for me this always makes me feel squeezed. Actually, it just makes me more aware of the areas of my life that give me that sense of the walls closing in or getting tight. You don’t have to be Jewish to understand this even though Passover is a Jewish holiday. Passover [...]
Do you count the Omer? If you are Jewish, you may know about this practice. If you aren’t, you likely have no idea to what I’m referring. However, anyone can count the Omer, and in the process you can refine your character. The process of receiving the Torah at Mt. Sinai began 49 days before [...]
Today marked the last day of Passover. I think of the week of Pesach like a seven day birth period during which I have the chance to be reborn free of at least one the things I feel constrain me. We are told that the Israelites left Mitzrayyim, the Hebrew word for Egypt, which all [...]
Today, I will look at the last seder plate symbol: maror. These are the bitter herbs that represent slavery. Of course, during Passover the issue of slavery comes up big time. We discuss how the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt and how Moses asked the Pharaoh to let free them. When Pharaoh said, “No,” God [...]
Here in Northern California it does not feel like spring. It’s 40 degrees and rainy. However, it’s April and the lilies and daffodils are blooming, so I know spring has sprung. So, it’s appropriate that the next seder symbol I’m going to look at is karpas, the green vegetables that remind the seder participants that [...]
The first and second night seders are over, but we are still eating matzah and other Pesach foods. I’m still considering the seder plate symbols and answering questions related to them. I invite you to do the same whether you are Jewish or not. The next Passover symbol on the seder plate I’m going to [...]
Today I’m considering the Passover symbol of the egg, roasted or otherwise. Called beitzah, it symbolizes rebirth and represents the second sacrificial offerings given at the ancient Temple in Jerusalem on Passover. Here are some questions that come to mind around beitzah. How do I want to be reborn? That’s a hard question to answer. [...]
Second day of Passover…on to the second symbol on the seder plate: zeroa, the lamb shank, which represents sacrifice. The zeroa symbolizes the Paschal lamb offered as the Passover sacrifice in the ancient Temple. Getting away from the idea of communal sacrifice, I am thinking about personal sacrifice now. Thus, I ask myself: What will [...]
Tonight many Jews around the world will participate in the observance Passover. They will take part in a first night seder, or service, that commemorates the Israelites freedom from slavery in Egypt. (The word “seder” actually means “order”; the service has a specific order.) I see the seder—actually the whole week of Passover—as a time [...]
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