OneTable and Haggadot.com are partnering for Passover this year to enable Jewish young adults to create, host, and participate in meaningful in-person Seders, the ritual Passover meal, with peers. This major national initiative comes at a time when young people are eager to engage in in-person experiences that are rich with connection and meaning.
“The traditional message of Passover is about freedom,” says Tirtzah Bassel, OneTable’s Vice President of Partnerships + Jewish Learning. “And the most basic element of freedom is being able to tell our own story. After two years of lockdowns and closures, this Passover is a particularly apt time to gather with friends and family and share stories on what freedom means to us now. We invite as many young adults as possible to host their own Shabbat dinners and Passover Seders, which is why we are proud to provide inspiration and resources to help make their Seders authentic, meaningful, and connective.”
In addition to a Passover Shabbat Guide, a Shabbat Seder Guide, and a host of curated Passover resources on onetable.org/Passover, OneTable is also partnering with Haggadot.com, where people can find or create their dream haggadah.
Haggadot.com serves more than half a million Jews annually with their diverse library of Passover resources, including assistance for people to build a Passover experience around themes most relevant to them. They can create their own Haggadah and collaborate with their friends and family. Now with a new events platform, Powered By OneTable, Haggadot.com users can also discover Passover events that speak to them and invite guests directly to their own Seders.
“People of different backgrounds and with different perspectives can all draw meaning from the interactive rituals of Passover,” adds Eileen Levinson, Founder & Executive Director of Haggadot.com. “The Seder can focus on freedom, social justice, oppression, antisemitism, LGTBQ+ experiences, and more. Whether informed by events in our world today or by something in one’s life, this DIY dinner party can be deeply powerful. Young adults are searching for experiences that add value and enrich their lives—that give them space to ask some big questions and ponder possible answers.”
OneTable is “nourishing” (subsidizing) first and second Seders on April 15-16. The first night coincides with Shabbat, when OneTable empowers young adults to connect with friends in meaningful weekly rituals. Young adults can apply to become a host by April 5, post their Seders and invite friends or find seats at open dinners. OneTable will elevate their Seder with resources and up to $10 per guest, up to $100 per Seder. In the spirit of welcoming and hospitality, OneTable will nourish a host for both Seders if they invite different groups of family or friends to attend each.
Although Passover certainly looked different for the past couple years, OneTable launched Seder2020.org to help people build community, connect with their families and friends and find meaning during the beginning of COVID-19 shutdowns. 38,000 people used the site. In 2021, OneTable supported hosts on the platform for the first and second Seder with 2,580 unique participants celebrating Passover. For 2022, OneTable and Haggadot.com anticipate 9,000 people will attend a Passover event through the platform.
For more information or to become a host, visit onetable.org/Passover.
