Passover is Compassion Week

Newsletter April 14th, 2025 Together, we're #keepingitsacred...

My grandfather used to say, about giving public speeches, tell them what you’re going to say, say it, and then tell them what you told them. When we look at the elements of the Passover story, we can clearly see the message that is being conveyed— it is a lesson on compassion. 

During the Seder, in the section known as maggid/“the telling” we read the story of Passover from the end of the book of Genesis. It is a tale of the Israelite patriarch Joseph predicting a famine, and having compassion on the Egyptians to help them prepare. His actions were heavily rewarded as he ended up saving not just the Egyptians but also his people, as they were allowed to flourish in Egypt. 

In the middle of the story, we learn of the dangers of an absence of compassion- namely, having a hard heart.  Pharaoh’s lack of compassion for the Hebrews allowed him to deny their dignity by forced enslavement, harsh labor, and brutal taskmasters. He even decreed that their firstborn male children should be put to death. Only someone with a complete lack of compassion could decree such a thing, and Moses called him out for this atrocious behavior. 

And, finally, at the end of the telling of the story, during the Seder, it is tradition to remove sweet wine from our glasses to remind us that our joy for having freedom is diminished because the Egyptian people suffered during each of the plagues. We should never rejoice that they were pained. Likewise, we remember intentionally not to rejoice even at pharaoh’s own demise when he and his troops were consumed by the Red Sea. This message is conveyed through a midrash that says that at the moment the Hebrews impulsively cheered at seeing this event since it meant they were saved, God’s voice scolded them, reminding them that those who drowned were God’s creatures, too. God did not want us to become those who have hardened hearts— we should ALWAYS hold compassion dear. 

At every seder, compassion features prominently, reminding participants of its power. Telling us that a compassionate heart is essential to Jewish identity. 

Though the first two Seders have been completed, there is a custom that encourages us to punctuate each night this week with additional Seders, giving us a full week of lifting up compassion. So, happy Compassion Week! 

This week especially, we might consider where compassion flourishes. And, we might consider how to live out the message of Passover: to amplify compassion where it is lacking. This is how we’re keeping it sacred.  

Together, we’re #keepingitsacred…

Rabbi Heather Miller,

Founder, Keeping It Sacred

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