Pesah 2020 FAQ

In every generation, the Jewish people have brought the story of the Exodus from Egypt to life around the seder table with great creativity. Through the most trying of times, we have held onto our sacred narrative of liberation, clinging to the possibility of redemption that is yet to come.

As we prepare for Pesah this year, we know that so many of us in our beloved community are struggling along with countless people around our planet. This year, Pesah will look different. This may bring disappointment, grief or worry, along with a flurry of new questions. We share the answers to some of your Pesah preparation and seder questions below, with recommendations for how to have a safe, meaningful, socially responsible and joyous chag. As always, your rabbis are here to support you as you plan for Passover and as we weather these times together.

With Love and Prayers for a Chag of Healing and Joy,

Rabbi Abe Friedman & Rabbi Annie Lewis

BZBI Pesah FAQ

Who can I invite to my Seder? How many people are OK to have at my house?

This year, due to the spread of COVID-19, your physical seder should include only people who currently reside in your household. Guests should not be invited to the Seder, and you should not attend someone else’s Seder as a guest.

Zoom or other video conferencing technology should be used to connect members of different households. In order to minimize the use of electronic devices on Yom Tov, the video link should be established before Yom Tov begins (7:14 PM in Philadelphia). Click here to see the Rabbinical Assembly’s detailed halakhic guidance for using a video link at the seder.

Rabbi Friedman will be hosting the first seder on Zoom and all in the community are welcome. Click here to RSVP for the Krasner Friedman family Seder.

Our Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia has compiled a list of online Seders. Ideally, every house participating in a Zoom seder should have the following items available on their table:

• Seder Plate
  ○ Roasted egg
  ○ Maror (see below)
  ○ Roasted bone or roasted beet
  ○ Haroset
  ○ Karpas (see below)
• Wine or grape juice
• At least three matzahs, ideally one piece per person at the seder
• Karpas (any vegetable)
• Maror – any of the following:
  ○ Romaine
  ○ Endive
  ○ Arugula
  ○ Horseradish
  ○ Mustard greens
• Salt water

It helps for all participants to have a Haggadah as well. The Rabbinical Assembly has made their Feast of Freedom available as a free PDF download, and Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner offers a free Haggadah with complete transliteration (phonetic spelling) for all parts of the Seder.

How do I clean for Pesah this year?

This is as good a time as any to remind everyone that Pesah, in any year, does not require a thorough spring cleaning of one’s house. Given the additional stresses of our COVID-19 confinement, we strongly encourage everyone to stick to the minimum essential steps:

1. Clean any rooms where hametz (leaven) is normally prepared and consumed – kitchen and dining room, and potentially some living rooms or bed rooms depending on the rules in your house. If you don’t make a habit of eating in a given room, you do not need to clean it. People with pets and/or toddlers should make a visual inspection under furniture and remove any hametz found there.
2. Although in most years we would encourage you to finish and dispose of hametz before Pesah, this year due to concerns of food availability you may sell even outright hametz. Use the form on BZBI’s website to authorize the sale of your hametz.
3. Kitchen surfaces, stove tops, and ovens should be wiped down with general household cleanser.
4. A small amount of boiling water should be poured over all kitchen surfaces. This step can be skipped if it presents significant hardship or safety hazard.
5. Clean ovens should be run through a self-clean cycle or set on their highest temperature for one hour. This step can be skipped if it presents significant hardship or safety hazard.
6. Gas stove burners should be run on high for 20 minutes or until the metal parts become red hot. This step can be skipped if it presents significant hardship or safety hazard.
7. Dishwashers may be used for Pesah without any additional cleaning.
8. Microwaves should be wiped clean.

Hametz being sold should be placed in a separate cabinet that is clearly marked and taped closed. All hametz should be removed from sight no later than 11:45 AM on April 8; the formula for nullification of hametz (found in most Haggadot; see Feast of Freedom, p.14) should be recited before that time as well.

Hametz items that were sold should not be consumed before 9:26 PM on April 16, 2020.

I don’t have any Pesah dishes – what am I supposed to do?!?

Clean glass utensils may be used on Pesah. Any solid metal utensils, including pots and pans, can be kashered for Pesah by immersing them in boiling water. Non-porous oven-safe plastic can also be kashered in the same manner. If the normal methods of kashering utensils present a significant hardship or safety hazard, you can designate clean vessels “for Pesah” and let them sit unused for at least 24 hours, and then consider them kasher.

For questions regarding ceramic or other porous materials, please consult Rabbi Abe.

How can I get Kosher for Passover food if I can’t go to the suburban “kosher supermarkets?”

In our neighborhood, Rittenhouse Market (across the street from BZBI) stocks a range of Kosher for Passover items.

While we have all grown accustomed to a wide variety of specially-marked “Kosher for Passover” foods, there are a large number of food items that do not need any special supervision. The Rabbinical Assembly’s 5780 Pesah Guide includes a detailed list (pp.8-10), and the supplement dealing specifically with COVID-19 provides additional information about available leniencies.

House of Kosher also offers groceries and prepared foods with delivery to Center City on orders over $300.

Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia has compiled a list of grocery stores and caterers with Kosher for Passover food in our region, some of which have curb-side pick-up or delivery options.

This is my first year leading a Seder. How do I make it interesting and engaging?

The most important thing: plan in advance. Set aside some time, ideally this week, to sit with a Haggadah and think about some of the following questions:

1.  Who will be participating in your Seder, in person and via video link?
2.  What are their passions and special talents?
3.  What level of experience do your participants have in the rituals of the Seder?
4.  What parts of the Maggid do you want to emphasize, and what parts are you comfortable moving past quickly or even skipping altogether? You don’t need to recite every word out loud to have a “good” Seder.
5. How would you like to invite others to participate in the Seder? Some options include:
   • Discussion questions
   • Trivia games
   • Improv/drama games
   • Think-Pair-Share – ask a question, invite people to discuss it with one other person, and then come back to share with the group.
6. Consider whether you can ask some of your participants to share in leading the seder, and ask them to prepare something in advance to share with the group.
7. Think about how technology will impact participation in the seder – some activities might work more or less well depending on how your participants are connecting to the seder.

What are the best Haggadot to Use?

In addition to the free Haggadot listed above, A Night to Remember and A Different Night include many good suggestions of activities and discussion topics and can be helpful in planning, even if you won’t have copies available for all of your participants. (There is also a Leader’s Guide companion to A Different Night.)

The Schechter Haggadah has over 100 illustrations that can also be good fodder for discussion and other activities (Remember to support BZBI through Amazon Smile!). But that merely scratches the surface of what’s out there – if you see something that looks good, it’s worth a try!