Looking for something new and creative to liven up your Passover seder this year? Try these engaging and new
Haggadot
.
The Dad Jokes Haggadah
Martin Bodek has written different themed
Haggadot
before, including The Emoji Haggadah and a Shakespeare one. His latest offering offers hundreds of wholesome dad jokes for every stage of the seder.
They range from short puns: "How does a battery feel after a long day? Drained." to longer quips: "An old rabbi passed on the secrets of the perfect sermon to his son: 'If everyone is looking at the clock, it's fine. But once they put the clock close to their ears to hear if it's still ticking, it's time to wrap it up.'"
The jokes follow the themes of the seder, offering puns and stories that are on-theme for each stage of the meal.
The Dad Jokes Haggadah
contains the entire traditional Haggadah text, but only in Hebrew. Non-hebrew speakers might prefer to use it as a resource, rather than the sole guide for the seder, consulting it for wisecracks.
Passover! The World's Most Complicated Dinner Party
As an organization, JewBelong seeks to demystify Judaism and make it more relatable. Its free and downloadable Haggadah offers a script for those looking for a reimagined seder. The 40-page booklet includes a blessing honoring non-Jews at the seder who are raising Jewish kids, and a screenplay to act out "Magid," the Haggadah section which tells the story of the Exodus.
This Haggadah even suggests a new tradition: Seder coffee, "to wake us up to the 10 Plagues of Antisemitism" that are rife today.
The Rock 'n' Roll Haggadah: Your Guide to a Seder that Rocks!
Author and musician Meredith Ochs strived to create a Haggadah "where Bob Dylan meets your bubbe." Along with co-author Kay Miller, Ochs combined the traditional
Haggadah
text with fascinating anecdotes about Jewish musicians.
The unique
Haggadah
pairs the seder's main elements with quotes, pictures, and stories about the Jews who shaped modern music, showing how Jewish themes and values have influenced artists through the decades.
Hagaddah Yehi Ohr
With Israel at war, Rabbi Avi Weiss, a longtime campaigner for Soviet Jewry and founder of the Open Orthodoxy movement, has encouraged Jews to infuse their Passover seders with hope. He suggested opening seders with the words from Psalm 36: B'Orcha nireh ("By Your light may we see light").
Now, Weiss published this guide, whose title is Hebrew for "Let there be Light." It includes incredible stories from Jewish history, and from Israel during the past year and a half.
One story is about Israeli jeweler Alon Mesika, whose son Adir was killed at the Nova festival while trying to save his girlfriend. To distract himself from his grief, Mesika created a diamond engagement ring for a soldier. Soon, more soldiers came to him for engagement rings. Mesika went on to create, and even gift, more than 100 rings. Although Hamas took away his son's chance to build a family in Israel, "because of him, a lot of people will. Adir is still with me, and this is my win," Mesika said.
Through such stories, Weiss reminds us all to look beyond pain for resilience, belief, and light, which is what Passover is all about.
Dr. Yvette Alt Miller lives with her family in suburban Chicago.
