As we prepare for Pesach, the holiday of redemption, we carry a lot of grief, worry, and anger in our hearts. Israel is under constant attack. Our brothers and sisters are still being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. What can we do to help?
It is critical to take actions that will be effective spiritually, communally, and practically. American Jews have a great responsibility to raise the issue of the hostages with all elected officials. We must pray every day for their release. We must give tzedakah so that everyone can afford to make a seder.
But should we leave a chair open at the seder?
In 1965, Dr. Zvi Taubes, chief rabbi of Zurich, called on Jewish community members to institute a new custom of the “Empty Chair.” The chair would be left vacant during the seder services in remembrance of the plight of Soviet Jewry.
The American Soviet Jewry Campaign adapted it in the 1970s. As a child, I remember having seders with an empty chair. We also put an empty chair on the bima when there were bar mitzvahs. By holding a space for them, we are remembering their plight and motivating ourselves to raise their cause and not let them be forgotten. It’s a powerful idea.
While this seems like a meaningful act to leave an empty chair, I would have to agree with the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s response to the campaign in the 1970s. “The guy who sits in the Kremlin won’t care about the empty chair….Go bring the son who is not at the seder. Go bring the son from Greenwich Village… Those are your children.” (Sichos Kodesh 5730, vol. 1 - my translation).
While an empty chair may motivate us to do more, it will not influence Hamas to release the hostages.
Indeed, a potent response to the rise in anti-Semitism, the hatred aimed at Israel, and the plight of these hostages — is ensuring that every Jew is at a Seder.
Additionally, we can do our best to be joyful and fulfill the words of the Haggadah. We can ensure that everyone takes part in all the mitzvot of the night —to eat matzah, drink wine, retell the story, and rejoice at our liberation. It's a powerful ritual and narrative that binds the Jewish people together.
All Jews are interconnected. If a Jew does a mitzvah in Los Angeles, they can uplift the fate of a Jew on the other side of the world who is unable to perform that mitzvah.
There will be plenty of opportunities to reflect and pray on the seder nights about the plight of our brothers and sisters in captivity. We can ask God, like a great chassidic rabbi once did, “Why is this night of exile so long, and why is the redemption taking so long?”
While this will not be the first year that Jews are celebrating Pesach while also being persecuted, may this year be the last! May the redemption be delivered soon - even before Pesach. May we fill every cup and every chair possible with everyone who needs a seat. May the power of unity on Seder night help overcome all the enemies of the Jewish people. May God deliver us from this Exile and next year in Jerusalem!
Shabbat Shalom and Happy Pesach!