Thoughts from last night

Anti-Semites are silly people...also, Passover, like Christmas is fun.... atheists celebrate Christmas because they like it...Jews can celebrate whatever they want if it makes them happy and bring whoever they want into it...have a good weekend!

Notes on inspiration and heritage

I once had a discussion with a Christian who said it is impossible to celebrate a holiday such as Passover without believing in God.  I know I have mentioned this discussion before, if not, it is a common one for me.

The question I have failed to ask back and I do not know why, is what about secular Christians that still exchange Christmas gifts?  I have plenty of friends that exchange gifts with their family and hold on to the Christmas traditions, these folks hold on to these traditions because of something more than religion.  It is a time for family for them, as are what most holidays religious and government are meant to do.  Well that and give you a great deal on a new Toyota. 

There are many secular Christmas events, and these traditions will continue.  Why is it so bad to exchange gifts anyway?  I guess I have trouble calling it Christmas  gifts, I like saying happy holidays…maybe I will say, it’s dark, it’s cold, cheer up, here is a toy/chocolate/booze-a-hol….

Holidays provide a celebration of an event.  I recently found out I have Kohen (‘Cohen’)  blood in me….

Hold the phone…what is that?

Jews descend from the 12 tribes of Israel…more here http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/tribes.html.  The tribes are  Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah,Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph and Benjamin.  Moses’s brother, Aaron, was from the Levi tribe…Aaron was the first High Priest of the Israelites.  The priests were called Kohanim, this turned into the Cohen surname today and lineage has been traced back to the priests.

Wait…we are atheists, why are we talking about things that happened in the Torah.

                Yes we are…while there is a huge spiritual side to the Torah, the people mentioned in the Torah did exist, just like Jesus (depends on who you talk to, sometimes, well rarely). 

The Israeli tribes and people are real, have a history and tradition.  This Hagadah is a celebration of heritage, not a celebration of a Lord.  The common history keeps Jews alive and connected. 


Please leave questions and comments!

5 Chapters and so on

My goal is to use the most traditional Hagadah as a template in order to not miss something important, while at the same time have enough space to add my own thoughts.  Using http://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/pesach_cdo/aid/661624/jewish/English-Haggadah-with-Instructional-Guide.htm

there are 5 parts to a sedar:

1-Kiddush-Initial prayers and ceremonies
2-Maggid-The Story of the Exodus
3-Rachtzah-Matzah, Maror, and the Festive Meal
4-Tzafun-The Afikoman and Grace
5-Hallel-Conclusion

Carefully going through each one, I hope to write my own Hagadah and share it with others, but this seems like a good start!