how does the celabration of passover differ between orthodox, conservative, reform and reconstructionist jews?

Question

how does the celabration of passover differ between orthodox, conservative, reform and reconstructionist jews?

Answer 1

I am Orthodox. Passover is called Pesach.

We clean the entire house (including the pages of books...its SO time consuming!) and get rid of all the chametz (barley, oat, rye, spelt, wheat, rice, corn, beans and peanuts) We start this about a week ahead of time. We will use up all chametz (things that are leavened) and what is still in the house just before Pesach, we totally throw out (we do not sell it to others as some people do). We get out the Pesach dishes, glasses, silverware, cups and storage containers from storage, clean them and put then in the cabinets (which we had already cleaned). We plan for the seders and we invited people so we plan who we are going to invite to each seder (we have two). We buy matzah (lots and lots of matzah) and put it in the pantry after we have cleaned the pantry). We also buy matzah meal (we make cake and brownies and things with the matzah flour/matzah meal).Two days before Passover starts, my family has a tradition of going out for cinnamon rolls. This way we appreciate even more the sacrifice of our forefathers and have a treat before Pesach starts (they are big and really good cinnamon rolls!). Most family has a tradition of looking for chametz with a candle, a wooden spoon and a feather (don't ask) and my mother or father have previously hidden a little bag of chametz and its a big dramatic thing about scooping it up and burning it. I fast on the first day (I am the only one who does because I am the first born in my family).

My mother makes dishes and sets the table each night for the seder and sets a Haggadah on each person's plate (ours have our own names on them and then we have several for guests). My father leads the seder each night. It is very traditional and very long but its also very neat. We have big meals like leg of lamb or a seafood dish, israeli salad, matzo ball soup, chocolate cake or apple cake, macaroons, carrots and some other things we don't normally get. It is a big feast. We sing a few songs (well, my mother and sister and couple of my brothers sing...I just pretend to as I can't sing to save my life) and that is it.Oh...we all search for the Afikoman that my mother has hidden earlier in the day. Then whoever finds it (we help my autistic brother find) usually barters it back to my father but in the case of my brother...he just likes to find it so the bartering is half hearted. However, during this time we do not eat any product that would have flour, We eat a lot of matzah pizza, matzah brie (and egg thing), fresh vegetables, fresh fruit etc. We celebrate the end of Pesach by having a tacos or pasta the next night with usually apple dumplings and my families favorite cinnamon sugar kugel. So, again we realize what our ancestors had to endure and how lucky we are.



I cannot speak for Conservative Jews or Reform Jews. I have known Conservative Jews who did exactly what we do but I think that is pretty much by community. I don't think all do. I know a few Reform Jews from where I have worked or my time at a secular University and I was told that some did not change their eating habits at all and on guy told me he tried to do it "as long as I could" but they only refrained from eating chametz (or tried to) but didn't clean the house and change out the dishes. I also think most if they have a seder, only have 1 seder, not two but I may be mistaken.



I will mark this and hope some Reform, Conservative or Reconstructionist Jews will answer for you.

It is probably going to be different in the level of observance and ritual involved.

Answer 2

The main difference is the level of observance and this probably varies some on an individual basis. There is a notion in Reform Judaism that its acceptable to just "do what is meaningful to you". The result is that there are some who may not eat Chametz the first day but have no problem eating whatever they want the rest of the week. Conservative Judaism sees Torah as binding but tend to be less observant than Orthodox.



I'm not Jewish but have spent time in a Conservative synagogue. I have also attended Seders at both a Reform Temple and the Conservative synagogue as well as Chabad. I have no experience with Reconstructionist. Both the Reform and the Conservative synagogues I have visited usually have a Community Seder on the second night with individual families having seders at home the first night.



The Conservative synagogue I visit was originally Orthodox (in the 50"s) and many of the members (as well as the current rabbi) grew up Orthodox. Its possible that it leans more towards Orthodox than the average Conservative synagogue but I'm really not sure.

Answer 3

everybody else seemed to nail the Orthodox observation of Passover



as a Reform Jew, this is what I do

We hold the Seder first night (only one side of the family is Jewish, so we don't bother with the second night)

we have a short Seder, read a few things from the Hagaddah, and eat and clean up

I avoid leavened bread products during the full 8 days of Passover

and unlike the Orthodox I will still eat beans, nuts and seeds



expect Reconstructionist and Conservative to be somewhere between the Orthodox and Reform

Answer 4

The laws of Passover as established at the time of the Exodus are:

- "do not have leaven in your habitations"

- "do not eat leaven"

- "have a celebration in honor of the Exodus -- in which you recount the Exodus to your children, eat Mazah (unleavened bread), "bitter herbs", and the sacrifice"



The sacrifice is forbidden without the Temple. So today the sacrifice is commemorated but not eaten.



The script for the celebration that we use today was finalized and formalized around two-thousand years ago.



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Traditionaly observant Jews

- clean thoroughly to eliminate or sell all items which may possible have the smallest trace of leaven (leaven is permitted to non-Jews - thus stuff can be sold)



- for the eight days of Passover only buy and eat items which are certified as "clean for Passover" - ie: they don't have any trace of leaven.



- keep the whole script of the celebration meal and may embelish on it -- add more details, more stories, more games...



Those who are not so observant may not eliminate all the leaven from the house,

they may or may not eat leavened products or create their own compromise structures where they don't eat bread but perhaps are not careful about less straight forward foods,

they may omit bits of the script of the celebration.



"Orthodox" is a generic classification in Western culture that generaly means the people are traditionaly observant

"Reform" is a movement which was started with the notion that Jewish observances are optional -- and therefore every reform home will do things differently

"Conservative" is a movement which separated from Reform with the notion to return to observance - but in practice many Conservative people are not traditionaly observant.



"Reconstructionist" was a movement started on the idea that the rituals are important for cultural and historical reasons but may or may not actualy believe in the underlying story. It would therefore be most likely that a Reconstructionist home will keep the historical celebration ritual but omit the detailed cleaning or guarantee of "clean for Passover"



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One of the other answers complicated things for you by including a discussion of "Kitniot" -

this is a series of items which certain local communities (most of the European ones) forbade by rabinic law as being inherently "uncleanable for Passover".

Today, all rabbis agree that the items may be obtained in a "clean for Passover" manner -- but people from those communities keep the law as a matter of cultural connection.

The choice to eat or not to eat Kitniot is not related to leve lof observance or the movement one belongs to. It is rather based on whether one adheres to this particular rabinic tradition.

Of course, if a person is not traditionaly observant, then certainly Kitniot is the first thing they tend to eliminate.

Answer 5

We eat kitniyot during Pesach, as my mother was Sephardi. There is no leaven in the house, including the cat and dog food.

All food must be certified - Kosher for Passover.

We have a seder read from the Haggadah on the first and second night



We don't like chocolate but we make a cake using almond meal.

Answer 6

I absolutely have not in any respect heard of a jewish atheist. doesn't that a contradict? anyhow, all i recognize is Orthodox jews are jews who're very classic and are the unique sect of Judaism. those are the adult men who placed on matches and the lengthy area-burns, beards. They used to placed on their own classic outfits yet now they placed on suites(i do not recognize why they made that adjust). Reform judaism all started alongside interior the initiating of the 1800's. (i imagine 1802). This sect all started in Europe(in britain per chance?) This sect isn't as strict at the same time as it includes judaism and are what we call cutting-edge. the different sects I absolutely haven't got any clue( i forgot) there is also a sect referred to as jews for Jesus, and others. also, the conservative jews are those who imagine they ought to maintain their way of existence intact and could not abandon it.

Answer 7

basically the more conservative you are as a Jew the more Hebrew you have to read before you get to actually eat dinner!