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A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

Judaism

Among Ukraine’s refugees, I found new meaning in Passover’s open door 

Among Ukraine’s refugees, I found new meaning in Passover’s open door 

Published April 14, 2022

(JTA) —  When the war came, Galina Chornobyl fled so fast she left her teeth behind. That’s one of the first things she shared with me when I met Galina at the Siret border crossing in Romania late last month. Kyiv had become untenable —...

U City "matzah maven" takes his skills to Persian Gulf Jews

U City “matzah maven” takes his skills to Persian Gulf Jews

Bill Motchan, Special For The Jewish LightPublished April 14, 2022

Ethan Schuman is a dentist, collector of Judaica, violinist, woodworker and, at this time of year, a matzah maven. The earthen matzah oven in his University City garage was the subject of a 2016 story in the Jewish Light. Baking matzah from scratch...

Who is this kid on the Haggadah? We (I) think he's a Hollywood star

Who is this kid on the Haggadah? We (I) think he’s a Hollywood star

Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content OfficerPublished April 14, 2022

Dear Jewish Light reader, Please help me put an end to a mystery. I'll just say it straight up, I think the kid, featured on the cover of my very own Maxwell House Haggadah, is now grown up and is a major Hollywood star. Many of his fans simply know...

Yes, Passover cocktails are a thing. Here are 6 straight from the seder plate

Yes, Passover cocktails are a thing. Here are 6 straight from the seder plate

Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content OfficerPublished April 14, 2022

You've heard it before. Purim is the Jewish holiday in which the imbibing large amounts of alcohol is practically mandated. But, don't forget about Passover. Four cups of wine? And while no one is suggesting you become farschnickert, Passover is certainly...

The cover of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” edition of the Maxwell House Haggadah features an illustration of the hit show’s cast. (Maxwell House)

A “brief” history of the Maxwell House Haggadah

Kerri Steinberg, Otis College of Art and DesignPublished April 13, 2022

For more than a millennium, the haggadah has been the centerpiece of the Jewish holiday of Passover. The book sets out the ceremony for the Seder meal, when families tell the biblical Exodus story of God delivering the ancient Israelites from slavery...

Artist Loren Ludmerer created a Passover charcuterie board by reimagining the various components typically found on the seder plate.

From seder to sewing: St. Louis artist creates from what she collects

ELLEN FUTTERMAN, Editor-in-ChiefPublished April 13, 2022

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I walked into Loren Ludmerer’s Ladue home on a recent Wednesday. Our meeting had been scheduled for 10 a.m. but that morning the rain was coming down hard.  At 7:59 a.m. I got an email from Ludmerer asking if...

D'var Torah: Breaking matzah signifies oneness of Jewish people

D’var Torah: Breaking matzah signifies oneness of Jewish people

RABBI JEFFREY ABRAHAMPublished April 13, 2022

Passover is a time that accentuates the importance of oneness and unity.  On seder night, we remember our historic roots and re-experience both the dark days in Egypt and our miraculous redemption from bondage. Jewish people across the globe feel...

Families meld their own traditions into seder

Families meld their own traditions into seder

MARGI LENGA KAHN, Special to the Jewish LightPublished April 13, 2022

The word “seder” means “order,” which pertains to the required sequence of the telling of the story of Passover, no matter the particular Haggadah. Our family has several, including “The Yeshiva University Haggadah,” “A Passover Haggadah”...

Journeying back to where it all started: Revisiting the Egyptian Exodus

Deborah Fineblum, JNPublished April 12, 2022

(JNS) Why is this Passover different from all other Passovers? If you were one of the 32 souls who traveled with Rabbi Dr. Joshua Berman to Egypt in January, it’s the fact that you can’t read the Haggadah the same way this year. Because what you...

As food costs soar and aid declines, kosher pantries call for emergency Passover funding

As food costs soar and aid declines, kosher pantries call for emergency Passover funding

Published April 12, 2022

(New York Jewish Week) — Rising food prices, increased demand and expiring pandemic aid are putting a crunch on New York City’s kosher food pantries ahead of Passover.   The Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, the largest distributor of...

The themes of Passover, and the bonds of history, tie our struggles to those of Ukrainian Jews

The themes of Passover, and the bonds of history, tie our struggles to those of Ukrainian Jews

Published April 12, 2022

(JTA) – Exactly 100 years ago, in April 1922, my great-grandparents emigrated to the United States with their four children, fearing for their lives in Kremenets, a Russian city in present-day western Ukraine.  My great-grandfather, Aaron Shimon Shpall,...

Matzah pajamas are the latest trend in a long history of American Jewish branding

Matzah pajamas are the latest trend in a long history of American Jewish branding

Published April 11, 2022

(JTA) — Rabbi Yael Buechler conceived of her latest product a whole year ago, after planning ways to make the Passover seder fun for her two young sons. But it wasn’t until she started promoting the matzah pajamas she designed that she decided...

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