My family always “did” a Passover seder, and I remember really liking it as a kid. But as I get older, I’m less and less comfortable with the practice. I feel that the seder implicitly celebrates the torture that the Egyptians were subject to during the plagues. Modern times, in which we prize sensitivity toward the downtrodden and disadvantaged, call for a ritual that includes more awareness of, and compassion toward, the suffering of the Egyptian people. I would like to start a new seder tradition which features charitable giving toward embattled regimes, and celebrates freedom with activism on prison reform. Wouldn’t that be a more appropriate way to celebrate?

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