
Advertisement
April 8, 2009 | 3:39 pm
Posted by Brad A. Greenberg

Photo: AFP
Of course not. Though last year, Daniel Koffler gave then-Sen. Barack Obama “honorary wandering Jew” status.
But tomorrow night, Obama will make good on all those Jewish votes he received and will join millions of Jews across the country asking “why is this night different from all other nights.” In doing so, Obama will become what is believed to be the first American president to attend a White House Seder.
More from JPost:
The event was slipped onto the president’s public schedule Tuesday night with little fanfare, following a letter signed by Obama earlier in the day wishing Americans who mark the day a “peaceful and relaxing holiday.”
While presidential proclamations in honor of Passover have been common throughout the administrations of George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, this year’s Seder is believed to be the first of its kind.
“I’m really happy to hear about it,” said Steve Rabinowitz, who once led a staff Seder in the Clinton White House but didn’t know of any White House Seder in which the president had personally taken part before now. “It’s been an extremely open White House to all faith communities, certainly including ours.”
William Daroff, who runs the United Jewish Communities’ Washington office, recalled that former president Franklin D. Roosevelt snuck out the back door of the White House in 1943 to avoid seeing rabbis marching out front to demand US action to save European Jews from the Nazis.
“Sixty-six years later the President of the United States is spending Thursday evening with his friends and family celebrating the liberation and survival of the Jewish people,” Daroff noted, calling the event “a testament to how far we have come as a Jewish people in America.
“Jews are a vital component in the mosaic that is American culture and society. Our welcome through the front door, and the dining room door, of the White House speaks to the inclusiveness of today’s America and of President Obama,” he said. “This night is indeed different from all other nights.”
I wonder what parallels Obama will see the Passover celebration between the stories of the Israelites and African Americans. Last spring, in light of some tension between blacks and Jews in Los Angeles, I attended a joint Seder and came back with this:
“African Americans have always looked at the history of Israel as symbolic to our history,” said [SCLC local leader the Rev. Eric] Lee, who said he has celebrated Passover for years. “God doesn’t change. He has always been the God of the oppressed, who delivers from the oppressor.”
“Can you actually imagine,” Lee continued, “if we lived out the principles of the seder?”
11.3.12 at 6:40 am | Back to blogging in August 2013 ...
8.20.12 at 12:22 am | Reuters reports that coordinated prayers at ...
8.19.12 at 9:04 pm | In particular, when journalists are identifying. . .
8.18.12 at 9:56 pm | Running afoul of zoning ordinances and an. . .
8.18.12 at 8:33 pm | Some research suggests the numbers are rising but. . .
8.17.12 at 3:41 pm | At an anti-Israel rally in Tehran on Friday, the. . .
5.7.09 at 11:02 am | In an interview with Danielle Berrin ... (158)
11.6.07 at 3:28 am | (80)

4.11.10 at 9:04 pm | Not to pick on Lefty, who won the Masters today. . . (64)


We welcome your feedback.
Your information will not be shared or sold without your consent. Get all the details.
JewishJournal.com has rules for its commenting community.Get all the details.
JewishJournal.com reserves the right to use your comment in our weekly print publication.
judaism israel christianity politics media los angeles islam barack obama entertainment anti-semitism america sports american jews evangelicals crime the law satire president 08 president 08 god personal john mccain holocaust sexuality war catholicism holidays books jesus europe atheism sarah palin bible academia science middle east death california music capitalism
November 2012
August 2012
July 2012
June 2012
May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
December 2011
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
| |||||||||