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Jewish Community News

News: June 2006

Interfaith Seder aims to educate Hispanic community about Jews
By Laura Rheinheimer

What do Mexican immigrants have in common with Old Testament Jews? Local Jews attempted to answer that question at an interfaith, bilingual Passover seder held in San Jose in April that attracted more than 200 people.

“The theme of Passover celebrates freedom and dignity for all peoples,” said Diane Fisher, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Silicon Valley (JCRCSV) who organized the event.

Fisher conceived of the idea of the interfaith seder as part of JCRC’s mandate to bridge connections between the Jewish and general community. Given that the Hispanic population is so large in California, Fisher determined that reaching this group would help establish rapport and offer education about Jewish community, culture and ritual.

Fisher and Father John Pedigo of St. Julie’s Parish of San Jose chose the theme of immigrant justice, as a way for the largely Hispanic church congregation to relate to the story of Passover. Their timing was fortuituous as the issue of immigration has heated up over the past two months. “Immigration has been on the cover of the paper and there’s national legislation being considered,” said Fisher.

Rabbi Dana Magat of Temple Emanu-El led the seder at St. Julie’s. Spanish-speakers were able to learn about Passover and traditional Seder foods with the help of translators and a Haggadah in Spanish. “There’s such a need to be open with each other,” Rabbi Magat said.

Throughout the Seder, different community members shared their own personal stories about struggling as an immigrant in the United States.
Secundino Cristobal shared his story about leaving Mexico for the United States because he could not support his family there. He said he was detained as a “delinquent.”

“I was trying to support my family; is this delinquent?” Mr. Cristobal asked.

He said as an immigrant, he is denied benefits, fair wages and a pension, but still has to pay taxes.

Because of what immigrants endure, a new verse was added to the song “Deyenu.”

“When all the workers of the world can enjoy the fruits of their labor, deyenu.”

Enrique Velasco, another St. Julie’s parishioner, said he doesn’t think there’s a lot of awareness about Judaism within the Spanish-speaking community. Mr. Velasco said once people realize what Passover is, they realize they already know the story. He said one friend remembered reading the Exodus story to his son from a children’s book.

“After that, it becomes a lot more interesting,” Mr. Velasco said.
Among the attendees was assemblyman Alberto Torrico of the 20th district. Mr. Torrico, whose family is from Bolivia and immigrated to the United States twice, said the second time was more difficult.

“We should recognize that our country was founded on immigrants. Open doors for them,” Mr. Torrico said.

Ms. Fisher said she invited the assemblyman after lobbying to him with the Jewish Public Affairs of California. She said she felt he cared about immigration issues.

“I think it’s important for people of different faiths to unite around our shared values of social justice,” Ms. Fisher said.

A “Kos Miriam” was added to the Seder “as a symbol of the importance of women in our lives,” along with a fourth matzah for the current genocide in Darfur.

The four questions were read in Spanish and English by Marta and Federico Ceja and Agustin Avila. They said Father Pedigo had asked them to read the questions and practiced beforehand.

Juliana Uro-May, 10, whose mother Patricia Uro-May helped organize the event, sang “Halaila Hazeh.” She said it was her first time singing the song in front of a large group.

After reciting the ten plagues, attendees were invited to add “modern-day plagues” to the list. One person yelled out “torture!” Others added “lack of healthcare for all Americans!” and “the Patriot Act!”
“Our hope is next year we won’t have such a long list,” Rabbi Magat said.

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