July 28, 2016

Kerstetter Chronicles: August 2016

I hope you don’t go to Israel. Don’t go to visit the ancient holy sites. Don’t stop…

July 13, 2016

Kerstetter Chronicles: July 2016

You can’t plan for it. There’s no good timing. You pray it will never happen. Maybe you…

May 25, 2016

Kerstetter Chronicles: June 2016

“The difference between you and me is that you have answers and I do not,” he said. And I wondered if he felt as hopeless as he sounded. It was well after midnight

May 1, 2016

Afikomen: He Came

And our afikomen eloquently proclaims that wonderful truth at every Seder table in every Jewish home around the world, each and every year.

April 29, 2016

On the Seder Plate: Charoset

A devotional for Passover by Ryan Karp   Most people can’t even say the word.  You have…

April 28, 2016

On the Seder Plate: Maror

As Jewish people, we are implored each year not to simply listen to the retelling as bystanders but to identify with our ancestors as if we were reliving the story. We proclaim, “We were once slaves, and now we are free.” Each year, I consider the awe of this truth.

April 26, 2016

Zeroa: One Lamb for the Family

Passover is a holiday beautifully rich in symbolism, and according to the esteemed rabbi Gamaliel, the first priority is to speak of the ‘Pesach sacrifice’ – meaning, the lamb. Thus, one of the most significant symbolic items on the Seder table is a lamb shank bone [in Hebrew Zeroa].

April 24, 2016

On the Seder Plate: Beitzah

During the Passover Seder we eat many symbolic foods. Passover is rich in symbolism. One such item that we partake in is the egg, or in Hebrew, beitzah.

April 23, 2016

Easter and Passover: Is There a Connection?

Just as Israelites in ancient Egypt had to apply the blood of the unblemished lamb to the doorpost and lintels of their homes, so people today must apply the blood of the unblemished Lamb to the doorposts and lintels of their hearts.

April 23, 2016

My Passover Identity

The Passover holiday took on a whole different level of epic in my life when I came to know Jesus as my Messiah and discovered that he also looked forward to Passover. Jesus said to his disciples, I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer (Luke 22:15). Although I doubt it was because of the dinner menu.