In the past, the head of the household might open the door to the home and read these words, inviting all who passed by to come in and join the celebration. They are written in Aramaic, the everyday spoken language of much of the Middle East from 2,000 to 3,000 years ago, so that they could be easily understood by those who might have responded to the offer. all who are in distress come and celebrate Passover” with us. We recite, “Let all those who are hungry, enter and eat. We are reminded that because we were strangers in the land of Egypt, we therefore must welcome strangers to our own Seder.
Apparently, it was also used by former president Barack Obama at the White House’s annual Seder! My favorite passage comes early in the evening. My family uses the traditional Haggadah sponsored by Maxwell House Coffee since 1932. Many contemporary Haggadot reference modern struggles, such as African Americans’ fight for emancipation and civil rights and present-day efforts to end human trafficking. The Passover themes of slavery and freedom resonate as clearly today as they did millennia ago. Through reading a liturgical text called the Haggadah and eating ritual foods, everyone at the Passover Seder is invited to reflect on this history as if they had experienced it themselves. As many of you know, this is the holiday that memorializes the experience of Jews as slaves in Egypt and then celebrates their deliverance from bondage. Last month I flew to California to celebrate Passover with my family. May I ask all of the families and friends here today to rise and recognize the outstanding-and graduating-members of the Class of 2017? And now, may I ask the Class of 2017 to consider all those who have supported your arrival at this milestone, and to please rise and recognize them? Thank you! There is a wonderful Yale tradition that I would like to honor right now. Graduates of the class of 2017, family members, and friends: it is so good to be here with you today, a day filled with joy and hope. New York: Harper and Brothers.ħ This quotation is from John Milton’s Paradise Lost, a favorite passage of mine to read on Commencement weekend at Yale: “Some natural tears they dropped, but wiped them soon The world was all before them, where to choose Their place of rest, and Providence their guide They, hand in hand, with wandering steps and slow, Through Eden took their solitary way.” The Long Loneliness: The Autobiography of Dorothy Day.
Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. 1 Atithi Devo Bhava, from the Taittiriya Upanishad, Shikshavalli, I.20.Ģ For a different point of view, see my colleague Paul Bloom’s provocative new book, Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion.ģ Beaton, C.