Reading the Telling

The Passover Haggadah across Time and Place


Introduction

The Haggadah (literally, “the telling”) is the text that recounts the Israelites’ deliverance from Egyptian bondage and structures the seder service on Passover eve, but the Passover seder’s domestic nature has in turn shaped the Haggadah to tell us an additional story, the story of those who produced and used the individual Haggadot.

Dating from the time of the Mishna (second and third century CE), the Haggadah presents its narrative through a series of scriptural and Talmudic quotations, commentaries, rituals, blessings, and songs assembled in various combinations over the millennia. The Haggadah’s patchwork and domestic qualities provide a window into the development of Jewish religious cultures across time and place. This exhibit highlights the distinctive character of the Haggadah using collections donated by Rabbi David Geffen and Richard K. Goldstein to the Pitts Theology Library. There are also Haggadot, images, and artifacts provided by the William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum and the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library.

Exhibition Videos


Exhibition curator Adam T. Strater provides introduction to the exhibit and overview of Pitts' vast Haggadot holdings

 

Dr. Paul Root Wolpe, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Bioethics and Director, Center for Ethics, Emory University, discusses the imagery of the Passover Seder

 

Singing the National Anthem at Passover

 

Rabbi David Geffen Sings Go Down Moses

 

Rabbi David Geffen describes a seder in his Atlanta childhood home

 

Rabbi David Geffen describes a military seder at Fort Sill

 

Dr. Eric Goldstein, Judith London Evans Director of the Tam Institute for Jewish Studies, Emory University, discusses the commercialization of Haggadot in America

 

Dr. David Blumenthal, Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies, Emory University, introduces the motifs of the Passover Seder

 

Dr. David Blumenthal, Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies, Emory University, introduces the ways that the Passover Seder is celebrated

 

Dr. Michael Berger, Associate Professor and Undergraduate Director, Department of Religion, Emory University, introduces the image of the "four sons" of Passover

Exhibition catalog: Read Online | Download PDF