ABSTRACT
Food, family, and ethnic identity are at the core of the Passover ritual. Despite a lengthy and strong tradition governing the formal observance of Passover, the meaning given to each of these elements changes with each enactment, building on earlier interpretations (both “official” and family-generated ones). Such family folklore thus appears to be not merely “a creative expression of a common past” 1 but rather the reflection of a constantly evolving process. To understand this process better and to appreciate more fully the nature of my family’s celebration of Passover, I studied the behaviors of members of my own extended Gershenowitz family during two Passover Seders held in Toronto by Stan and Brenda Kates. 2 Many of the events described in this chapter relate to that festive occasion, but my study of changes in one family’s Seder has continued to evolve, along with my own participation in that family’s Seders, in subsequent years. By their levels of participation in the family Seder, participants define their relationships within the family. The meanings of those relationships arise then from the rich mix of the generations within the family, the varying intensities of their involvement in Judaism, the differing sorts of family membership, as well as their experiences with previous Seders.
