Passover is a major Jewish holiday, celebrated over the course of a week each spring. It commemorates the Exodus of ancient Israelites from slavery in Egypt, as recounted in the Bible. The central ritual of Passover is the Seder meal. It is celebrated around family dinner tables and at communal banquets, where the dramatic story of liberation is retold. As in recent years, this year's celebrations occur amid a sober backdrop. There are anxieties over the U.S.-Israel war against Iran, widespread antisemitism marked by recent synagogue attacks, divisions within the Jewish community over Israeli policies and the raw aftermath of the Israel-Hamas war.
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Jerusalem’s holiest places sit empty as missile fire disrupts Passover and Easter. On Monday, families brace for the holidays as the Iran war enters its fifth week. Stores in the Old City stay shuttered. Plazas and alleyways feel deserted. Israeli rules cap gatherings at 50 people, so the Western Wall is closed to worshipers. A key Passover blessing will go ahead with only a small group. Churches also scaled back. The Latin Patriarchate canceled the Palm Sunday procession. It said police even block top leaders from Mass at the Holy Sepulcher.
The Michigan synagogue that was attacked is one of the largest reform congregations in the U.S. Temple Israel was founded in 1941 in the city of Detroit and relocated to West Bloomfield in the 1980s. The Reform movement is often described as progressive Judaism and values tradition along with the use of reason and individual conscience. Rabbis, leaders and practitioners supports social and racial justice along with gender equality and LGBTQ+ inclusion.
A man armed with a rifle rammed a vehicle into a major synagogue in a Detroit suburb and was fatally shot by security. Jennifer Runyan, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit field office, called it a “targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.” Smoke had been seen billowing from Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township in the immediate aftermath of the attack. Investigators had not yet disclosed the identity of the suspect. Oakland County Sheriff Sheriff Mike Bouchard says a security officer was injured but no one else in the school was hurt. The synagogue also housed a day care center but no children or staff were injured.
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