There weren't any big decorations in the dining halls, and there wasn't a rush of holiday mall shopping. But whether everyone else noticed it or not, students in UB's sizable Jewish community came together last week to embrace one of their faith's most important holiday celebrations - Passover.
Passover is a Jewish holiday that celebrates the Israelites' exodus from Egypt, their freedom from 400 years of slavery and their beginnings as a Jewish people. It also has an agricultural significance, being tied to a springtime holiday during which the first crops of the season were planted.
To kick off the holiday, Hillel of Buffalo - a branch of the nationwide organization that gives students opportunities to learn about and express their Judaism - held a traditional seder last Monday night.
"(The seder) is a ritualized telling of the Passover story, with a dinner served in the middle of it," said Mike Zarkin, Hillel's director. "Traditionally, it is a celebration done in the home, but it can be done on a college campus, or anywhere where people can gather."
During the seder, several foods are used as symbolic reminders of the meaning of the holiday. For example, bitter herbs called Maror are meant to recall the bitterness of life in Egypt. The tasting of salt water reminds participants of their ancestors' tears.
With each symbol representing a part of the exodus, participants are supposed to feel like they are reliving the freedom themselves through the retelling of the story, in order to remind them of who they are as a people.
Traditionally, there is a seder on the second night of Passover as well.
Zarkin and other participants agreed this year's seder at Hillel was a success.
"It went very well," said Zarkin. "We had over 40 people at the Hillel seder, and there were others held in the area as well."
Dan Wanderman, a student in mechanical engineering, was one of the 40 in attendance.
"I thought the seder was great," he said. "Having it with your friends is the second best thing to having it with your family, I think. Plus the food was pretty good."
The Passover celebration, however, doesn't end with the seder. According to the Passover story, when the Jews fled Egypt into the desert there was no time to properly bake their bread or let it rise. So as another symbolic gesture, Jews observing Passover restrain from eating leavened bread or wheat products throughout the week.
Wanderman said he planned to observe the traditions of his faith throughout the week, despite some of the complications that can come with living on campus.
"I'm going to stay kosher, as usual," he said. "I think it will be much harder doing it up here, as opposed to at home, because at home we would have a whole refrigerator full of kosher Passover food, where here I just have a couple boxes of matzah under my bed."
Hillel, however, offered students a solution to this problem.
"During Passover, we will be offering lunch and dinner every day to offer the students a Kosher Passover meal," said Zarkin.
Zarkin said the providing of meals would be especially useful to students who live on campus, because it can be difficult to stay kosher for the week while eating every meal in the dining halls.
Hillel's Seder and meals were not, however, exclusive to religious Jews.
Angela Porras, a junior in early childhood education, had the opportunity to see a seder for the first time and learn more about Judaism by taking part in the Passover meal at the home of a friend.
After learning about the traditions of the celebration and of the different parts of the meal, Porras was able to appreciate its meaning.
"It was great just witnessing the entire thing, because it was all new to me," she said. "Before this, I had no idea what it was all about."
The environment of the celebration, made up of family and friends, made it a very inviting experience, Porras said.
"It was really pleasant. I always felt very welcomed," she said.
While Monday night and Tuesday were two of the busiest days of the week over at Hillel, they continued to celebrate the week with new students welcome throughout and a traditional Shabbat service Friday night.
Some students, like Wanderman, who went to the seder were inspired to do more work with Hillel.
"Right now I am taking an independent study course, in which I write for the Ari, Hillel's Jewish student newspaper," Wanderman said. "I'm not active in Hillel, but I'd like to be."
"Usually rather than us going to the students, there is more of the students coming to us," said Zarkin.
With a strong community supporting it, Hillel was a busy place on campus this week and will continue to be so following this important time of year in the Jewish culture.
Tuesday night, several carloads of Jewish students headed over to Pizzeria Uno on Maple Road to end a week's worth of avoiding bread. Twenty percent of the bill from the meal is being given back to Hillel and then donated to a charitable organization.
While the dinner might not have been traditional, breaking Passover with a big, festive meal certainly was.
"It's been a nice holiday, especially since I got to spend it with friends, and now there's nothing better than getting to end it with friends," said Rob Adler, Hillel's correspondence secretary.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
