On Sunday, April 6, at 4 pm, an Interfaith Passover Seder will be celebrated at Newtown United Methodist Church.  As has been done in recent years, the ceremony will be presented by clergy and lay people of many houses of worship in Newtown. 

The Reverend Mel Kawakami, pastor of Newtown United Methodist Church (NUMC), said, “This is always a special community event. This year, we will introduce a little more Christian perspective in this Jewish observance with an emphasis on the role of woman in the story.”

Rabbi Shaul Praver, the spiritual leader of Congregation Adath Israel of Newtown, calls the event “a wonderful shared spiritual journey.

“I like that Christians are able to make that connection with the Passover Seder and Jesus’s last supper,” he added. 

This is the first year that the Seder will be held at Newtown United Methodist. Betsy Kraushaar and Kathryn Wolf are co-organizing the Seder.

As with any event of this magnitude, many hands make light work. While some of the preparations for the Seder include traditional Jewish food recipes, other help which requires no previous training is needed to make the event a success. Volunteers are sought, and do not need to belong to a church or synagogue to participate.

Anyone interested in helping in any way is encouraged to email betsykraushaar@charter.net or scottwolf02@gmail.com or call the NUMC parish office at 203-426-9998.

The church is at 92 Church Hill Road in Sandy Hook. Additional details about this year’s interfaith Seder will be announced in upcoming weeks.