Observe the Passover seder with new iPad app
"The Haggadah App" for the iPad guides observers of the Passover Seder through the important ritual.
“The Haggadah App” from Melcher Media offers an interactive look at the seder tradition that begins Friday.
For those who will observe the Passover Seder Friday night, a new iPad application can help guide you through the important Jewish ritual and teach you some things you didn’t know.
“The Haggadah App” ($7.99, Melcher Media) offers both the tradition of the ritual that commemorates the Israelites’ flight out of Egypt with new features to help users of the 21st century connect with the rich history of Passover.
“Many of us have been using the same copy of the Haggadah all our lives,” said Charlie Melcher, founder and president of Melcher Media, in a news release. “But today we celebrate, share and learn in new ways. So it’s time for a new Haggadah that both honors the old and celebrates the new.”
The app, released April 4, offers songs, lists, recipes, interactive commentary, history, beautiful art, games and coloring pages for children and more.
Using the app, you can plan the holiday, learn as a group about the history and explore versions of the Haggadah that you might not have seen before. It also features a contemporary, alternative approach to the seder, audio recordings of Passover songs and commentary and photos of rare illustrated manuscripts dating back to the 1300s.
"The Haggadah App" for the iPad features important historic manuscripts and art about the Passover seder.
Even if you’re not Jewish, the app is a good way to find out more about the symbolism involved in the seder that marks the beginning of the eight-day Passover holiday.
Described by developers as a “rich and beautiful multi-sensory experience,” “The Haggadah App” was developed in collaboration with a team of people steeped in the history of the Passover.
David Kraemer, the app’s primary author, is the librarian and professor of Talmud and Rabbinics at the Jewish Theological Seminary. Also contributing to the app with audio commentary about the art and meaning of the ritual are: Rabbi Irwin Kula, president of Clal, The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership; Sharon Liberman Mintz, curator of Jewish Art at the Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary; Amichai Lau-Lavie, a founding director of Storahtelling.
For more information about Passover and the use and the importance of the Haggadah read The Oklahoman’s Life section on Saturday or see NewsOK.com/religion.
~ Lillie-Beth Brinkman (lbrinkman@opubco.com)
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Another great iPad Passover app is A Cantor’s Seder. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a-cantors-seder/id509568753?ls=1&mt=8 It combines a Haggadah with Cantor Hazzan Emanuel Perlman singing and narrating through each chapter. It has some other great features that take advantage of the unique technology that the iPad presents.