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Review: Rabbi Joshua Berman’s “Echoes of Egypt” haggadah

JL;DR SUMMARY Rabbi Joshua Berman's "Echoes of Egypt" Haggadah offers a unique visual and scholarly perspective on the traditional Passover text. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

PassoverSederFreedomJoshua BermanHaggadahAncient Near EastEgyptologyVisual Commentary

Places mentioned

Bar-Ilan University, Tel Aviv District, Israel
"Rabbi Joshua Berman, professor of Bible at Bar-Ilan University, has written extensively on how deepening our understanding of the ancient world in which the Bible emerged can profoundly enrich Torah study."
Egypt
"a sustained protest against the great empires of the ancient Near East and in particular against the Egypt of the Pharaohs."
Abu Simbel, Aswan, Egypt
"Berman contrasts the colossal temple at Abu Simbel (p.56) with the concluding line of Dayenu: Had He brought us to the land of Israel without building for us the House that He chose Four 65-foot statues of Ramesses II."
Elephantine Island, Aswan, Egypt
"the earliest documented observance of Pesach, found in a letter from fifth-century BCE Elephantine Island, requesting matza for the Jewish community (63)."

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Retrieved 2026-03-23 05:30:29 UTC
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