The Healing Haggadah

The Pesach Seder Redefined.

An experiential and therapeutic evening dedicated to healing and processing communal wounds of trauma.

“The text of the Haggadah itself has a double message: the public narrative is the great historic event of the Exodus, the formation of Am Yisrael. That story is the common property of every Jew; it is the story of all of us. But there is a private, intimate, secondary message that will vary with each individual as we identify our struggles, pain, and inner Mitzrayim and look to the light of the Exodus as a source of our own liberation…

In his beautiful commentary on the Haggadah, Rabbi Friedman shows us that the lessons of yetzias Mitzrayim are timeless and eternal.”

Rabbi Yitzchak Breitowitz, Rav, Kehillas Ohr Somayach

“Broad, deep, and timely.”

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, Executive Vice President, Emeritus, Orthodox Union

“Interesting, informative, and inspiring.”

Rabbi Zev Leff, Rav, Moshav Matityahu

“As Klal Yisrael once again fights for our right to exist, The Healing Haggadah illuminates the path forward, offering insights that empower individuals and communities to confront their pain and transform it into strength.”

Rabbi Yochanan Zweig, Rosh Yeshiva, Talmudic University of Florida

About the author:

Rabbi Michael Friedman, M.Ed., LPC, is a seventh-generation rabbi, having received semichah from Harav Gedalia Dov Schwartz, zt”l, and Harav Zalman Nechemia Goldberg, zt”l. He has a master of education in counseling from University of North Texas at Dallas; a bachelor of arts from University of Maryland, College Park; and a bachelor of Talmudic law from Ner Israel Rabbinical College, Baltimore.

Rabbi Friedman is the co-founder and Wellness Rabbi of Nafshi, a non-profit organization that combines Torah ideas with holistic principles of psychological and emotional wellness. Before making aliyah, he served the pastoral needs of the Jewish community in Dallas, Texas, as assistant rabbi at Congregation Shaare Tefilla, Judaics educator at Akiba Yavneh Academy, and promoted inclusion as chapter coordinator for Yachad - the National Jewish Council for Disabilities. Rabbi Friedman served the clinical and mental health needs of the Jewish and broader community as an individual and couples therapist, group facilitator, school counselor, and intake coordinator for Jewish Family Services of Dallas.