New Moon Musings: Nissan
Freedom, Mindfulness, and the Monster of Antisemitism
By Cantor Rebecca Joy Fletcher, Director of Jewish Life
Nissan and the Jewish Ecological Calendar
At Coastal Roots Farm, we believe that Jewish time and ecological awareness are deeply intertwined. Our monthly blog series, New Moon Musings, honors each Rosh Chodesh—the new moon that marks a new month in the Jewish lunar calendar. As the moon renews, so do we—anchored in ancient cycles, guided by nature’s wisdom, and open to spiritual reflection.
From the evening of March 18 through March 19, 2026, we welcome the Hebrew month of Nissan, bringing with it the spring holiday of Passover.
What Happens in the Month of Nissan?
Passover marks the birth of the Jewish people: a ragtag collection of traumatized slaves who emerged from the antisemitism of Pharaoh’s Egypt. They left not as isolated individuals, but as a people—bound by shared memory, collective responsibility, and a new story of possibility.
In fact, the first mitzvah—or ritual obligation—given to them upon leaving Egypt was to mark Nissan as the beginning of the Jewish calendar. Liberation, in this sense, is not only about leaving oppression but claiming sacred time, shaping identity, and stepping into collective becoming.
Passover is also an earth-centered holiday, known as Chag Ha’Aviv—the Festival of Spring. It reflects the agricultural turning of the season: fields greening, seeds sprouting, life returning. At Coastal Roots Farm, this is not metaphor—it is lived reality. As the land softens and new growth emerges, we are reminded that freedom, like farming, unfolds in cycles. It requires patience, care, and community.
Liberation in a Time of Fear
And yet, this year, freedom may feel harder to access.
In these days of increasing antisemitism when even the youngest among us are not always safe, our sense of safety and belonging can feel shaken. The story of liberation may feel distant, or fragile.
My mind and heart feel adrift in a storm, as these threats increase. And still, Nissan asks:
What liberation is possible now, amidst grief and fear?
Mindfulness in the Face of Antisemitism
The Institute for Jewish Spirituality (IJS) names four patterns that arise when safety and belonging are at risk—and how we might meet them with mindfulness:
- Urgency and hypervigilance: Fear pulls us toward fight-or-flight. While action is sometimes necessary, constant reactivity can drain and destabilize us.
A mindful response: choosing a steadier rhythm—breath, listening, and measured response—so that our actions serve long-term well-being.
- Over-reliance on external security: Physical protection matters deeply. And yet, when safety is found only in walls and systems, our spirits can remain unsettled.
A mindful response: grounding in something older and more enduring—the Earth herself beneath us holds what feels too heavy, reminding us that we are always supported by her.
- Choosing sides over building bridges: Antisemitism can fracture community and invite binaries that divide rather than connect.
A mindful response: naming feelings over judgments, listening across difference, and choosing relationship over righteousness.
- Grievance over grief: Outrage is natural in the face of antisemitism. But when grievance hardens the heart, it can block healing—just as Pharaoh’s heart was hardened.
A mindful response: making space for grief, allowing it to move through us and transform into purposeful action.
Earth-Based Judaism: Returning to What Holds Us
In the face of fear, earth-based Jewish practice offers grounding.
The Earth does not rush. It does not close its heart. It continues its cycles—holding, receiving, renewing. When we turn toward soil, seed, and season, we remember that we are not alone, and that life continues to unfold with quiet persistence.
At Coastal Roots Farm, this takes shape through:
- 🌱 Growing and sharing fresh food with those in need
- 🥬 Educating through farm-based Jewish programs rooted in seasonality
- 🌎 Practicing regenerative agriculture as an expression of care and responsibility
These are not separate from Passover—they are expressions of it. They are how we continue the work of liberation today: transforming scarcity into nourishment, and fear into connection.
A Different Kind of Freedom
Perhaps the freedom possible this Passover is not external, but internal.
The freedom to choose “Yishuv ha’da’at”—a grounded, calm mind and heart—even as the world around us rages.
This is not easy. But it is possible. And it is deeply needed.
Closing Blessing: Freedom, Rooted in Renewal
This Passover, may we cultivate the freedom to choose calm, compassion, and mindful action.
May we root ourselves in Nissan’s beginning, in the light of the new moon, and in the enduring, trustworthy Earth blossoming into spring all around us.
May we remember that liberation is not a single moment, but an ongoing practice—one we tend together.
Happy New Moon and Happy Passover.
