Editing Passover Seder (section)

===Virtual Seders===

When people wish to participate in a shared Seder but are unable to be physically together, technology such as [[Videotelephony|videoconferencing]] software can be used to facilitate a "virtual" Seder.  In 2020, the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] resulted in a surge of virtual Seders, as many Jews sought to practice [[social distancing]] during the holiday, or lived in jurisdictions where they were legally required to do so, and thus could not visit the homes of friends and family who were hosting Seders. The website OneTable saw a fourfold increase in the number of virtual seders it hosted from 2019 to 2020, and [[Zoom (software)|Zoom]] was widely used to host virtual Seders.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/08/world/passover-2020-coronavirus-real-plague/index.html|title=This Passover, the seders are virtual. The plague is real|author-first=Daniel|author-last1=Burke|website=CNN|date=8 April 2020 |access-date=2020-04-09}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/20200406/passover-during-coronavirus-celebrating-communal-holiday-alone|title=Passover during coronavirus: Celebrating a communal holiday alone|last=Bosma|first=Alison|website=MetroWest Daily News, Framingham, MA|language=en|access-date=2020-04-09|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407064620/https://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/20200406/passover-during-coronavirus-celebrating-communal-holiday-alone}}</ref> Virtual seders were endorsed by [[Progressive Judaism|Progressive]] rabbis but eschewed by [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodox]] rabbis.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://themedialine.org/top-stories/observing-passover-in-the-time-of-the-11th-plague/|title=Observing Passover in the Time of the 11th Plague|first=Tara|last=Kavaler|date=April 8, 2020|access-date=April 9, 2020|work=The Media Line}}</ref> The [[Rabbinical Assembly]] of [[Conservative Judaism]] issued guidance (though not an official [[Conservative halakha|Conservative responsum]]) specific to 2020 on using videoconferencing to facilitate Seders while avoiding or minimizing violations of [[Jewish holidays|Yom Tov]] restrictions that limit the use of electronic devices on holidays.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/story/streaming-seder|title=Streaming Seder {{!}} The Rabbinical Assembly|website=www.rabbinicalassembly.org|access-date=2020-04-09}}</ref>