Passover - April 23 - May 1 2005

Music of Passover
"Dahyenu (It Would Have Been Enough For Us)"
This is one of the most popular tunes of the seder.It is about the many favors that God bestowed upon the Jews when He brought them out of Egypt. The song appears in the haggadah after the telling of the story of the exodus.

Passover is the eight-day observance commemorating the freedom and exodus of the Israelites (Jewish slaves) from Egypt during the reign of the Pharaoh Ramses II. Passover always begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan (or Nissan).

A time of family gatherings and lavish meals called Seders, the story of Passover is retold through the reading of the Haggadah. With its special foods, songs, and customs, the Seder is the focal point of the Passover celebration. Since the Jewish day begins at sundown, Passover actually starts at sundown on the evening prior to the first full day of Passover in the Christian calendar.

The day before Passover is the fast of the firstborn, a minor fast for all firstborn males, commemorating the fact that the firstborn Jewish males in Egypt were not killed during the final plague.

One significant observance related to Passover involves the removal of chametz (includes anything made from the five major grains - wheat, rye, barley, oats and spelt - that has not been completely cooked within 18 minutes after coming into contact with water) from the home. This commemorates the fact that the Jews leaving Egypt were in a hurry, and did not have time to let their bread rise.

The Passover Seder

Taking place the first two nights of the eight-day holiday, the Seder is the most important event in the Passover celebration. Gathering family and friends together, the Seder is steeped in long held traditions and customs leading up to the first night of Passover.

The rules surrounding Passover are strict and many, with only special foods, utensils, and dishware allowed.

Only foods that are "Kosher for Passover" are allowed. No leavened (containing yeast) foods or grains are eaten. In their place matzoh and foods containing matzoh are eaten. This is to commemorate the Israelites who fled quickly into the desert with no time for their breads to rise and were forced to bake the dough into hard crackers in the desert sun. All foods prohibited during Passover must be disposed of the morning of the first night of Passover.

The Seder table is different than the regular dinner table. The centerpiece is the Seder plate, a special plate containing the five foods that remind us of the struggle of the Israelites in their quest and journey to freedom. Three pieces of matzoh are placed in a Matzoh Cover (a cloth sleeve or envelope) and placed in the center of the Seder table. Before the meal begins, the middle matzoh is removed and broken in half.

One half is returned to the Matzoh Cover, the other - the Afikomen - is hidden, to be hunted by the children at the end of the Seder meal. The child who finds the Afikomen wins a special prize. Some homes break the Afikomen into many pieces assuring that each child present can find a piece and receive a prize.

The Seder plate contains foods that have special meaning for this holiday:

1. Matzah (or Matzoh): Unleavened bread similar to a cracker and symbolizes the haste with which the Hebrews experienced when they were fleeing slavery in Egypt. When the Hebrews were hastily preparing to leave Egypt, they had no time to bake leavened bread and instead baked the unleavened bread known as matzah. According to tradition, the original matzah was kneaded and baked in a total of 18 minutes.

2. Charoseth (or Haroseth): A mixture of crushed nuts, apples, cinnamon, and honey, which symbolizes the mortar the Hebrew slaves in Egypt used in constructing buildings for the Pharaoh.

3. Roasted Egg: A roasted hard-boiled egg is used to symbolize life and rebirth, and since the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 C.E. by the Romans, it replaces the Passover sacrifice of the lamb. It also symbolizes mourning for the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 C.E. (or A.D.).

4. Salt Water: The egg is dipped in salt water which symbolizes both the tears of oppression as well as of joy in freedom. A small cup of salt water is set apart from the Passover seder plate.

5. Maror: This is very bitter horse-radish that symbolizes the hardships of slavery.

6. Karpas: This is a mixture of boiled potatoes or radishes, and parsley which is dipped in salt water and symbolizes the undernourishment of the Hebrew slaves, as well as the new Spring season.

7. Z'roah: This piece of meat, sometimes represented as a shankbone, symbolizes the Paschal lamb and refers to God's rescuing of the Hebrews from Egyptian slavery.

During the Seder, four glasses of wine are poured to represent the four stages of the exodus: freedom, deliverance, redemption, release. A fifth cup of wine is poured and placed on the Seder table. This is the Cup of Elijah, an offering for the Prophet Elijah. During the Seder, the door to the home is opened to invite the prophet Elijah inside.

After the meal is eaten, the children search for the Afikomen. The Seder is finished when the children have found the Afikomen and everyone has eaten a piece.