Passover

The Passover Story

Every year on the night of the full moon in the month of Nisan (March-April), Jews around the world enter into a sacred time as the Exodus from Egypt is recalled in the oldest continually celebrated religious ceremony in the world.

In ancient Egypt, during the time when Pharaoh made Joseph governor over all the land, the Jewish people flourished and multiplied. Generations later, when a new Pharaoh rose to power, he feared that the Israelites might grow so numerous that they would overrun the land. To avoid this, he determined to enslave and oppress them, so their numbers would diminish.

Pharaoh had a dream in which a little lamb outweighed all the Egyptians. His dream was interpreted as meaning that a child would be born to a Jewish family, and he would overthrow Pharaoh, excel all men in wisdom and be remembered forever.

In a panic, Pharaoh ordered that every baby boy born to a Jewish woman be thrown into the Nile. Thousands of children were drowned by this decree and there was great mourning among the people.

Jocheved, wife of Amram, wishing to save her newborn son from the hands of the cruel Egyptians, made a cradle of bullrushes, put the child into the cradle and set it afloat on the river. Miriam, the child's sister, watched him by the river bank, hidden in the tall grass.

Pharaoh's daughter, who came to the river to bathe, "rescued" Moses from the river. Miriam, still nearby, suggested that she knew someone who could help care for the child. So it happened, that Moses was taken to the palace, where he was reared by his own mother, the "nurse."

Although he continued to live in the palace, Moses knew he was an Israelite. Once, after he had grown to manhood, Moses observed an Egyptian taskmaster beating a Jewish slave. He struck down the officer who died as a result. When Pharaoh learned of this he became furious and sentenced Moses to death.

Moses fled to Midian where he married Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro. For many years he tended Jethro's flocks. One day, while grazing the sheep near Mt. Sinai, Moses saw a bush burning, but not consumed by the flames. The voice of God called out to him from the fire and commanded Moses to go back to Egypt and set the children of Israel free.

Moses, along with his brother Aaron, appeared before the Pharaoh and asked him to release the Jewish People. He refused. Moses told Pharaoh that if he did not set the people free, God would send ten plagues to beset them. Beginning with turning the waters of Egypt to blood, the plagues are (1) blood, (2) frogs, (3) lice, (4) wild beasts, (5) cattle plague, (6) boils, (7) hail, (8) locusts, (9) darkness and, worst of all, (10) the slaying of the first born.

According to the story, if Jewish people marked their door posts with lamb's blood the "angel of death" would pass over their home, hence the name, Passover. Pharaoh finally consented to allow the Jews to leave Egypt and, in their haste to do so, they baked unleavened bread because there was no time to allow the dough to rise. Hence the matzah so symbolic of this holiday.

After three days, Pharaoh changed his mind and sent his armies after Moses. On the sixth day the Israelites were resting near the Red Sea when they learned of Pharaoh's deceit. Moses prayed to God for help and God parted the waters of the sea and left dry land upon which the people could go across. Terrified, they rushed across with the army in hot pursuit. Miraculously, the waters closed over the soldiers, swallowing the entire army.

The Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years before reaching the Promised Land across the Jordan River. In Canaan, with the Ten Commandments which had been given them through Moses on Mt. Sinai, they built homes, planted vineyards and started a new life.

Preparing for Passover

In Jewish homes across the world, preparations for Passover begin with a thorough house cleaning. In kosher homes, kitchen utensils are put away, to be replaced by those specially reserved for Passover use. Matzah, horseradish, parsley, apples, eggs, walnuts and all the special holiday foods are purchased.

Several days before the holiday, all the hametz (leavened bread) and leavened products are packed away or in Orthodox homes, "sold" to a non-Jewish person for the duration of Passover (to be returned after the holiday).

The dining table is set with holiday linens, wine glasses, flowers, candles; anything to make the Passover seder more special. The table will also hold a seder plate with 5-6 symbolic ingredients, 3 unbroken matzot in a special cover and a wine glass for Eliyahu Hanovi, Elijah the Prophet.

With the chicken soup and matzah balls simmering fragrantly and other wonderful aromas abounding, family, relatives, and friends gather at sundown to usher in the wonderful holiday of Pesach, Passover.

The Seder

Seders for Passover are traditionally held on the first and second nights of the holiday. The Seder table, with all its special foods and symbolic items, helps us to celebrate the holiday properly. The word "Seder" means order or arrangement; the foods and sequence of the service are arranged in an order that reminds us of the exodus which occurred thousands of years ago, but still has an important message today.

On the typical Seder table one will find:

Candles: On every Sabbath and festival, candles grace the table; the blessing over the candles gives warmth and meaning to their glow.
The Haggadah: The Haggadah (from the Hebrew word haggeyd, to tell) recounts the Passover story through prayer and song. It leads those celebrating through the seder, and helps us to fulfill the commandment as the Torah says "you shall tell it to your children".
Four Cups of Wine: At specified times during the Seder, each of four cups of wine are consumed. There are four because of God's four expressions of promise to free the Israelites from slavery.
Elijah's Cup: Because Jewish tradition says that the prophet Elijah will one day bring peace to the world, we set out a glass of wine for him, open the door and "welcome" him in at a certain point in the Seder.
Matzah: There are three special matzot on the table. Half of the middle matzah will be used as the afikomen, or dessert. The matzah reminds us of the hasty departure of the Jewish People from Egypt.

The Seder plate—usually a special, decorated plate—is the central feature of the Passover Seder and holds:

Roasted Egg: The egg symbolizes spring, hope, new life and the festival offering sacrificed in days of old.
Maror: Bitter herbs (usually horseradish) remind us of the bitterness of slavery in Egypt and in all places where there is tyranny.
Karpas: Parsley, lettuce or celery symbolizes both the earth's produce and the meager diet of the Jewish slaves. The green vegetable is dipped in salt water to symbolize the tears our ancestors shed while suffering the tortures of slavery.
Shankbone: The roasted bone is a symbol of the Pascal Lamb sacrificed at the Temple in ancient times.
Charoset: The mixture of apples, walnuts, cinnamon and wine symbolizes the mortar made by our forefathers under the lash of slavery and also, because it is sweet, it reminds us of God's kindness which made even slavery bearable.

Passover Terms

Afikomen: Half of the middle matzah on the Seder table which is hidden sometime during the Seder. The children search for it and the "finder" wins a prize (usually Passover candy or a small monetary reward).
Charoset: A chopped mixture of apples, walnuts, cinnamon, honey and wine which is symbolic of mortar in the Passover story.
Haggadah: The book which contains the entire Seder service, usually in both Hebrew and English.
Hametz: All leavened bread, products made with ordinary four, corn products, legumes and, in some cases, rice.
Maror: Bitter herbs, usually horseradish, which is reminiscent of the bitterness of slavery.
Matzah: A flat, unleavened bread, which Jews eat for the eight days of the festival. It is a reminder of the "bread" the Israelites ate when they fled Egypt.
Moses: The hero of the Passover story.
Passover: The holiday which recalls the story of Moses and the Exodus of the Jewish People from Egypt.
Pesach: The Hebrew word for Passover.
Pharaoh: The villain of the story; the wicked Egyptian ruler who enslaved the Jewish People.
Seder: Meaning order. The Seder is the service which is held the eve of Passover and, in some homes, the second and eighth nights as well.
Seder Plate: The special dish which holds many of the symbolic Passover items and is an important part of the Seder.

More On Passover

See the article series Passover Made Easy in Jewish Cooking.

Resource Books

The Jewish Holidays: A Guide & Commentary by Michael Strassfeld
The Book of the Jewish Year by Stephen M. Wylen
The First Jewish Catalog by Richard Siegel et al., editors
All About Jewish Holidays and Customs by Morris Epstein
The Jewish Party Book by Mae Shafter Rockland
The Family Haggadah by Ellen Schecter
A Child's Hagaddah by JCC School

Books for Children

The Matzah Ball Fairy by Carla Heymsfeld
The Matzah that Papa Brought Home by Fran Manushkin
Festival of Freedom by Maida Silverman
Only Nine Chairs by Deborah Miller
The Passover Parrot by Evelyn Zusman
Sammy Spider's First Passover by Sylvia A. Rouss
Matzah Ball by Mindy Avra Portnoy
A Tree Trunk Seder by Camille Kress
Queen Esther Saves Her People by Rita Golden Gelman
Miriam's Cup: A Passover Story by Fran Manushkin
The Four Questions by Lynne Sharon Schwartz