Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) is my favorite Jewish holiday. I grew up in a large extended family, and we all went over to Grandma and Grandpa's house each year for a big dinner called a seder (say'-dur). "All" meaning their four kids, their spouses, and their 11 kids. And there were often friends sprinkled in there, too.
Passover is a celebration of freedom, centered on the exodus of Jewish slaves from Egypt. The ruler, or Pharoah, refused to let the Jews go, so God sent 10 horrendous plagues (boils, locusts, etc.), culminating in the slaying of the Egyptians' oldest sons. The angel of death "passed over" the Jews' houses, who had been warned in advance and marked their doors with lamb blood, so their sons were spared. That's why lamb is a traditional main course at the seder.
After the 10th plague, Pharoah let the Jews go. He then changed his mind, leading to the need for Moses to part the Red Sea (really the "reed" sea). The story continued with Moses ascending Mt. Sinai, receiving the Torah, etc., but Passover is the story of the exodus itself. The paschal lamb was a traditional temple sacrifice in those days, and it gives its name in Hebrew to Passover: Pesach. That's the word in the middle of our seder plate in the photo.
The Passover dinner is called a seder, which means "order," as we do several things in a specific order during a service that we perform at the table before we eat. A special book called a Haggadah leads us through it, including prayers and songs and telling the story of the exodus from Egypt. In my experience, it's a participatory event, with a leader who guides the service and everyone at the table reading various sections (everyone gets a Haggadah). Grandpa always led, and when I'm with my Dad and stepmom in Atlanta, he leads. When I host, I lead. Such is l'dor vador, the passing of tradition from generation to generation.
This photo includes several symbols of Passover. On the left is a Haggadah. There isn't a single, universal Haggadah - there are versions focusing on everything from traditional prayers to children. Like most Jewish observances, the seder begins with lighting candles. During the seder, you traditionally drink 4 glasses of wine, although I don't know anyone who really does. At one point, we recite the 10 plagues; for each one, we remove a drop of wine from our glass with a spoon to show our sympathy for the Egyptians who suffered because of Pharoah's hard heart.
Matzah, the cracker-like square at the bottom, is a central food of Passover. When Pharoah finally let the Jews go, they fled so quickly they didn't have time to let their bread rise. Thus, matzah is flat. Traditionally, Jews remove every scrap of leavened products, called chametz (pronounced with the same ch as "chanukah" - like clearing your throat, not ch like chair - and the rest is pronounced cha-maytz') from their houses, and there are extra rules to make something "kosher for Passover" that go beyond being normally kosher. We love matzah, but we don't follow those customs.
For kids, we hide a piece of matzah called the afikomen (a-fee-koh'-men) and they try to find it for a small reward. Grandpa always gave us a silver dollar (or the year they started, a $2 bill) when we found it, and then whoever found it hid it for everyone who hadn't yet found it until we'd gone through all the cousins. Now we sometimes give our kids gold-colored Sacagawea dollars.
The seder plate contains many Passover symbols. Ours was a wedding present from close friends. Going clockwise, the symbols are:
roasted egg (baytzah): renewed life
- bone (zeroa): the lambs slaughtered so the Jews' sons weren't killed
- bitter herb, typically horseradish (maror): the bitterness of slavery
- apple/wine/nuts mixture (charoses): the mortar the slaves used to build Pharoah's monuments and the pyramids
- parsley (karpas): the spring season; dipped in salt water during the seder to represent the slaves' tears
- a second bitter herb (chazeret)
The Hebrew word in the middle of our seder plate is Pesach.
In the last 20 years, some people have started including an orange on the seder plate. Depending on which story you read, it's a show of support for gays and lesbians or for women's rights. Either way, I like it.
Another tradition is to have an extra wine glass for Elijah, the ancient prophet whose return is associated with the coming of the messiah (or, if you're Reform Jews like we are, the beginning of the messianic age of peace). At one point, you send someone to the front door to open it to let him in, in case he happens to be there. The challenge as an adult is to drink the wine while the kids aren't looking and then exclaim that Elijah has visited. I think I pulled it off once!
Another egalitarian thing in recent times has been to have a cup for Miriam, Moses' sister. One story is that when the Jews were thirsty while wandering the desert, springs would appear near Miriam. So the cup holds water. I like that as much as I like the orange.
For me, from when I was a kid through to today, Passover represents everything a Jewish holiday should be: a big, boisterous dinner with friends and family, delicious foods that are a tradition unto themselves, and sharing my religion with my kids. And in recent years, I've enjoyed working with my whole family to cook and put on our seder.
It's been a while since I've been to a seder. Thanks for sharing. As I was usually the oldest, I got to bless the candles, while my brother, usually the youngest, had to ask the questions. His first one was always "why do I have to do it?" :-)
That is so interesting, Jeffrey! I never ever tire of being reminded of what God did for the Jewish people. . .and the story of the Exodus. Most Christians love the New Testament. . .and I do too. . .but even more, I love reading the interesting stories of God's love and faithfulness to His people.
Thank you for sharing this with us. It is VERY cool!!!!
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