Community Corner
Five Things to Know About Passover
Five things you should know before marking your door, drinking your wine, boiling your matzoh-ball soup, and watching Charleton Heston's "The Ten Commandments."
Let My People Go
Passover celebrates the story of Exodus, in which the ancient Jews were freed from slavery in Egypt, and when Charleton Heston parted the Red Sea. In his first attempt to free the Jews, Moses demanded the Pharoah to “Let my people go.”
Smear Lamb’s Blood
According to the story, God helped free the Jewish people by inflicting ten plagues upon the Egyptians. The tenth, final, and most severe of the plagues, was the slaughter of the first-born son. This is the plague that ultimately caused the Pharoah to release the Israelites. Jews were instructed to smear the blood of a spring lamb on their doorposts as a mark for the spirit of God to “pass over” that home, sparing the first-born son within. This is where the holiday gets its name.
*When I asked my father the other day why we won't be smearing lamb's blood on the door he said, "Well, Jonathan, we're trying something new this year."
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What's That Big, Flat Cracker Thing?
The Jews left Egypt in haste, and they could not tarry. As a result, they had no time to allow their bread to leaven. The bread they carried for their exodus was made without yeast, and Matzoh (the primary symbol of Passover) came to be. Observant Jews do not eat leavened bread for the seven-day duration of Passover.
Four Cups of Wine… Required!
There is a requirement that four cups of wine be consumed at the seder meal, applying to all men and women, poor and rich, who are Bar-Mitzvah. The Mishnah (Pesahim 10:1) states that “Even the poorest man in Israel has an obligation to drink.” Oh… now you want to celebrate Passover?
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What the LORD Did for Me
A ritual feast called the Seder marks the beginning of the holiday. The dinner is performed by families or communities, and is based on a biblical commandment for Jews to retell of the story of their Exodus from Egypt: “You shall tell your son on that day, saying, ‘it is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’” (Pesahim 10) For this reason, the story is told by members of the family or community throughout the meal. The celebration is a universal reminder of the preciousness of freedom and self-expression.
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