Passover,
On the 15th of the month of Nisan, as spring arrives, we celebrate Passover. This holiday celebrates the
freedom of the Jewish people from enslavement by the Egyptians thousand of years ago. During the
seven says of the Passover holiday, Jews are not allowed to eat bread or any kind of food made of flour.
Instead we eat a special kind of flat bread called matzah (Matzo). What's behind this custom? Here are
some basic, easy-to-remember facts about Passover you know you've always wanted to ask:
The story of Exodus: prison break from Egypt
The Torah tells us about the time when the Hebrews were enslaved by the ancient Egyptian king, Pharoh.
Worse than that, as Pharoh begins to worry about the growing number of the Hebrews fearing rivalry or
uprising, he mercilessly commends to throw every Hebrew newborn baby boy into the big river of Nile. But
one boy's life is saved [which is a remarkable story on its own] and, ironically, the boy is adopted by no one
else but Pharoh's daughter. When the baby Moses grows up, he is commended by G-d to leave the
Pharoh family and lead his people to the land of Israel (the land of Canaan). That's when Moses bravely
goes to the Pharoh king and demands – let my people go!
As expected, it takes more than a ballsy plea to persuade Pharoh to let go of his many useful slaves. To
help Pharoh change his mind, G-d punishes the Egyptians with a plague that fills all the water sources in
Egypt with blood. When this, too, fails to convince Pharoh to free the Israelites, G-d strikes the land with 9
more, even worse plagues. The tenth plague that killed every first male born in Egypt was the last straw for
Pharoh.
The Israelites are then commended to leave Egypt in a hurry so they don't have enough time to prepare
bread for the road. They take with them the partly baked bread which feeds them during the escape from
Egypt to the Sinai desert. .
Moshe (Moses) and A'haron (Aaron) lead the escape of the Hebrews from their enslavement in Egypt to
the promised land of Israel.
What's the Matzah? - Nothing, what's the Matzah with you?
We eat matzah to commemorate the hasty escape of the Israelites from the land of Egypt who didn't have
enough time to let their bread rise.
Maybe this is why matzah's taste is so… acquired. But hey, if the Israelites could eat it while wondering
through the desert, for measly 7 days so can we!
We don't just avoid the bread, we burn it!
A few hours before the sunset, it is a Jewish custom to burn all the bread and bread-made products called
chametz as part of preparing the home for Passover.
See you later at the Seder
At the holiday's festive dinner called the Seder, the entire Jewish family which often includes the guests
gathers around the table to read the story of Exodus in the book called the Haggadah.
All members of the family relive the story of Exodus by taking turns at reading the stories in the Hagadda
and singing the traditional songs. If you like signing and animated story-telling then this holiday is
definitely for you!
This tradition cherishes the miracles that G-d brought to the Israelites in Egypt and celebrates the day on
which the Torah was given to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai.
Seder plate food galore
Besides the matzah, the Seder table includes other traditional foods that symbolize the sufferings of the
Israelites in Egypt (though we definitely don't suffer as we feast on them!). The Seder plate includes 6
traditional dishes made of bitter herbs - maror - eaten to symbolically experience the harsh life of
enslavement.
The Seder plate stands at the center of the table and is probably the most impressive item of the Passover
dinner.
That is why it is a common and much appreciated custom to give your hosts a Seder plate which has
become a popular Judaica item, designed by many Israeli artists in different shapes and sizes. The Seder
plate adds festivity and color to the table and is also very practical.
One thing you should know about matzah…
Although they look and taste like cardboard, matzah is not your innocent "thin bread" - surprisingly it
contains 140 calories which equals to 2 slices of bread!
Miriam's Cup - new ritual that celebrates female empowerment
An important ritual at Passover is to put Elijah's Cup on the Seder table. In recent years, a new ritual object
joined the traditional Seder table - Miriam's Cup. This special cup is placed beside the Cup of Elijah to
symbolize the significance of women in the story of Exodus. Filling this cup with water signifies Miriam's
Well which miraculously turned into an endless source of water for the Israelites in the desert. What a
great modern addition to the Seder table!
On the 15th of the month of Nisan, as spring arrives, we celebrate Passover. This holiday celebrates the
freedom of the Jewish people from enslavement by the Egyptians thousand of years ago. During the
seven says of the Passover holiday, Jews are not allowed to eat bread or any kind of food made of flour.
Instead we eat a special kind of flat bread called matzah (Matzo). What's behind this custom? Here are
some basic, easy-to-remember facts about Passover you know you've always wanted to ask:
The story of Exodus: prison break from Egypt
The Torah tells us about the time when the Hebrews were enslaved by the ancient Egyptian king, Pharoh.
Worse than that, as Pharoh begins to worry about the growing number of the Hebrews fearing rivalry or
uprising, he mercilessly commends to throw every Hebrew newborn baby boy into the big river of Nile. But
one boy's life is saved [which is a remarkable story on its own] and, ironically, the boy is adopted by no one
else but Pharoh's daughter. When the baby Moses grows up, he is commended by G-d to leave the
Pharoh family and lead his people to the land of Israel (the land of Canaan). That's when Moses bravely
goes to the Pharoh king and demands – let my people go!
As expected, it takes more than a ballsy plea to persuade Pharoh to let go of his many useful slaves. To
help Pharoh change his mind, G-d punishes the Egyptians with a plague that fills all the water sources in
Egypt with blood. When this, too, fails to convince Pharoh to free the Israelites, G-d strikes the land with 9
more, even worse plagues. The tenth plague that killed every first male born in Egypt was the last straw for
Pharoh.
The Israelites are then commended to leave Egypt in a hurry so they don't have enough time to prepare
bread for the road. They take with them the partly baked bread which feeds them during the escape from
Egypt to the Sinai desert. .
Moshe (Moses) and A'haron (Aaron) lead the escape of the Hebrews from their enslavement in Egypt to
the promised land of Israel.
What's the Matzah? - Nothing, what's the Matzah with you?
We eat matzah to commemorate the hasty escape of the Israelites from the land of Egypt who didn't have
enough time to let their bread rise.
Maybe this is why matzah's taste is so… acquired. But hey, if the Israelites could eat it while wondering
through the desert, for measly 7 days so can we!
We don't just avoid the bread, we burn it!
A few hours before the sunset, it is a Jewish custom to burn all the bread and bread-made products called
chametz as part of preparing the home for Passover.
See you later at the Seder
At the holiday's festive dinner called the Seder, the entire Jewish family which often includes the guests
gathers around the table to read the story of Exodus in the book called the Haggadah.
All members of the family relive the story of Exodus by taking turns at reading the stories in the Hagadda
and singing the traditional songs. If you like signing and animated story-telling then this holiday is
definitely for you!
This tradition cherishes the miracles that G-d brought to the Israelites in Egypt and celebrates the day on
which the Torah was given to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai.
Seder plate food galore
Besides the matzah, the Seder table includes other traditional foods that symbolize the sufferings of the
Israelites in Egypt (though we definitely don't suffer as we feast on them!). The Seder plate includes 6
traditional dishes made of bitter herbs - maror - eaten to symbolically experience the harsh life of
enslavement.
The Seder plate stands at the center of the table and is probably the most impressive item of the Passover
dinner.
That is why it is a common and much appreciated custom to give your hosts a Seder plate which has
become a popular Judaica item, designed by many Israeli artists in different shapes and sizes. The Seder
plate adds festivity and color to the table and is also very practical.
One thing you should know about matzah…
Although they look and taste like cardboard, matzah is not your innocent "thin bread" - surprisingly it
contains 140 calories which equals to 2 slices of bread!
Miriam's Cup - new ritual that celebrates female empowerment
An important ritual at Passover is to put Elijah's Cup on the Seder table. In recent years, a new ritual object
joined the traditional Seder table - Miriam's Cup. This special cup is placed beside the Cup of Elijah to
symbolize the significance of women in the story of Exodus. Filling this cup with water signifies Miriam's
Well which miraculously turned into an endless source of water for the Israelites in the desert. What a
great modern addition to the Seder table!
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