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 | Yorkshire Times A Voice of the Free Press |
Jan Harris
Deputy Group Editor
8:38 AM 15th April 2022
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What Is Passover Or Pesach?
photo by slgckgc
The Hebrew name for Passover is Pesach which means ‘to pass over’ because God passed over the Jewish homes when killing the Egyptian firstborn on the evening of the first Passover.
Matza (unleavened bread) - photo by Edsel Little
According to the Bible the first night of the Passover starts after nightfall and the second night is the anniversary of the Jews exodus from slavery in Egypt more than 3,000 years ago.
This year in 2022 the eight day festival of Passover begins in the evening of Friday 15 April and ends in the evening of Saturday 23 April.
The eight day festival represents the week in which the Israelites were pursued by the Egyptians as they went into exile.
Some Jews refrain from eating leavened bread during that time and also take it as a holiday so can attend special services.
Jews gather around the Seder table to celebrate Passover. The Seder is a feast which includes reading, drinking wine, telling stories, eating special foods and singing, along with other Passover traditions.
The traditional meal called the Seder means 'order' because everything is done in a particular order.
The Seder meal includes four cups of wine, eating matza (unlevened bread) with maror (bitter herbs) and the story of the Exodus is retold.
The symbolic Seder plate - photo by slgckgc
Shank bone (zeroa) - a roasted bone to commemorate the Paschal sacrifice. This is not for eating but to remind everyone of the outstretched arm of God when he took the Jews out of Egypt.
Egg (beitzah) - this represents the Hagigah sacrifice which was eaten with the Paschal sacrifice on Seder night during Temple times.
Bitter herbs (maror) - Mar means 'bitter', and the maror reminds of the bitterness of slavery. Lettuce and grated horseradish are commonly used.
Vegetable (karpas) - any vegetable can be used and can be cooked or raw, commonly used are parsley, celery or potatoes which are dipped in salt water to represent the tears of the Israelite slaves.
Haroset (a sweet paste) - the word is thought to come from heres, meaning 'clay' and symbolises the clay the Israelite slaves used to make bricks. The sweetness offsets the taste of the bitter herbs and represents freedom as opposed to slavery. There are lots of recipes which include apples, walnuts, dates or other dried fruit.
A Seder meal in previous years - photo by Scott Rocher
Passover 2023 will be celebrated Wednesday 5 April to Thursday 14 April 2023.