One of the most celebrated of the Jewish holidays begins at sundown Friday.
Passover or Pesach commemorates Jews gaining their freedom from slavery in Egypt, as told in the book of Exodus.
“In a time of great oppression and depression, with God’s help, we were able to persevere and succeed,” said Rabbi David Sirull of Adas Yeshurun Synagogue.
Passover is held in the Jewish month of Nissan. Because the Jewish calendar is a lunar one rather than the Gregorian one, the dates are different on the Gregorian calendar, but it typically falls in March or April each year.
Passover has multiple names including the Festival of Matzahs and the Festival of Springtime, he said.
Traditionally, Passover begins with a meal called the Seder, a joyous celebration involving the drinking of four cups of wine and specific types of food — all of which have a symbolic meaning.
The foods are arranged on a special platter and eaten in a specific order.
Some of the elements of the Seder plate include bitter herbs, representing the bitterness of slavery; fresh greens dipped into salt water with the water representing the tears they shed; the three matzah with their lack of yeast as the people had no time to wait for the bread to rise before they started their journey out of Egypt.
A special book called the Haggadah spells out the procedures and provides the prayers for the evening.
In addition, there’s singing and dancing.
While Passover represents a time of joy, there are somber moments during the Seder as well.
“While we are celebrating our redemption and liberation, at the same time, there were people dying,” said Sirull.
Another time of remembrance occurs as Passover ends. Pesach lasts for eight days, and on the eighth day, there’s a special ceremony called Yizkor, which is a time to remember dead loved ones. The Yizkor is held four times a year.
Passover traditionally involves synagogue services each of the eight days, Sirull said, although in modern times this can be challenging.
