Passover (Pesach)Haidy Hammad, Rula AlHalbouni, Erica Lee, Emma Yull, and Emily Dunham

History of The Passover• 67% of Jews routinely hold or attend a Pesach seder• Pesach begins on the 15th day of the Jewish month of

Nissan. It is the first of the three major festivals with both historical and agricultural significance (the other two are Shavu'ot and Sukkot). Agriculturally, it represents the beginning of the harvest season in Israel, but little attention is paid to this aspect of the holiday. The primary observances of Pesach are related to the Exodus from Egypt after generations of slavery.

• (1) The name "Pesach" means to pass through, to pass over, to exempt or to spare. It refers to the fact that G-d "passed over" the houses of the Jews when he was slaying the firstborn of Egypt. In English, the holiday is known as Passover. "Pesach" is also the name of the sacrificial offering (a lamb) that was made in the Temple on this holiday

History• Slaughtering, and eating a paschal lamb was introduced as a

celebration of the festival. The Hebrews were commanded to take a lamb for each household on the 10th of the first month (Nisan). The unblemished animal you select must be a one-year-old male, either a sheep or a goat, with no defects is kept until the 14th day and then killed at eve.

• This ritual was reminiscent of ancient pagan rituals that took place at this time of the year. (2) Nisan was the month when sheep gave birth and sacrifices were made at the full moon on the 15th of the month.

The First Passover Celebrated• They take some of the blood and smear it on the sides and

top of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the animal.

• On that night, the angel of death will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn son and firstborn male animal in the land of Egypt. The blood on your doorposts will serve as a sign, marking the houses where they are staying. When he sees the blood, he will pass over them. The plague of death will not touch them when he strike the land of Egypt.

• Kashrut (Kosher) means fit, proper or correct and is a set of biblical dietary restrictions

• Contrary to popular misconception, rabbis or other religious officials do not "bless" food to make it kosher. 

• Certain animals may not be eaten at all. This restriction includes the flesh, organs, eggs and milk of the forbidden animals.

Quick Video!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KUuoayD7G4#t=0

About Passover• (3) Passover is one of the three

annual festivals that commemorate freedom from slavery in Egypt.

• Jews cried out to God, and God sent Moses to deliver the message, after hearing the message Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go.

• So once again, God told Moses that he is going to strike every Egyptian home with the death of the first born child. The Jews were given instructions to slay a lamb and “take some of the blood and put it on the sides and top of the door frames of the houses.” (Exodus 12:7) on that night. God promised them “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.”

• The Jewish were also told to eat the sacrificial lamb in haste as they prepared to leave Egypt.

• (4) Some of the Jewish Passover rituals have carried over to the Christian holy days of Good Friday and Easter.

• Lord’s supper are also taken from the Passover tradition.

• Every year, the Jews around the world will share the Passover meal to commemorate their deliverance by God from slavery and captivity.

*The New Testament transformed this theme by also identifying Jesus as the Passover lamb who would be sacrificed for the world.

• This year, Passover began in the evening of Monday, March 25th and ended in the evening of Tuesday, April 2nd.

• In 2014, it will begin in the evening of Monday, April 14th and end in the evening of Tuesday, April 22nd.

The Story in the Bible• “The Passover and the Festival of

Unleavened Bread” - Exodus 12• “Appointed Festivals” - Leviticus 23• “The Passover” - Numbers 9 &

Deuteronomy 16 etc.• Mentioned 49 times in the Old

Testament

Exodus 12:12-2912 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals,

and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. 13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. 14 “This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD—a lasting ordinance. 15 For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast. On the first day remove the yeast from your houses, for whoever eats anything with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel. 16 On the first day hold a sacred assembly, and another one on the seventh day. Do no work at all on these days, except to prepare food for everyone to eat; that is all you may do. 17 “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. 18 In the first month you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day. 19 For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And anyone, whether foreigner or native-born, who eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel. 20 Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread.” 21 Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. 22 Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning.23 When the LORD goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down. 24 “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. 25 When you enter the land that theLORD will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. 26 And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ 27 then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.28 The Israelites did just what the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron.29 At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. 30 Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.

Meanings & Symbolismvs. 15 -• Yeast - It was actually used later as a symbol of sin, such as

“hypocrisy” or “malice and wickedness”• Before celebrating the passover, observant Jews today conduct a

systematic search of their house to remove every crumb of leavened bread that might be there. (often symbolic)

• ..cut off from Israel… -Removed from the covenant people by execution or banishment

• vs. 21 Passover lamb - Christ(The Messiah) is “our passover lamb” sacrificed “once and for all” But they don’t believe Jesus was the Messiah so to the Jews, he hasn’t come yet.

• Annually sacrifice a lamb to cover all their sins

Passover Now• This past passover was celebrated

from March 25 - April 2, 2013• Remember Israel’s deliverance from

Egypt

What Is Usually Served During Pesach?• Every Passover (Pesach) includes many ritual foods and other items. Nothing found on the seder table is selected randomly. Each item has its purpose and often its specific place on the table or seder plate.

• The Seder plate usually holds at least 6 of the ritual items that are discussed during a passover.

• (5) These six items usually consist of: Roasted Egg, Charoset, Roasted Lamb Shankbone, Karpas, Chazeret, and Maror.

The Seder Plate• Roasted Egg: Signifies springtime and renewal. It

represents as one of the sacrificial offerings performed in the days of the Second Temple.

• Roasted Lamb Shankbone: (Zeroah) Commemorates the sacrifice made when the Hebrews fled Egypt.

• (6) Maror and Chazeret: (Bitter Herb) It recalls the bitterness of slavery. Horse radish is most common.

• Charoset: Includes salad, apples, nuts, wine, and cinnamon. It demonstrates the mortar used by the Jewish to make bricks.

• Karpas: Green vegetable that represents the freshness of spring.

• Salt Water: It represents the tears and sweat of enslavement. The Karpas and the roasted egg is usually dipped in the salt water.

• Matzah: (Unleavened bread) It is the most important aspect of the Seder plate. It represents the Kohen class (priests), the Levis (who supported the priests) and the Israelites (the rest of the Jews).

• (7) Wine: (Usually four cups) They represent the four biblical promises of redemption.

Some Forbidden Food• Certain meats• Dairy (when mixed with additives)• Yeast• Fish and Eggs are considered

neutral

What Do Jews Usually Wear at a Passover?• Dress nicely (e.g. Work fancy)• (8) Men might wear a sports jacket or a

tie.• Women may wear a really nice work

outfit.• As red wine is usually served, avoid

wearing your best white shirt.• The dress codes may vary between

Seders and families.

• The host would sometimes ask you to dress in a specific outfit

• Chametz-free clothing• Chahmitz (Khuh-mitz) is anything

made from the five major grains: wheat, rye, barley, oats, and spelt. Usually meaning leavened things.

Sources• Pritchard, R. (2013, March 10). Our Passover Lamb. Crosswalk.

Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/dr-ray-pritchard/our-passover-lamb.html

• No Name. (n.d.). The Symbolic Foods at a Passover Seder. For Dummies. Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/the-symbolic-foods-at-a-passover-seder.html

• Dauster, B. (2010). Angel of Death [Painting]. Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Dauster

• Rich, T. (n.d.). Judaism 101: Pesach: Passover. Judaism 101: Pesach: Passover. Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://www.jewfaq.org/holidaya.htm

• Stream, C. (n.d.). The First Passover. Bible Gateway. Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+12&version=NLT

• Avey, Tori. (n.d.). What Foods are Kosher for Passover?. The Shiksa In The Kitchen. Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://theshiksa.com/what-foods-are-kosher-for-passover/