The Passover Seder is a Significant Family Ritual in the Jewish Calendar
One of the signs of spring in a Jewish household is the holiday of Passover. Passover comes every year about the same time as the Easter holiday for Christians, but may be before or after Easter due to the fact that the Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar.
Over the centuries, Passover has become both a welcome to spring, a celebration of freedom from tyranny, and a significant family gathering that for some families is the one time of year that they all come together in joy.
I think that the overwhelming reason for this is the significance of the holiday’s symbolism, one that reaches beyond religious boundaries to anyone who has suffered from tyranny and oppression. And unfortunately, there are numerous examples of both tyranny and oppression going on right now, today, even as we pride ourselves as coming so far along the evolutionary scale from the time of our ancestors.
Celebration of Freedom from Tyranny
One of the most significant teachings of the Passover seder is the celebration of the freedom from tyranny. While the seder focuses primarily on the oppression of the Israelites under the tyranny of the Egyptian rulers, it is stated clearly throughout the seder that we must teach our children “as if we too were there as slaves.” We are taught to feel the oppression of the Israelite slaves as if we had been slaves ourselves and pass those teachings on to our own children, so that they can also pass this on.
This is a very clear directive during a family meal which by all means is very festive. And the tradition has been expanded to include any current Jewish and non Jewish oppression during parts of the seder. Freedom to be who you want to be both religiously, and as a human are very important rights according to Judaism, which is emphasized by the symbols during a Passover seder.
Passover Symbols Representing Slavery
There are several symbols used during the Passover seder that symbolize the bitterness of slavery. The two most common symbols are bitter herbs, salt water, and charoset.
Bitter herbs:
Bitter herbs represent the bitterness of slavery, and what the slavery did to the Israelites. The bitter taste reminds us that in our joyfulness and family gathering, we need to remember that we came from slavery, and that there are still many people living in slavery today. In the United States, most people use horseradish for their bitter herbs, although other herbs are used as well.
Salt water:
Salt water represents the tears that the slaves shed due to the tyranny and oppression that they lived under. Salt water needs to be salty enough to taste like tears.
Charoset:
Charoset is a misture of fruit, nuts, and wine that represents the mortar used to cement the bricks together. During the time of the Israelite slavery, the Egyptians were building many of their mighty pyramids that still remain today.
Charoset recipes differ from tradition to tradition. One common recipe is a combination of apples, walnuts, and concord grape wine, but there are many versions of this recipe. Some traditions use raisins and dates in the recipe, and if you do your research, there are probably hundreds of charoset recipes used across the world.
Passover Seder Symbols of Spring
In addition to the symbols of freedom from oppression, there are also numerous symbols of spring used during the Passover seder. Some of them may have come from previous pagan religious rituals, before Judaism was an organized religion and were incorporated into the seder. The main symbols of spring are greens, and eggs.
Greens:
It is quite interesting that while bitter herbs are used to represent the suffering of the slaves in Egypt, that greens are also used to represent spring. During the Passover seder, sweet greens like parsley or celery are eaten in a reminder of spring.
Eggs:
Eggs also have a double meaning during Passover. We eat eggs dipped in salt water, representing both the continuity of spring and the tears of the slaves at the same time. Yet there is also a roasted egg on the seder plate, that represents the sacrifice of the first born as well as spring.
Passover Symbols of Sacrifice
One of the biggest symbols of the Passover celebration is the symbol representing the sacrifice of the first born children of the Egyptians. On most seder tables, this is represented by a shank bone, or some other type of animal bone. The significance of the bone is that it stands in place of the lamb’s blood that protected the homes of the Israelites as the last of the ten plagues was meeted out on the unprotected Egyptians.
The price of the Israelites’ freedom ultimately lay in the sacrifice of the first born sons of the Egyptians, and that is a steep price. It reminds us that freedom from oppression is never without some kind of price. This is one of the only symbols on the seder plate that is not eaten during the seder. We are just to see it and acknowledge it.
Passover Matzah
One of the most well known symbols of Passover is the flat, unleavened, cracker like bread that is eaten during the holiday. Matzah, is baked this way to be eaten on Passover only, to represent the flat travel bread that was baked in a hurry by the Israelites as they fled Egypt.
Passover: Four Cups of Wine
In Judaism, wine and spirits always represent happiness or joy. During the Passover seder, there are four cups of wine that are part of the seder ritual.
During the seder, the wine is to be drunk while we recline on pillows provided just for this, the symbolism that we are celebrating the luxury of freedom to be happy. It is interesting to note that in Judaism, there are very few holidays that drinking wine and spirits is encouraged. The point is not to drink just to drink, but to drink to celebrate our freedom. And that is truly a reason to celebrate.
Source: Flickr
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