Passover begins at sundown on Monday, March 29, 2010.
On the first night of Pesach, Jews celebrate a special meal filled special foods and ritual to commemorate the holiday. Often friends and non-Jews are invited to celebrate the meal and to read the Haggadah recounting the Passover story. Some Jewish families also celebrate a seder on the second night of Pesach as well.
The word “seder” is Hebrew for “order” because of the special order in which the meal proceeds. The “order” of the Pesach Seder is as follows:
1. Kaddesh ~ Sanctification ( קדשׁ ): The wine is blessed and the first glass is drunk. A second cup of wine is poured.
2. Urechatz ~ Washing ( וּרחץ ): Washing of the hands in preparation for eating the Karpas.
3. Karpas ~ Parsley ( כּרפּס ): A sprig of parsley is dipped in saltwater and eaten. The parsley symbolizes the lowly origin of the Israelites and the saltwater symbolizes the tears shed during the days of bondage in Egypt.
4. Yachatz ~ Breaking ( יחץ ): The Seder table contains a plate holding 3 matzot. The middle one is broken and set aside for the afikomen.
5. Megged ~The Passover Story ( מגּיד ): The retelling of the Exodus story begins with the youngest person at the table asking the Four Questions.
a. Why is this night different from all other nights?
b. On all other nights, we eat chamets and matzah, but on this night we eat only matzah.
c. On all other nights we do not dip even once, but on this night we dip twice.
d. On all other nights we eat sitting down, but on this night we eat reclining.
At the end of the Megged, a blessing is recited over the second cup of wine, which is then drunk.
6. Rachtzah ~Washing ( רחצה ): A blessing is recited and the hands are washed for a second time.
7. Motzi ~ Blessing ( מציא ): The ha-motzi blessing, the blessing over bread or grain foods, is recited over the matzah.
8. Matzah ~Blessing over the Matzah ( מצה ): A specific blessing for matzah is recited and a bit of matzah is eaten.
9. Maror ~ Bitter Herbs ( מרור ): A blessing is recited over the bitter herbs (generally horseradish), and eaten. This symbolizes the bitterness of slavery. The maror is dipped in charoset, which symbolizes the mortar used by the Israelites in building during their slavery in Egypt.
10. Korekh ~The Hillel Sandwich ( כּורך ): The maror is eaten with the matzah in a form of sandwich.
11. Shulchan Orekh ~ Dinner ( רךע שׁלחן ): The festive meal is eaten. At Ashkenazic seders, the meal is often begun with gefelte fish and matzah ball soup. A traditional meat is either turkey or brisket, although there is no specific requirement for the food chosen for the meal.
12. Tzafun ~ The Afikomen ( צפוּן ): At the beginning of the meal, a portion of the matzah is set aside as “dessert”, the last bite of food of the meal. Traditionally, the father hides the afikomen and the children search for it at the end of the meal.
13. Barekh ~ Grace after the Meal ( בּרך ): The third cup of wine is poured and the after dinner grace is recited. The fourth cup of wine is then poured.
14. Elijah’s Wine: A cup of wine is poured for Elijah, who is said to announce the coming of the Messiah, and the door is opened for him to enter and join the family.
15. Hallal ~ Praises ( הלּל ): Psalms are sung and a blessing over the fourth cup of wine is recited. The final cup of wine is drunk.
16. Nirtzah ~ Closing ( נרצה ): A statement that the seder is over, followed by a wish that may next year the seder take place in Jerusalem. Often, this is when special songs are sung.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Pesach ( פּסח ) / Passover
Pesach is an 8-day (7-day holiday inside Israel) Biblical holiday that commemorates the Exodus from Egypt. During the holiday, special foods are eaten and other foods, such as breads, are forbidden:
“This day shall be to you one of remembrance: You shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD throughout the ages; you shall celebrate it as an institution for all time. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; on the very first day you shall remove leaven from your houses … You shall celebrate a sacred occasion on the first day, and a sacred occasion on the seventh day; no work at all shall be done on them; only what every person is to eat, that alone may be prepared for you. You shall observe the [Feast of] Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your ranks out of the land of Egypt … (Exodus 12:14 ~ 17).
Pesach begins on the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nissan. It’s date fluctuates on the Gregorian calendar. It is one of three Biblical holidays (the others being Shavu’ot and Sukkot).
The word “Pesach” means “to pass over,” hence it name in English. The word refers to the miracle of G~d “passing over” the houses of the Israelites when he performing the 10th Plagues on Egypt, that of the killing of the Egyptian firstborns.
Moses had been called by G~d to free the Israelites from Pharaoh’s control and to be allowed to worship their own G~d. Pharaoh would not release the Israelites. In order to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go free, G~d imposed upon Egypt 10 signs of His strength and power. These 10 signs are the 10 plagues, which are a divine demonstration of G~d power. The 10 plagues are, in order of occurrence:
1. Turning Water into Blood: “And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron: Take your rod and hold your arm over the waters of Egypt ~ its rivers, its canals, its ponds, all its bodies of water ~ that they may turn to blood; there shall be blood throughout the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.’” (Exodus 7:10).
2. Frogs: “And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron: Hold out your arm with the rod over the rivers, the canals, the ponds, and bring up the frogs on the land of Egypt.’” (Exodus 8:1).
3. Lice: “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron: Hold out your rod and strike the dust of the earth, and it shall turn to lice throughout the land of Egypt.’” (Exodus 8:12).
4. Swarming Insects: “For if you do not let My people go, I will let loose swarms of insects against you and your courtiers and your people and your houses; the houses of the Egyptians, and the very ground they stand on, shall be filled with swarms of insects.” (Exodus 8:17).
5. Livestock Diseased: “then the hand of the LORD will strike your livestock in the fields ~ the horses, the asses, the camels, the cattle, and the sheep ~ with a very severe pestilence.” (Exodus 9:3).
6. Boils: “It shall become a fine dust all over the land of Egypt, and cause an inflammation breaking out in boils on man and beast throughout the land of Egypt.”
7. Thunder and Hail and Fire: “This time tomorrow I will rain down a very heavy hail, such as has not been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.” (Exodus 9:18).
8. Locusts: “For if you refuse to let My people go, tomorrow I will bring locusts on your territory.” (Exodus 10:4).
9. Darkness: “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Hold out your arm toward the sky that there may be darkness upon the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 10:21).
10. Killing of the Firstborn: “Moses said, ‘Thus says the LORD: Toward midnight I will go forth among the Egyptians, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the millstones; and all the firstborn of the cattle.” (Exodus 11:4 ~ 5).
During the holiday of Pesach, leavened foods are not eaten. This is because the Israelites were ordered to leave Egypt with such short notice that they did not have time to let their bread rise. Before Pesach begins, Jewish households remove all the leavened foods, known in Hebrew as “chametz”, from their homes. This involves a very elaborate cleaning process to ensure that there is no leavened food or crumbs in the home.
Chametz includes any foods made from grains, such as wheat, rye, barley and oats. Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews have different traditions with respect to other types of chametz. Ashkenazic Jews (Jews from Germany and Eastern Europe) also avoid rice, corn, and beans; Sephardic Jews (Jews from Spanish territories) do not traditionally avoid these food items during Pesach.
Preparing one’s house for Passover, as noted, is a very involved process that takes several weeks. Everything, especially in the kitchen, is scrubbed down to ensure that any trace or crumb of chamets is removed.
During the week of Pesach, unleavened bread, or matzah, is eaten. Matzah is made only from flour and water. While it can be eaten at any time of year, it is the only form of “bread” that is eaten during Pesach.
The day before Pesach is known as the Fast of the Firstborn. It is a minor fast day for all firstborn males. It commemorates the fact that the firstborn Israelite males were not killed during the 10th Plague on Egypt.
“This day shall be to you one of remembrance: You shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD throughout the ages; you shall celebrate it as an institution for all time. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; on the very first day you shall remove leaven from your houses … You shall celebrate a sacred occasion on the first day, and a sacred occasion on the seventh day; no work at all shall be done on them; only what every person is to eat, that alone may be prepared for you. You shall observe the [Feast of] Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your ranks out of the land of Egypt … (Exodus 12:14 ~ 17).
Pesach begins on the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nissan. It’s date fluctuates on the Gregorian calendar. It is one of three Biblical holidays (the others being Shavu’ot and Sukkot).
The word “Pesach” means “to pass over,” hence it name in English. The word refers to the miracle of G~d “passing over” the houses of the Israelites when he performing the 10th Plagues on Egypt, that of the killing of the Egyptian firstborns.
Moses had been called by G~d to free the Israelites from Pharaoh’s control and to be allowed to worship their own G~d. Pharaoh would not release the Israelites. In order to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go free, G~d imposed upon Egypt 10 signs of His strength and power. These 10 signs are the 10 plagues, which are a divine demonstration of G~d power. The 10 plagues are, in order of occurrence:
1. Turning Water into Blood: “And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron: Take your rod and hold your arm over the waters of Egypt ~ its rivers, its canals, its ponds, all its bodies of water ~ that they may turn to blood; there shall be blood throughout the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.’” (Exodus 7:10).
2. Frogs: “And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron: Hold out your arm with the rod over the rivers, the canals, the ponds, and bring up the frogs on the land of Egypt.’” (Exodus 8:1).
3. Lice: “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron: Hold out your rod and strike the dust of the earth, and it shall turn to lice throughout the land of Egypt.’” (Exodus 8:12).
4. Swarming Insects: “For if you do not let My people go, I will let loose swarms of insects against you and your courtiers and your people and your houses; the houses of the Egyptians, and the very ground they stand on, shall be filled with swarms of insects.” (Exodus 8:17).
5. Livestock Diseased: “then the hand of the LORD will strike your livestock in the fields ~ the horses, the asses, the camels, the cattle, and the sheep ~ with a very severe pestilence.” (Exodus 9:3).
6. Boils: “It shall become a fine dust all over the land of Egypt, and cause an inflammation breaking out in boils on man and beast throughout the land of Egypt.”
7. Thunder and Hail and Fire: “This time tomorrow I will rain down a very heavy hail, such as has not been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.” (Exodus 9:18).
8. Locusts: “For if you refuse to let My people go, tomorrow I will bring locusts on your territory.” (Exodus 10:4).
9. Darkness: “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Hold out your arm toward the sky that there may be darkness upon the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 10:21).
10. Killing of the Firstborn: “Moses said, ‘Thus says the LORD: Toward midnight I will go forth among the Egyptians, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the millstones; and all the firstborn of the cattle.” (Exodus 11:4 ~ 5).
During the holiday of Pesach, leavened foods are not eaten. This is because the Israelites were ordered to leave Egypt with such short notice that they did not have time to let their bread rise. Before Pesach begins, Jewish households remove all the leavened foods, known in Hebrew as “chametz”, from their homes. This involves a very elaborate cleaning process to ensure that there is no leavened food or crumbs in the home.
Chametz includes any foods made from grains, such as wheat, rye, barley and oats. Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews have different traditions with respect to other types of chametz. Ashkenazic Jews (Jews from Germany and Eastern Europe) also avoid rice, corn, and beans; Sephardic Jews (Jews from Spanish territories) do not traditionally avoid these food items during Pesach.
Preparing one’s house for Passover, as noted, is a very involved process that takes several weeks. Everything, especially in the kitchen, is scrubbed down to ensure that any trace or crumb of chamets is removed.
During the week of Pesach, unleavened bread, or matzah, is eaten. Matzah is made only from flour and water. While it can be eaten at any time of year, it is the only form of “bread” that is eaten during Pesach.
The day before Pesach is known as the Fast of the Firstborn. It is a minor fast day for all firstborn males. It commemorates the fact that the firstborn Israelite males were not killed during the 10th Plague on Egypt.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
The 12 Tribes of Israel
According to Biblical tradition, the 12 Tribes of Israel are descended from the 12 sons of the Patriarch Jacob. Jacob had 12 sons through his 2 wives, Leah and Rachel, and his 2 concubines, Bilhah and Zilpah. Jacob also had at least one daughter, who we know as Dina.
Jacob's sons with Leah were: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Issachar and Zebulun. Leah was also Dina's mother.
His sons with Rachel were: Joseph and Benjamin.
His sons with Bilhah were: Dan and Naphtali.
His sons with Zilpah were: Gad and Asher.
After the Exodus from Egypt, the families of these 12 sons had congregated into clans, or tribes. The 12 Tribes of Israel refer to the descendants of the 12 sons of Jacob, who was also known as Israel. Later, when the Israelites entered into the Promised Land, Joshua divided the land into portions with each tribe getting a portion. Joseph was Jacob's favorite son. His descendants received a double portion, and his tribe was divided into 2 tribes named after his two sons ~ Ephraim and Manassah. The tribe of Levi became a priestly class and did not receive a portion of land.
The tribes are named for each of the sons. The Land of Israel was divided as follows:
Eastern Portion:
Judah
Issachar
Zebulun
Southern Portion:
Reuben
Simeon
Gad
Western Portion:
Ephraim
Manesseh
Benjamin
Northern Portion:
Dan
Asher
Naphtali
Jacob's sons with Leah were: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Issachar and Zebulun. Leah was also Dina's mother.
His sons with Rachel were: Joseph and Benjamin.
His sons with Bilhah were: Dan and Naphtali.
His sons with Zilpah were: Gad and Asher.
After the Exodus from Egypt, the families of these 12 sons had congregated into clans, or tribes. The 12 Tribes of Israel refer to the descendants of the 12 sons of Jacob, who was also known as Israel. Later, when the Israelites entered into the Promised Land, Joshua divided the land into portions with each tribe getting a portion. Joseph was Jacob's favorite son. His descendants received a double portion, and his tribe was divided into 2 tribes named after his two sons ~ Ephraim and Manassah. The tribe of Levi became a priestly class and did not receive a portion of land.
The tribes are named for each of the sons. The Land of Israel was divided as follows:
Eastern Portion:
Judah
Issachar
Zebulun
Southern Portion:
Reuben
Simeon
Gad
Western Portion:
Ephraim
Manesseh
Benjamin
Northern Portion:
Dan
Asher
Naphtali
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Family's Past, by Ariel Sabar
I learned about My Father’s Paradise after it was selected by my reading group. I was immediately taken by both the subject, the Jews of Kurdistan, and the writing.
The author, Ariel Sabar, grew up in California and is all American. In his boyhood eye, he saw his father, Yona beh Sabagah, as something of an embarrassment. He was a funny, out-of-date man who didn’t pay attention to the latest in men’s fashion and spoke with a strange accent. In addition, he drove a beat-up old car that he parked among the Mercedes and Fiats of his California colleagues.
My Father’s Paradise traces Sabar’s paternal family on their journey from the remote area of what is modern day Iraq, to Israel and America. For over 2700 years, Jews had been living peacefully in the mountains of what be known as Kurdistan. As Moslems settled in the mountains, they shared and honored each other’s religious holidays and took care of each other. Their shared language was Aramaic, the franca lingua of the region.
Following World War I, the lands that had once belonged to the Ottoman Empire were divided and the area of Sabar’s family became a part of Iraq. The beginning of the end for their way of life. Tensions escalated in the Middle East. The Kurdish Jews were somewhat protected, but the politics of World War II and the subsequent creation of the State of Israel, forced Jews of the Arab countries to flee. The remote town of Zakho, where Sabar’s family lived was no exception.
When living in Zakho, the family name was Sabagha, which means “dyer.” The family dyed wool for weaving into cloth. The author’s great-grandfather, however, was also a scholar, and could be found in the town’s synagogue studying.
As violence against the Jews in Iraq escalated, the Sabagha family realized it was time to leave for Israel. Although Yona ben Sabagha was only 12 years old, his father insisted that he celebrate his bar mitzvah in the town of his birth. This event marked the end of his idyllic childhood, both literally and figuratively. The bar mitzvah marks the entrance into adulthood, but in Yona’s case, it also marked the end of life as he knew it.
Life in Israel was an adjustment. Israel was a new country and did not have the infrastructure to accommodate the mass immigration. Middle Eastern Jews were discriminated upon by the European Jews, which made life in the Promised Land an additional challenge. One change the family made was to change their surname from Sabagha to Sabar. The new name distanced them from their Kurdish roots and sounded more “Israeli.” In addition, the new family name was a play on the work “sabra”, which means a native-born Israeli.
Yona thrived in Israel, he studied hard and went to college. Because he was a native Aramaic speaker, he became involved in a research project focusing on this previously thought “lost language.” Yona was hooked. Eventually, his study brought him to Yale University where he got a Ph.D. Once he discovered America, even though he was initially disillusioned, he never looked back. He married an American and moved to Los Angeles where he took a job as a professor at the University of California.
In the process of researching this book, Ariel Sabar is able to make peace with his father. Yona and his son return to Iraq to the family village. There, they encounter some of the neighbors that Yona remembered as a child. They also become aware of the danger of being Jewish in this country so many years after their exodus. My Father’s Paradise is a wonderful book. Not only does the reader learn about the Kurdish Jews, but Sabar’s family comes alive. This is a book that should be on everyone’s reading list.
Read: February 16, 2010
The author, Ariel Sabar, grew up in California and is all American. In his boyhood eye, he saw his father, Yona beh Sabagah, as something of an embarrassment. He was a funny, out-of-date man who didn’t pay attention to the latest in men’s fashion and spoke with a strange accent. In addition, he drove a beat-up old car that he parked among the Mercedes and Fiats of his California colleagues.
My Father’s Paradise traces Sabar’s paternal family on their journey from the remote area of what is modern day Iraq, to Israel and America. For over 2700 years, Jews had been living peacefully in the mountains of what be known as Kurdistan. As Moslems settled in the mountains, they shared and honored each other’s religious holidays and took care of each other. Their shared language was Aramaic, the franca lingua of the region.
Following World War I, the lands that had once belonged to the Ottoman Empire were divided and the area of Sabar’s family became a part of Iraq. The beginning of the end for their way of life. Tensions escalated in the Middle East. The Kurdish Jews were somewhat protected, but the politics of World War II and the subsequent creation of the State of Israel, forced Jews of the Arab countries to flee. The remote town of Zakho, where Sabar’s family lived was no exception.
When living in Zakho, the family name was Sabagha, which means “dyer.” The family dyed wool for weaving into cloth. The author’s great-grandfather, however, was also a scholar, and could be found in the town’s synagogue studying.
As violence against the Jews in Iraq escalated, the Sabagha family realized it was time to leave for Israel. Although Yona ben Sabagha was only 12 years old, his father insisted that he celebrate his bar mitzvah in the town of his birth. This event marked the end of his idyllic childhood, both literally and figuratively. The bar mitzvah marks the entrance into adulthood, but in Yona’s case, it also marked the end of life as he knew it.
Life in Israel was an adjustment. Israel was a new country and did not have the infrastructure to accommodate the mass immigration. Middle Eastern Jews were discriminated upon by the European Jews, which made life in the Promised Land an additional challenge. One change the family made was to change their surname from Sabagha to Sabar. The new name distanced them from their Kurdish roots and sounded more “Israeli.” In addition, the new family name was a play on the work “sabra”, which means a native-born Israeli.
Yona thrived in Israel, he studied hard and went to college. Because he was a native Aramaic speaker, he became involved in a research project focusing on this previously thought “lost language.” Yona was hooked. Eventually, his study brought him to Yale University where he got a Ph.D. Once he discovered America, even though he was initially disillusioned, he never looked back. He married an American and moved to Los Angeles where he took a job as a professor at the University of California.
In the process of researching this book, Ariel Sabar is able to make peace with his father. Yona and his son return to Iraq to the family village. There, they encounter some of the neighbors that Yona remembered as a child. They also become aware of the danger of being Jewish in this country so many years after their exodus. My Father’s Paradise is a wonderful book. Not only does the reader learn about the Kurdish Jews, but Sabar’s family comes alive. This is a book that should be on everyone’s reading list.
Read: February 16, 2010
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