Growing up, Passover has always been my favorite Jewish holiday. It wasn't that I got to bring matzoh and chopped liver sandwiches to elementary school while the other kids were eating pizza and PB&J on white. It wasn't explaining that corn and rice are forbotten despite not appearing in the Bible. It is two things. The first is that the holiday occurs at home and not in some stuffy building. The second, and a theme to which I keep returning, is story.
Reason the first:
The main celebration of Passover is the Seder. Seders in my family have traditionally been at my parents' or my aunt and uncle's. Because it is a home based celebration limited to 10 to 30 people (for us at least), we have chosen which parts of the ceremony to emphasize and cut those which have less meaning to our family. It is a shared tradition with a personal flare that allows us to explore what is important to us. And it is important.
The story of the communal redemption of the Jewish people has been a unifying force in the history of the Jewish people; a history (while not unique) that has involved countless attempts to destroy them. Four thousand years of history have certainly changed the nature and character of Jews to the point that neither would recognize the other should Woody Allen or Alan Dershowitz stop by for a glass of Manischewitz with Moses or Maimonides. However, the celebration of the redemption of a people which is celebrated annually creates a thread that binds disparate believers into one tapestry that has withstood far to many washes and attempts to throw out. It was once observed that where there are two Jews, there are three opinions - on any subject. Something needs to bind this cantankerous group, and I think the Seder is it.
Reason the second:
Fundamentally, Passover is about telling a story. Well, a specific story, the story of Exodus with Moses and 40 years in the desert and all that. It is a story that many of us know well but are still praised for re-telling and re-listening. Each time the story is told, new details can be emphasized or corollaries drawn. The act of sharing the story has been my favorite part of the holiday and a formative part of what has shaped my own need to listen to, tell, and share stories with others. Now it is Noah's turn to hear this story for the first time; but not the last. I think he liked it!
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Happy Passover
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1 comment:
Happy Pesach (the German and Hebrew words are, in this instance, the same). Granted, my exposure to Jewish holidays is limited (not being Jewish), but I have been to a number of Passover Seders and Latke Fests (for Hannukah) over the past few years, and I must say, I do enjoy Passover greatly. Hannukah, to me, is nice, but does not feel all that different from other religious holidays. Passover is, to my experience, unique. I like the home service, the ceremony, the fact that everyone can truly take part in said ceremony, and the telling of the shared story. I very much like the remembrance of shared history, of oppression, or slavery, and the celebration of now being free (and the accompanying obligation to stand at the side of those who are oppressed in the here and now). It strikes me, in many ways, as what Thanksgiving *should* be - and, for that matter, what religion should be.
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