What is Passover? Everything you need to know about the holiday
The first night of celebration and feast on Passover is known as the Seder
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Passover is one of the most important religious traditions celebrated by members of the Jewish faith all over the world every year.
The holiday is meant to commemorate and remember the struggle for freedom that Jews in Egypt had to go through during their escape from slavery while under the protection of God.
Passover must be celebrated from the 14th day of the month in the evening until the twenty-first day of the month at night.
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That's according to Exodus 12:18.
Why is Passover important?
Passover is a major Jewish holiday that honors the Biblical story in Exodus, where Israelites were freed from slavery by God in Egypt.
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The event is depicted in the Old Testament in the book of Exodus, but in Judaism, the event is found in the Torah, which is the first five books of Moses. Jewish families and individuals from all over the world celebrate the holiday as a way to reconnect with their religious history and identity.
Modern celebrations of passover take place within Jewish families to acknowledge the liberation of Jews in Egypt. (iStock)
Moreover, the holiday has also become important because it honors how a group of people overcame oppression and hardship by remaining faithful to God and each other. Passover, for some people, has become symbolic of recognizing groups that still suffer from oppression and seek social justice and freedom in the modern world.
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Therefore, for many Jewish families, Passover is a time for reflecting not only on the history and the oppression Jewish people have faced in the past but also for appreciating modern-day freedom.
How is Passover celebrated?
Passover is celebrated over the course of eight days with ceremony and celebration among family, but strict traditions and dietary laws must be followed.
On the first night of celebration, an event called the Seder is hosted; foods that symbolize the freedom of the Israelites are eaten among a family.
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All family members also perform special prayers and recitations during this period.
The Passover also restricts family members from working at the beginning and near the end of celebrations. In addition, all chametz, or leavened, is removed from homes, and families only eat unleavened food items.
This is done because when the Hebrews had to flee from slavery in Egypt, they did not have time to wait for bread to rise and only took the unleavened bread, otherwise known as matzah.
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Why are Passover and Good Friday on different days?
While the Jewish community prepares to celebrate the liberation of their people from slavery in Egypt in the Spring, Christians also honor Good Friday as part of observing the death and resurrection of their savior, and son of God, Jesus Christ.
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However, Good Friday and Passover do not always fall on the same day or same week, depending on the year.
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The two religious observances often fall on different days and weeks because Passover is determined by a lunar calendar that makes the week-long holiday fall on different periods of the months of April and March.