What is Pesach?
Religious Studies: KS3, topic 1.2.25
What is Pesach?
Pesach is a festival celebrated in the springtime known as the Freedom Festival. It is celebrated from the 15th to 22nd Nissan on the Hebrew calendar.
The story behind Pesach
- The story of Pesach is found in the first 15 chapters of the Book of Exodus, the second of the five books of Torah.
- Long ago the Jews were slaves in Egypt.
- God punished the Egyptians with the Ten Plagues and the Jews were set free.
- Pesach is celebrated as an eight-day festival in the UK.
- Pesach teaches Jews about God’s love and saving power as well as being sensitive to those in society who are different and weak.
The Seder meal
- During Pesach Jews have a special meal during which they retell the story of slavery and freedom.
- It is called a Seder meal.
- Seder means 'order' in Hebrew.
- Different props are used during the meal.
- To recall the bitter and difficult times, food is dipped in saltwater recalling the tears of the slaves.
- A bitter vegetable (often horseradish) is eaten as a reminder of the hard times of slavery.
- Matzah (unleavened bread) is eaten.
Food during Pesach
- During Pesach, Jews are forbidden from eating bread and other leavened food.
- There is lots of food that is often only eaten for this festival which makes it even more special.
- Matzah is an example of these special foods.
Matzah
- Matzah symbolically represents two parts of the story.
- At the beginning of the evening it represents the food of slavery.
- It contains just two ingredients; flour and water.
- However, after telling the story it represents the food that was eaten by the freed slaves.
- They had to leave quickly and so couldn't wait for their bread to rise.
Test yourself on What is Pesach?
Over how many days is Pesach celebrated in the UK?
What are the common elements of the Seder meal?
What is the traditional meal eaten during Pesach called?