Passover is the main Jewish sacred celebration commemorating the liberation of the ancient Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Passover begins on the 14th day of the spring month of Nisan. In Israel, the holiday lasts seven days, and abroad, including in Ukraine, it lasts eight days.

Passover is celebrated with great pomp and ceremony. On the first and second evenings of the holiday, Jewish families gather for the Seder, a traditional dinner that is the main element of the Passover celebration.

The Seder ritual involves the participation of the community or several generations of a family. During the Seder, dishes with symbolic meanings related to the liberation of the Jews are served. On a plate in the center of the table, matzah, bitter herbs, an egg, a leg of lamb, and a sweet paste made from a mixture of fruits, nuts, and wine – charoset – are placed. Three times during dinner, Matzah is eaten, and four glasses of wine are drunk, with the fifth being left for the prophet Elijah.

They also read aloud excerpts from the Passover Haggadah (הגד של.פסח – Haggadah shel Pesach) – a special collection of midrash, psalms, prayers and Passover songs, as well as commentaries from the Talmud.

Reading the Haggadah at the Seder meal is a fulfillment of a mitzvah (commandment) according to which every Jew is obliged to tell the story of the Jews' exodus from Egyptian slavery, as well as to explain the meaning of the symbols of those ancient events in our time.

After 400 years of Jewish life in Egypt, their number had become greater than the population of the Egyptians.

The Egyptian Pharaoh did not like this and ordered the Jews to be exhausted with hard labor, and later to kill every newborn Jewish boy.

Moses, the Jewish leader of the time, tried to save his people. He convinced Pharaoh to release the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. But Pharaoh did not agree to fulfill Moses' request, and then G-d sent “10 plagues” on the Egyptians.

Among them were an invasion of insects, the death of livestock, water that turned into blood, and the most terrible punishment - the death of all Egyptian babies. To save their children, the Israelites had to mark their doors with the blood of a lamb that they had sacrificed. Only after the last punishment did Pharaoh let the Israelites leave Egypt.

But soon Pharaoh regretted losing so many slaves. He gathered a large army with war chariots and chased the fugitives.

In those days, soldiers often abandoned their wagons to be plundered by their enemies while retreating, thus delaying them. The Jews did not abandon their wagons with their women and children, although they moved more slowly because of this.

On the seashore, Pharaoh's army almost caught up with the fugitives. Panic broke out among the Jews. They began to shout:

— It would be better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die here!

But the Lord himself was then on the side of the Israelites. At the command of G-d, Moses raised his staff over the sea, and the waters parted. The chosen people followed Moses, and all crossed safely to the other side. The Egyptians pursued them, but the waters returned and all of Pharaoh's army perished.

The Jews went through many more trials on their way to the Promised Land. Many times, the people who came out of Egypt with him reproached Moses and started riots against him: and when the food ran out, and when they almost died of thirst. And each time Moses, with the help of the Almighty, saved his people. And the Jews did reach Canaan.

— “Do you see now that G-d is among you?” Moses asked the people at that time.

***

This story makes us understand that the Jews were saved from slavery, and G-d repeatedly helped them only because they did not renounce their faith and their moral principles, did not lose hope for a happy outcome, and were grateful to G-d for supporting their hopes.

As long as we are guided by love and faith, the pharaohs will remain powerless in their political and business intrigues. They will lose shamefully, no matter what their intentions.

That is why they want so much to destroy these feelings, to make people indifferent, to convince them that the only way to survive is to submit. And then to destroy those who have submitted.

And you should not believe in agreements with the pharaoh, if they exist, they will be only temporary. The Jews were saved from the pharaoh not by seeking agreements. They were saved by faith in their people and their destiny.

***

Thus, Passover is about love, about faith, about self-awareness and purpose, about freedom and about hope.

Congratulations, friends! Happy holiday of spring, happy holiday of freedom – happy Passover. We wish you peace and deep faith in the holidays!
May there always be room for goodness, light, love and warmth in your life. We wish you more warm events in life, smiles and sincerity!

Pavel Polliul