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How To Prepare The Passover – Pesach – Seder Plate
Here’s How:
1. The plate itself can be as fancy as a purchased specialty Seder Plate or as simple as a styrofoam plate on which your children have drawn the Passover symbols.
2. Seder Plates contain the following items.
* Charoset
* Baytzah
* Zeroa
* Karpas
* Maror
* Chazeret (optional)
3. At the grocery store, buy the following kosher for Passover food: apples, walnuts, red wine, cinnamon, sugar, shankbone or poultry neck, egg, parsley or potato, celery, horseradish root or prepared horseradish.
4. Charoset is mixture of apples, nuts, wine and spices.
Charoset is symbolic of the mortar the Jewish slaves made in their building for the Egyptians. To make charoset, prepare 1 cup of walnuts, 1 granny smith green apple, 2 tsp. cinnamon, 2 tsp. sugar, and red wine to moisten. Chop the nuts and apples to the consistency you want (a food processor can be used). Sprinkle with spices, and moisten with wine. The texture of the charoset should remind us of mortar.
5. Zeroa is a shankbone or neck of poultry, roasted.
Zeroa is a reminder of the “mighty arm of G-d” as the Bible describes it. It is also symbolic of the Paschal lamb offered as the Passover sacrifice in Temple days. Roast the shankbone in the oven for about 30 minutes.
6. Baytzah is hard-boiled egg.
Baytzah is symbolic of the regular festival sacrifice brought in the days of the Temple. Some authorities have interpreted this as a symbol of mourning for the loss of the two Temples (the first was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E., the second by the Romans in 70 C.E.). With the Temples destroyed, sacrifices could no longer be offered. The egg symbolized this loss and traditionally became the food of mourners.
7. Karpas is a vegetable. Parsley or a potato is generally used.
Karpas is dipped in salt water to represent tears. The custom of serving karpas dates back to Jerusalem of the 1st and 2nd centuries when it was common to begin a formal meal by passing around vegetables as hors d’oeuvres.
8. Maror is bitter herbs. Horseradish root or prepared horseradish is generally used.
Maror represents the bitter life of the Israelites during the time of their enslavement in Egypt.
9. Chazeret is a bitter vegetable. Celery or lettuce can be used.
Those who do not put chazeret on their Seder Plate sometimes put a dish of salt water in its place.
Tips:
1. Prepare the Seder Plate long before the Seder meal so you are not pressured to get it ready at the last minute.
2. Allowing children to help you prepare the Seder Plate is a fun and effective way to teach them about the symbolism of the food and their connection to the Passover story.
Israel History – March 27th, Igal Amir was sentenced to life prison, for assassin Israel Prime Minister Iitzhak Rabin, on November 4th, 1995.
The peace agreement between Israel and Egypt has signed.
It was in the White House, 1500 guests, one American president (Carter), one Egyptian president (Anwar Sadat) and one Israeli prime minister (Menahem Begin).
Short (45 min), laconic ceremony, ends more than 30 years of war and hate rid.
Two years of rough, tough negotiation.
Both Israel and Egypt leaders, received the Nobel Peace Prize.
It was ended with the words:”No more wars, no more bloodshed, no more tears”.
What? Football
Who? Israel Vs England
Where? Ramat Gan, Israel
When? Shabbat, March 24th
Why? common, we have to win…
Shabbat Shalom
According to Israel’s Central Bureau Of Statistics, in the end of 2005 the Jewish population stood of at 13,090,000 (Thirteen million & Ninety thousands), of which almost half (5,275,000) were at United States and about 41% (5,314,000) were in Israel.
All in all, the Jewish population was at the time (well, I guess it has changed since…) 76% out of the total population in Israel, 1,377,100 (19.7%) were Arabs, and about 299,800 (4.3%) of other orientation.
The growth rate of the Jews in Israel, was 1.5%; almost similar to the years before. The growth rate within the Muslims was 3%, the Druse 1.9% and the Christians 1.4%.
O.k. now we don’t have to be THAT smart to do the math of WHAT IS GOING TO BE WITH US Jews!!!
We either have to do another BIG Aliya, or make more Jewish babies (lot’s N lot’s of them…) or BOTH.
So, lets get to work…
Come people, Bring some more Kids, lets make the Pru URvu Mitzva.
There is a tradition, that one should visit his/her deceased (Going to Har Hamnuhot, that is located in Jerusalem. Most of Jerusalem’s deceased are berried there) in the beginning of each Hebrew month – Rosh Hodesh. This month is Nissan the seventh month, and the month of which Passover – Pesach is celebrated. its considered a great mitzvah to do so, especially in the Nissan.
ASHEVILLE – The annual Women’s Community Passover Seder takes place 3 to 5 p.m. March 25 at the Jewish Community Center, 236 Charlotte St.
The dinner will be catered by Savoy restaurant and will include a reading of a Haggadah compiled by women. Participatory readings will be enhanced by new prayers, poetry and readings relevant to women.
The event is co-sponsored by the Asheville Jewish Community Center,, Sisterhood Beth Ha Tephila, Sisterhood of Congregation Beth Israel, Hadassah and Hillel. Cost is $20 per person. Reservation is by payment only, and must be made by Wednesday.
With Passover looming on the horizon, aid organizations in Israel anticipate that a record number of needy people will seek donated food packages to celebrate one of the most revered of Jewish holidays in April.
Social organizations expect a 20 percent surge in the number of people who will turn to charities for food supplies in the weeks leading to Passover in comparison to last year.
Worries are that most charities will not have enough food supplies for everyone, and many needy families will be turned down.
Experts believe that the surge is partly the result of last summer’s war, whose economic impact is still affecting thousands of households in the north.
Rabbi Moshe Levkovitch of the Meir Panim relief center said that charitable organizations supplied food packages to 18,000 needy Israelis so far this year.
Meir Panim’s newly launched branch in the northern town of Safed estimates that half of residents there are in need.
Levkovitch added that Meir Panim would distribute 12,000 food packages in the Passover period and would host 20 Passover dinners for 5,000 people in its soup kitchens.
The Union of Local Authorities is also concerned by the rise in the number needy Israelis. Union chairman Adi Eldar says that social workers at local councils across the country are advising an ever-increasing number of people on how to seek help.
The Haifa-based Yad Ezer L’Chaver soup kitchens organization said that 8,000 people approached its facilities in the northern cities so far this year.
Friends,
On Saturday night, March 17th 8:30-11pm the Stanton Street Shul will hold its 4th annual Pre-Passover Kosher Wine Sale and Boutique. Come to 383 Grand St , The Seward Park Community room, and try some great wines! Skyview Wines and Liquors will have a wide array of Kosher for Passover wines to try and then order.All wines orders will be delivered before passover for free!
This year our boutique will have Tupperware, 2 Jewlers, Baby clothing and beautiful art and Judaica products from Galleria D’ontonio. Come by and buy!
A certain percentage of all sales will goto the shul.Cash, Credit card (visa,mc,amex) and Check accepted.
Come support the Stanton Street Shul and enjoy some delicious wine!
We look forward to seeing you!
Stanton street Shul
Lets all have a safe and secure Shabbat Shalom
www.jjudaica.com Team
CHICAGO – Leading rabbis in the Chicago area, who are part of the leadership of the Chicago Rabbinical Council, issued their annual policy paper on medications and cosmetics to be used for Passover.
The rabbis ruled that all pills that are swallowed are kosher for Passover but vitamins and food supplements, even in pill form are not in that category and require prior consultation with a competent rabbi. The rabbis also noted that liquid and chewable medications or pills coated with a flavored coating that may contain chametz also require consultation with a doctor and rabbi.
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They also approved most blush, eye shadow, body soap, creams, face powder, foot powder, mascara, ointments, ink, paint, shampoo and stick deodorants. They also warned that many liquid deodorants, colognes, aftershaves, perfumes and hairsprays contain denatured alcohol and are chametz. Lipstick, mouthwash, and toothpaste that have chametz should also not be used. The Chicago letter is designed to offer broad guidelines for medications and cosmetics but the Chicago rabbis urge consumers to consult their local rabbis.
The word Haggadah comes from the Torah command – “And you shall tell (v’Higadeta) your children on that day…” Although the minimal fulfillment of this mitzvah is a simple recounting of the going out of Egypt and explaining a few of the Pesach symbols, proper fulfillment requires much more.
Over the centuries additions have been made to the Haggadah to enhance this mitzvah. Many of these additions gained such wide acceptance that they became part of the Haggadah. One of those additions is the Chad Gadya. Another is ‘Dayeinu.’ Rav Saadia Gaon (882 CE – 942 CE) included neither in his Haggadah, although he did recognize the existence of Dayeinu. Neither Rashi (1040 – 1105) nor Maimonides (1135 – 1204) included Chad Gadya in their versions of the Haggadah, although Rashi did include Dayeinu.
In the Machzor Vitri, Rav Simcha of Vitri, an important disciple of Rashi, includes sections which we don’t say today. Although Rashi himself did not say them, they were said in Provence (Southern France) in his day.
The metamorphosis of the Haggadah concluded in the late middle ages, aided by the invention of the Printing Press, which enabled the basic Ashkenazic version which had been endorsed by the Ari z”l to be accepted even in Sephardic communities. The text is based upon the Haggadah of Rav Amram Gaon, who headed the Babylonian Yeshiva of Sura between 856-876 CE. This text was endorsed by Rashi. Rav Amram’s Haggadah concluded with the after blessing on the fourth cup of wine. It did not include ‘Chasal Siddur Pesach‘.
The Haggadah contains the order of the Passover Seder. Haggadah, meaning “telling,” is a fulfillment of the scriptural commandment to each Jew to “tell your son” about the Jewish liberation from slavery in Egypt, as described in the book of Exodus in the Torah.
More to come about the Hggadah…
Passover is a holiday that commemorates the time in history when the Jewish people were freed from slavery in the land of Egypt. The Jewish people were slaves, and they wanted to be free. The Pharaoh had decreed that all Jewish male babies were to be killed because he felt that the Jewish people were becoming too strong. One couple, Jocheved and Amran, decided to try to save their infant son. They put him in a basket, and floated him on the river. They sent their daughter, Miriam, to watch and make sure that someone rescued the baby from the river. The rescuer was Pharaoh’s daughter. She called him Moses, which means, take from the water, and she raised him as her own son. When he grew up, he had much empathy for the Jewish slaves, and when he found out that he was a Jew, he wanted to help his people. He tried to get the Pharaoh to free the Jewish slaves, but the Pharaoh refused. Moses had a special relationship with G-d.
There were 10 plagues sent down to Egypt, but still the Pharaoh would not let the Jews go. Finally, after the 10th plague, which was the slaying of the first born sons, he relented and said that the Jewish people could leave. They gathered up their belongings quickly, and didn’t have time for their bread to rise, so they had to bake it and take it the way it was. This is why the Jewish people eat matzah during Passover. As the Jews were fleeing, Pharaoh changed his mind, and sent his army after the people to bring them back. G-d parted the Red Sea for the Jews to cross, and as soon as they were safely to the other side, the waters closed on the soldiers, drowning them all. The Jewish people were saved.
The 10 Plagues are: Blood, Frogs, Lice, Beasts, Cattle Disease, Boils, Hail, Locusts, Darkness, Slaying of the Firstborn.
seder Passover is celebrated today in homes by having a seder. Seder means order, and we read the Passover story in a special order from the book called a haggadah. Haggadah means “to tell” and we tell the story of our ancestors, and remind ourselves that we are now a free people. There are different parts of the seder and during the seder, we eat traditional and symbolic foods that remind us of the Jewish people and their adversity. One of the things that we do is to dip a spring vegetable into salt water. The vegetable is a sign of spring, or rebirth, and the salt water represent the tears of the slaves. We eat bitter herbs, to remind us of the bitterness of slavery. We eat a special mixture, called Charoset, which is made of apples, nuts, wine, and cinnamon (although there are many different varieties of this, depending on where your ancestors lived) that reminds us of the mortar that the slaves made their bricks from.
The name Passover comes from when the Angel of Death passed over the homes of the Jews, because they had been forewarned, and had put lambs blood on their doors, so that death would spare their first born child. 
The ‘Passover Seder‘ (say-der), literally “order” or “arrangement” is a special Jewish ritual which takes place on the first evening of the Jewish holiday of Passover (the 15th day of Nisan on the Hebrew calendar) in Israel, and on the first and second evenings of Passover (the 15th and 16th days of Nisan) in the Jewish diaspora. The next ones being on Monday night April 2 and Tuesday night April 3, 2007. Incorporating the holiday meal, the Seder relives the enslavement and subsequent Exodus of the Children of Israel from Ancient Egypt through the words of the Haggadah, the drinking of four cups of wine, the eating of matzot, and the eating of and reference to symbolic foods placed on the Passover Seder Plate.
The Seder is considered an integral aspect of Jewish faith and identity. As the Haggadah which contains the complete Seder service explains, without the Exodus, the Jews would still be slaves to the Egyptian Pharaoh and would never have realized their role as a nation. Therefore this is an occasion for much praise and thanksgiving to God. It is considered a mitzvah (commandment) to embellish one’s retelling of the Exodus on this night. Often the Seder lasts into the early hours of the morning of the next day, as participants continue to learn Torah and talk about the events of the night and sing special Passover songs included in the Haggadah.
The
Jewish Purim
(Hebrew: פורים Pûrîm “lots”, from Akkadian pūru) is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of Haman’s plot to annihilate all the Jews of the Persian Empire, who had survived the Babylonian captivity, after Persia had conquered Babylonia who in turn had destroyed the First Temple and dispersed the Jewish people; as recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther. It is characterized by public recitation of the Book of Esther, giving mutual gifts of food and drink, giving charity to the poor, and a celebratory meal (Esther 9:22); other customs include drinking wine, wearing of masks and costumes, and public celebration.
is celebrated annually on the 14th of the Hebrew month of Adar. (In cities that were walled in by a moat in the time of Joshua, including Susa and Jerusalem, Purim is celebrated on the 15th of the month, known as Shushan Purim). As with all Jewish holidays, begins at sundown on the previous secular day.
A kippah (Hebrew: כִּפָּה, also kipah, kipa, kippa, plural kippot; Yiddish: יאַרמלקע, yarmlke, yarmulke, yarmulka, yarmelke, less commonly called kapel) is a thin, usually slightly-rounded cloth skullcap worn by observant Jews (normally men, but not always; see below).
The kippah was traditionally worn only by men (women covered their heads more completely with scarves, hats, or wigs). Today, some non-Orthodox women wear a kippah as well. Some Jews wear kippot only while praying, making blessings, or studying Jewish religious texts; more traditional Jews wear kippot the entire day, making sure not to walk more than four cubits (about two meters) without a head covering, especially outside.
Most head coverings are acceptable according to halakha (Jewish law) because there is no Jewish law regarding head coverings. A kippah is a convenient alternative due to its compactness and lightness; it has become identified as a symbol of Judaism in the last century. Haredi men, who mostly wear large black cloth or velvet yarmulkes, often wear fedoras with their yarmulkes worn underneath. The double head-covering has Kabbalistic meaning to the Hasidim, especially.
