Thursday, April 13, 2006
By TREVOR MAXWELL, Portland Press Herald Writer
Copyright © 2006 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.
The stove, countertops and sinks all have to be cleaned thoroughly.
All the food must be fresh and prepared from scratch, and it must be kosher for the eight-day holiday, containing no leavened products.
For Rabbi Moshe Wilansky's family in Portland, the traditional demands of Passover are not optional. They are keys to remembering the Israelites' exodus from Egypt.
"Passover is the miracle of Jewish people being released of 210 years of slavery and suffering," said Wilansky, executive director of Chabad House-Lubavitch of Maine, an outreach organization that is part of a branch of Hasidism.
"We are still cooking up a storm, there are a lot of things to prepare," Wilansky said Wednesday afternoon. His family expected about 50 people to join them in celebration of the Passover seder, the ritual feast. Passover, one of the three most significant holidays for Jews, officially began at sundown Wednesday.
Each food prepared for the seder carries symbolic importance, Wilansky said. Apples, nuts and wine, for example, are mixed together, representing the mortar used by Jews during their enslavement.
Passover also is known as "the feast of unleavened bread" in honor of the slaves, who did not have time to wait for bread to rise, according to the Book of Exodus. During the holiday, observant Jews eat varied forms of matzo, an unleavened bread made simply from flour and water.
Wilansky and other orthodox families rid their homes of leavened products and chometz - nonkosher food not allowed in the house during Passover. The rabbi said it is easier for Jewish families to follow the requirements because more "kosher for Passover" products are available at grocery stores.
"You go into Shaw's or Hannaford and you find products you didn't find 20 years ago or 10 years ago," Wilansky said. The stores may not offer the variety you would find in an orthodox neighborhood in Boston or New York, Wilansky said, but the selection has improved.
More than 21,000 kosher items are available in the United States, with 500 new items hitting the shelves this year, according to The New York Times.
Jon and Jodi Freedman and their three children belong to Temple Beth El, the orthodox congregation in Portland, and Congregation Bet Ha'am, the reform congregation in South Portland.
Jon Freedman said he had not strictly followed customary requirements for Passover in recent years, in part because he felt he could honor the past in other ways. But his family is paying more attention this year because the children are getting to an age where they can recognize the symbolism.
"The kids are getting older, and we want them to understand and appreciate it," Freedman said. "I did it growing up and my wife did it growing up."
Because the Freedmans do not have a lot of family members in the area, they planned to attend the seder Wednesday night at The Cedars, formerly the Jewish Home for the Aged in Portland.
"We decided instead of having people over here," Freedman said, "we would go over to celebrate with them."
Staff Writer Trevor Maxwell can be contacted at 791-6451 or at:
tmaxwell@pressherald.com
By TREVOR MAXWELL, Portland Press Herald Writer
Copyright © 2006 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.
The stove, countertops and sinks all have to be cleaned thoroughly.
All the food must be fresh and prepared from scratch, and it must be kosher for the eight-day holiday, containing no leavened products.
For Rabbi Moshe Wilansky's family in Portland, the traditional demands of Passover are not optional. They are keys to remembering the Israelites' exodus from Egypt.
"Passover is the miracle of Jewish people being released of 210 years of slavery and suffering," said Wilansky, executive director of Chabad House-Lubavitch of Maine, an outreach organization that is part of a branch of Hasidism.
"We are still cooking up a storm, there are a lot of things to prepare," Wilansky said Wednesday afternoon. His family expected about 50 people to join them in celebration of the Passover seder, the ritual feast. Passover, one of the three most significant holidays for Jews, officially began at sundown Wednesday.
Each food prepared for the seder carries symbolic importance, Wilansky said. Apples, nuts and wine, for example, are mixed together, representing the mortar used by Jews during their enslavement.
Passover also is known as "the feast of unleavened bread" in honor of the slaves, who did not have time to wait for bread to rise, according to the Book of Exodus. During the holiday, observant Jews eat varied forms of matzo, an unleavened bread made simply from flour and water.
Wilansky and other orthodox families rid their homes of leavened products and chometz - nonkosher food not allowed in the house during Passover. The rabbi said it is easier for Jewish families to follow the requirements because more "kosher for Passover" products are available at grocery stores.
"You go into Shaw's or Hannaford and you find products you didn't find 20 years ago or 10 years ago," Wilansky said. The stores may not offer the variety you would find in an orthodox neighborhood in Boston or New York, Wilansky said, but the selection has improved.
More than 21,000 kosher items are available in the United States, with 500 new items hitting the shelves this year, according to The New York Times.
Jon and Jodi Freedman and their three children belong to Temple Beth El, the orthodox congregation in Portland, and Congregation Bet Ha'am, the reform congregation in South Portland.
Jon Freedman said he had not strictly followed customary requirements for Passover in recent years, in part because he felt he could honor the past in other ways. But his family is paying more attention this year because the children are getting to an age where they can recognize the symbolism.
"The kids are getting older, and we want them to understand and appreciate it," Freedman said. "I did it growing up and my wife did it growing up."
Because the Freedmans do not have a lot of family members in the area, they planned to attend the seder Wednesday night at The Cedars, formerly the Jewish Home for the Aged in Portland.
"We decided instead of having people over here," Freedman said, "we would go over to celebrate with them."
Staff Writer Trevor Maxwell can be contacted at 791-6451 or at:
tmaxwell@pressherald.com
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