Year 2, Day 98 (Passover Begins)

Tonight we are officially in the Passover Holiday, also known as the Feast Of Unleavened Bread. As Scriptural history shows, it is to be observed for 7 days, but it is recognized as 8 in the the Diaspora (outside of Israel). The mandate for this observance was given by The L-rd Himself, to Moses, beginning in Exodus 12:3, where The L-rd tells what preparations must be made... the events leading up to the final plague which were befallen upon Egypt: the Plague of the Firstborn. The L-rd was bringing the plagues as punishment for the severe mistreatment the people of Israel had endured by the hands of the Egyptians. The was the beginning of the Dawn of a New Era: Israel would leave their place of captivity and become their own nation. Therefore, Passover is a remembrance of those times, enduring brutality, and the miracles that The L-rd, Himself, had made known for all; the people of Israel, as well as Egypt. There are many interesting facets when you study those plagues, but I'll just focus a little on this one. For one, a lamb is to be sacrificed for the Pesach meal. During that time, a lamb was worshipped by the ancient Egyptians as a deity, so you can imagine their horror when they found out the purpose the Children of Israel had for the lambs. The blood from these sacrificed lambs was, with the use of hysop, to be put on the doorposts and the lintel (the crossbeam of the door frame), which draws the shape of the Hebrew letter Chai (ה). The letter Chai is very symbolic of the word "life" (for an easy reference point, think of the musical Fiddler On The Roof: there is a song title "To Life", in Hebrew - they they also say in the song - it's L'Chaim).

This is just a very brief synopsis, as one of my readers specifically asked for a little more information. There is a plethora of information on the subject, through a variety of sources. One such source is on the website for Judaism 101, which does expound quite a bit, and for various levels of learning (though the link I added is for the basic level).

Contrary to popular beleif (by "popular" I mean that which "The Church" has mistaught people), Passover is NOT a Jewish Holiday... it IS, in fact, G-d's Holiday. "you shall observe this day for your generations as an eternal decree" (or in some translations: "forever") - Exodus 12:17. So I hope some of you will look into this Holiday/Festival/Celebration, even partake of a Passover Seder. I think it just may change you for the better... and you'll learn something new. May you all be Blessed!l