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Peter Fogel

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HAPPY PASSOVER
4/7/2009 11:52:51 PM
 Hello Friends,

Tonight is Passover Eve when we celebrate the Seder and the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. Read more about Passover
here.

We read the Haggadah the story of the exodus, sing songs, discuss the parallels in our day and age and have a very good meal with matzah of course. :)

Chag Pesach Sameach to all my Jewish friends.


חג פסח כשר ושמח


Shalom,

Peter

 
Peter Fogel
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Lydia Fokina

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Re: HAPPY PASSOVER
4/8/2009 1:01:09 AM

Happy Passover Peter and all, who celebrate this!

Pesach is one of the most popular Jewish holidays. First of the three major festivals of Jews, it has both historical and agricultural significance. Pesach marks the beginning of the harvest season in Israel. However, the primary reason cited for its observance is related to the Exodus of Hebrew slaves from Egypt after generations of slavery. 'Pesach' in Hebrew means 'Passing over' referring to the fact that God 'passed over' the houses of the Jews while afflicting the Egypt with the tenth plague. Hence the name of the festival is 'Pesach' or 'Passover'.


The name 'Pesach' is also said to have been picked up from the fact that it was the name of the sacrificial lamb that was made in the Temple on this holiday before Exodus. Other names for this holiday are 'Chag he-Aviv', which means 'the Spring Festival', 'Chag ha-Matzoth', which means 'the Festival of Matzahs' and 'Z'man Cherutenu', which means 'the Time of Our Freedom'. The holiday is observed for eight days and Seder is observed on its first two nights. The Fast of the Firstborn is observed on the day before Pesach, which is a minor fast for all firstborn males to commemorate the fact that firstborns of Israelites were saved during the slaying in Egypt. Passover is a time for family gatherings and happiness for Jews as it signifies that they are finally free and are their own masters. (from http://www.happypassover.net/ )

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Peter Fogel

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Re: HAPPY PASSOVER
4/8/2009 7:26:21 AM

Hi Lydia,

Thanks for the great graphic and the warm wishes.

It should b a great holiday for us. I'll be at my daughters house tonight where we'll be celebrating the Seder. Around 20 or so family members including my in laws.

Shalom,

Peter.

 

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Geketa Holman

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Re: HAPPY PASSOVER
4/8/2009 8:28:28 AM
Hi Peter,

Great carton ! Chang Pesach Sameach to you and yours!
We are having family over too. Only  12 of us this year
.

All the cooking and cleaning make me tired but it is all well worth the results!

I found this short  article explaining the passover I hope those that are not Jewish will enjoy it and get a better understanding of the passover and why it is so important to us.
Shalom,

Geketa

Passover, or Pesach in Hebrew, is one of the three major pilgrimage festivals of ancient Israel. Originally a combination of a couple of different spring festivals, it is a commemoration of the Exodus from Egypt--especially the night when God "passed over" the houses of the Israelites during the tenth plague--and of the following day, when the Israelites had to leave Egypt hurriedly. Centered on the family or communal celebration of the seder (ritual meal), Passover is one of the most beloved of all Jewish holidays.

History: The origins of Passover lie in pre-Israelite spring celebrations of the first grain harvest and the births of the first lambs of the season. Within a Jewish context, however, it celebrates God's great redemptive act at the time of the Exodus, leading the Israelites out from slavery in Egypt to freedom. Together with Shavout (the Festival of Weeks) and Sukkot (The Festival of Booths), Pesach is one of the ancient Israelite pilgrimage festivals, during which adult males journeyed to the Temple in Jerusalem to offer sacrifices and bask in the divine presence. Since the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, the focus of Pesach celebration shifted to the ritual meal, called the seder, that takes place either in the home or in the community.

At Home: In anticipation of Pesach, it is traditional to engage in a thorough spring cleaning. During the holiday, Jews' food reflects the major theme of Passover, reliving God's great redemptive act, albeit in a vicarious manner. Because the Israelites had no time to let their bread rise, Jewish law forbids eating (or even possessing) any food that can contain leaven.Therefore, a major part of the preparations for Pesach consists of removing all traces of leavened foods from the home and replacing them with unleavened foods (though many Jews prefer to "sell" their unused leaven products to a non-Jew for the duration of the holiday). This necessitates both a massive cleanup and the replacement of one's ordinary dishes with special Pesach ones. It also requires a shopping expedition to stock the kitchen with special Passover-kosher foods.

Seder: The central ritual of Pesach is the seder, a carefully choreographed ritual meal that takes place either in the home or in the community. A number of symbolic foods are laid out on the table, of which the most important are the matzah, the unleavened "bread of affliction," and the shankbone, which commemorates the Pesach sacrifice in the Temple. The seder follows a script laid out in the Haggadah, a book that tells the story of the redemption from Egypt and thanks God for it. Although the Haggadah is a traditional text, many people--particularly in the modern world--add to it and revise it in accord with their theology and understanding of God's redemptive actions in the world.

In the Community: Although the focus of Passover observance is on the home, it should not be forgotten that Pesach is a holiday, on the first and last days of which traditional Judaism prohibits working. There are special synagogue services, including special biblical readings, among which one finds Shir ha-Shirim, "The Song of Songs" and Hallel, Psalms of praise and thanksgiving for God's saving act in history. The last day of Passover is one of the four times a year that the Yizkor service of remembrance is recited.

Theology and Themes: The overarching theme of Passover is redemption. After all, this is the holiday that celebrates God's intervention in history to lead the Israelites from slavery to freedom. It is a time to celebrate God as the great liberator of humanity. The divine redemption of the Israelites thus becomes the blueprint for the Jewish understanding of God and divine morality and ethics, which can be seen in Jewish participation at the forefront of movements for social justice
Hear, O Israel the L-rd our G-d,the L-rd is one http://www.DHGBoutique.com
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Jo Anne Green

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Re: HAPPY PASSOVER
4/8/2009 3:51:11 PM

Happy Passover to Peter, Geketa, and all Jewish Friends on Adland!

Wishing you a wonderful Passover and precious memories from time you spend with your family and friends.

Shalom,

JoAnne Green
Principal / International Risk Management Advisor


Sunburst International Risk Managementwww.InternationalRiskManagement.comSunburst Worldwide Insurance Serviceswww.WorldwideMedicalPlans.com
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