April 19 Newsletter
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Volume 6, Issue 7 April 2019 Nissan 5779 April 19-27, 2019 14 Passover Facts There was a two-year pause on the printing during World War II, due to paper shortages. Coffee By Shalom Goodman is kosher for Passover provided that it is certified by a 1. Passover Is the Most Widely Celebrated Jewish Holiday reputable rabbinic agency. There’s something about Passover, the first holiday giv- 7. Fine Wine Is Divine Throughout the Seder evening, en to the Jewish people by G‑d, that speaks deeply to everyone drinks four cups of (ideally red) wine. For the Jewish soul. According to the 2014 Pew Portrait of some reason, there’s a persistent idea out there that Se- American Jews, the Passover Seder is celebrated by even der wine needs to be gloopy sweet stuff that tastes like more Jewish people than Yom Kippur and Chanukah. cough syrup. At one time the idea that this kind of wine 2. Passover for All! Giving to those less fortunate is the was part of a Jewish diet was so ingrained that hallmark of Judaism and the Jewish people. Before Pass- Schapiro’s Wine advertised (in Yiddish) that their wine over, funds are collected to ensure that everyone can was so thick you could almost cut it with a knife! Thank- celebrate the Holiday of Freedom in style. fully, there are hundreds of high-quality kosher wines The Jerusalem Talmud records that Jewish communities out there, so go out and get some happiness in a bot- would make collections of maot chitim, literally “wheat tle—enough for every Seder participant to have four money,” before Passover. cups full. 3. Live Leaven Free As Passover approaches, Jewish peo- 8. Go Nuts! Kids are a major part of the Passover cele- ple can be found cleaning their houses, cars and offices. bration. The Seder begins with the children asking four This is not a mere spring cleaning; it is a mission—to get classic questions, starting with “Why is this night differ- rid of chametz, anything produced from grain that has ent from all other nights?” The rest of the reading con- risen. Even dishes are either purged or put away for the sists of the answer to the kids’ questions. How to keep duration of the holiday, ensuring that no Jew owns or them engaged? The rabbis of old had a solution: give ingests even the smallest bit of chametz. them nuts. Not sure if nuts will do it for your progeny? Make sure that the Seder itself is so engaging that they 4. The Main Thing Is the Matzah If you can do only one stick around to see what happens next. (or two) things to celebrate Passover, it’s this: eat a kezayit (a measure formally described as the size of an 9. Four Squared Did you ever notice how many elements olive) of matzah after dusk on the first night of Passo- of the Passover Seder come in groups of four? Four ver, and then do it again on the next night. We lean sons, four question, four cups of wine (in some homes, while eating the matzah (as well as when drinking the it feels like four hours until the food is served!) What’s four cups, and eating the korech sandwich and the significance? The most common answer is that all the afikoman) because, in times gone by, eating while these fours correspond to the four terms G‑d used reclining was a sign of true freedom. Extra points if you when promising to take the people out of Egypt. eat the round handmade matzah. 10. The Fifth Son There are four sons spoken about in the 5. The Most Popular Hebrew Book The Haggadah, the text Haggadah. Sure one is wise and one is wicked, but Helping INDividuals AscendHelping INDividuals around which the Passover Seder is based, is the most they’re all there at the Seder. But what about the Jew popular book in the history of Jewish printing, having who doesn’t show up for the Seder at all? In a let- gone through thousands of editions. Amazingly, there is ter penned to Jews worldwide in 1957, the Lubavitcher very little variance between versions. The Haggadahs Rebbe, urged every Jew to acknowledge and invite the used in Morocco are almost identical to those in Jewish “fifth son,” the Jew who would otherwise not be at the homes in Munich, with the differences limited almost Seder, or even aware of Passover. entirely to nuances in the vowels and the songs in the 11. Lamb, Anyone? In ancient times, the center of the back of the book. Passover celebration was the Passover lamb, which was At its core, the Haggadah tells the story of how G‑d sacrificed in the Holy Temple and then eaten with mat- took our ancestors out of Egyptian slavery. As per zah and bitter herbs as a dessert at the end of the Passo- the Torah’s command, we tell this story to our children ver meal. Roman invaders destroyed the Temple (and ourselves) every single year, finding new depth and in Jerusalem nearly 2,000 years ago, and we no longer new meaning in every retelling. bring the sacrifice. Today, we still eat the matzah and bitter herbs without the lamb, and then eat an extra 6. The Coffee-Maker’s Haggadah In 1932, Maxwell House, a piece of matzah, known as the afikoman, to remind us leading coffee manufacturer, decided to print and dis- of the missing meat. tribute the now iconic Maxwell House Haggadah. There are more than 50 million of these Haggadahs in print. 12. World’s Largest Seder For decades, Chabad has been THE HINDA INSTITUTE Newsletter Monthly hosting the world’s largest Seder in Kathmandu, Nepal, Continued on back page Page 2 MONTHLY NEWSLETTER Jewish Story put him back together and make him live!” By Nuta Yisrael Shurack The Sultan smiled nervously and glanced around, not knowing what to think or make of the situation. Perhaps the fellow was It was midday when an elderly traveler entered the Jewish quarter completely crazy. Or perhaps he was telling the truth. After all, he of Baghdad. The marketplace, where merchants from many lands seemed extremely confident, and spoke with such conviction. sold their fabrics, spices and other wares, seemed strangely empty What if he was telling the truth? If he doubted him, then who for such a day. He sighted the grandest building in the section, knows what kind of wrath would be unleashed on the Sultan and and determined that must be the great synagogue. He continued his kingdom. his trek towards it until he entered its courtyard and sat down to rest, opening his small sack to take out a few dried figs to refresh He continued, “There is but one condition. The man whose head his strength. Yet no sooner had he started his lunch than he be- I cut off must be truly wise. In fact, he must be the wisest man in came aware of a commotion from within the sanctuary. He the realm. If not, his head will not properly reattach.” peeked inside, and beheld a moving spectacle—hundreds of Jews Intrigued, the Sultan decided he must see for himself if the Jew fervently chanting Psalms amidst tears and sobs. was telling the truth. He looked around the room until his eyes “What has happened?” he asked of the first Jew whose attention fell on Mustafa, his chief advisor and the wisest man in the king- he could grasp. dom. Before the Sultan said a word, Mustafa cried out, “No, he is lying! The Jew is an impostor! He can’t really cut someone’s head Hurriedly, and in a voice of desperation, the man told him the off and reattach it.” “That might be true,” said the Sultan, “but story as best he could. The Sultan had decreed that the Jewish what if he is telling the truth and we don’t accommodate him? people of Baghdad must produce a leader who could perform Surely you don’t want to put the whole kingdom at risk! Afer all, miracles as Moses had done. Since Moses was the leader of the were you not the one who had advised me to expel the Jews, lest Jewish people in Egypt, and he was able to do miracles, the Sultan we be put in danger?” expected the same from the leader of the Jews of Baghdad. If they would not produce such a miracle-maker, the Jews would be ex- “Bring the sword immediately,” cried the Sultan. “Mustafa has pelled from Baghdad. Therefore, all of the Jews were fasting and volunteered!” With that, Mustafa began to tremble and yelled out, praying to G‑d for salvation. “No, I admit it. I was both wrong and very foolish. The Jewish people do not have extraordinary powers!” Mustafa ran out of the In his calm and patient disposition, the wise traveler approached palace, never to be seen again. The Sultan annulled the decree, yet more Jews, until he had finally pieced together the entire story: thanked the Jew for coming, and said that the Jews were welcome The Sultan’s chief advisor, Mustafa, was a vicious Jew-hater to live in Baghdad as long as they desired. whose mission it was to destroy the Jews, or at least to have them The man returned to the synagogue to share the good news. Im- banished from Baghdad. He had convinced the Sultan that the mediately, there was unbelievable rejoicing, and a banquet was Jews were not only infidels for denying the prophet Mohammed, held in honor of the miracle that G‑d had done for His people.