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Here's a look at the Jewish holiday of Passover.
The holiday will be celebrated from sunset on April 22 to April 30, 2024.
Passover, also called Pesach, is the Jewish holiday that celebrates the exodus of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery in 1200 BC. The story is told in the book of Exodus of the Old Testament. In the book, the Israelites marked their doorposts with lamb's blood to protect children from the tenth plague: the slaughter of the firstborn. With the protective mark, the destruction would “pass over” the house.
The word “Passover” comes from a biblical story about the ten plagues God inflicted on Egypt for enslaving the Israelites.
The story of Passover is told in the Bible in chapter 12 of the Book of Exodus.
During a plague, God killed all the firstborn male Egyptians, but spared the homes of the Israelites.
Passover is also sometimes called the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
During Passover, you can only eat unleavened bread called matzah or matzah. According to the Passover story, the Jews did not have time to let the bread ferment before fleeing Egypt.
Passover begins on the 15th day of Nisan, the seventh month of the Jewish calendar, March or April of the Gregorian calendar.
The Jewish people celebrate Passover with a ceremonial meal called the Seder.
At the Seder, foods with symbolic meaning are eaten and traditional prayers and recitations are performed.
The story of the Israelites' flight from Egypt is read at the Seder in a book called Haggadah.
Another Seder tradition is for the youngest child present to ask the four questions about why the Seder night is different from other nights. The answers tell the story of Easter.
