Monday, April 22, 2024
Elder of ZiyonHere is one of the earliest descriptions of how Jews celebrate Passover I could find in a newspaper account. From The Bath Chronicle, Bath, Avon, England , April 16, 1789:
Friday in the evening the celebration of the Jewish Feast of the Passover commenced, and which continues eight days. Previous to this their houses are searched in the most careful manner, that no manner of leaven may remain during the feast. It is on this account that every Kind of vessel or utensil used to put leaven in, are exposed to sale; and none but new ones substituted, or such as have been reserved from one Passover to another.
Then comes mention of a custom among Christians that I had never heard of, and cannot find any other mention of.
The Passover Cakes that are so copiously exposed to sale at this time are made of flour and water only, without either yeast or salt ; and it is a remarkable custom introduced among the lower classes of Christians, within a few years past, of hanging up some of the Passover cakes (which are generally perforated) in their apartments, under the notion, that while these are carefully preserved, they will never want bread.
Well, I can verify that matzoh tastes exactly the same after several years in an unopened box. If the matzah is hung carefully, the homeowner indeed would never be without bread.*
It is possible that the Christians got the custom from Jews who would bake a matzah-like cracker on the day before Passover to create an eruv chatzeirot where communal bread would be gathered and in some communities hung on the wall of the the synagogue; the custom was for it to last an entire year.
The description goes on:
As no liquor prepared from any grain is allowable at this time among Jews, fair water, to raisin wine, is substituted.The immediate celebration of this feast consists in the decoration of the tables in private houses with the Passover cake, and some bitter herbs, which, upon their beginning to eat, the master of the family, &c., takes a glass of wine in his band, and says a Grace appointed for the occasion, concluding the whole with suitable Psalms, &c, &c. The publick celebration at Synagogue consists of Prayers, the reading of the law, and other portions.of Scripture; and this, on all festivals, is performed three times a day. No manner of work is perinittcd to be done upon the two first and the last days of this feast; but as soon as the evening of the last is over, they may again eat any manner of leaven as usual,.
In case you are wondering, "&c." used to be a popular way of writing "etc."
* It is actually not so clear that matzah in 1789 England was the hard cracker like matzah of today. Matzah at that time was thin but not necessarily hard; from various sources it appears that soft matzah would go bad or moldy like bread would and making it on Passover itself would be difficult, so over time the cracker-type became more popular since it was easier to manufacture ahead of time and to store.
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