How to Celebrate Passover

Passover, or Pesach in Hebrew, commemorates the Jews' exodus from Egypt more than 3,000 years ago. It ranks as one of the most important and beloved of all Jewish holidays, and it's definitely the one with the most elaborate domestic rituals. Passover begins on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan and lasts for seven or eight days (see Tips).

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Haggadahs
• Seder Plates
• Matzohs
• Matzah Trays
• Cup Of Elijah
• Passover Music CDs

1. Clean your house thoroughly before Passover begins.

2. Remove all traces of prohibited food, called chametz (any leavened products, including grains, bread, cereal, vinegar, cornstarch and alcohol).

3. Brush the last crumbs into a disposal bag with a feather or a palm branch, saying, "All leaven I have not seen or removed or that I don't know about is hereby null and void and ownerless as the dust of the earth." Then burn the chametz.

4. Conduct a final search for chametz and store it in a remote, sealed-off part of the house. "Sell" the chametz to a non-Jewish friend to be redeemed after Passover.

5. Fast on the day before Passover if you are the firstborn male in your family. This custom commemorates the fact that the firstborn Jewish males in Egypt were not killed during the final plague.

6. Eat no chametz at any time during the seven or eight days of Passover. (See "How to Keep Kosher for Passover," under Related eHows.)

7. Refrain from all work on the first and last days of Passover. You may work on the intermediate days, which are called Chol Ha-Mo'ed.

8. Hold a Seder on the first night of Passover, or attend someone else's. (See "How to Conduct a Passover Seder," under Related eHows.)

Tips & Warnings

• Reform Jews and all Jews in Israel follow the Torah's injunction to observe Passover for seven days. Orthodox and Conservative Jews outside Israel observe an eight-day holiday.

• Orthodox, Conservative and Reform customs vary. Even within each tradition, every family has its own way of observing Passover. At one end of the scale are those who simply refrain from eating leavened bread; at the other end are those who eat only food designated kosher for Passover, with dishes and utensils used at no other time of the year. Most Jews follow a path somewhere in the middle.

• Normally the Seder takes place at home on the first night of Passover. Many people also hold Seders at home on the second night; others attend one at their synagogue.

• This is a greatly simplified overview of Passover. For a more in-depth look at the holiday, its history and its rituals, see some of the many excellent books on the subject (including Ira Steingroot's "Keeping Passover").

• Because the English versions of Jewish terms are translations from Hebrew, spellings vary, but never enough to make them unrecognizable. For instance, chametz is often spelled chometz. Both versions are correct.