How to Perform the Karpas Ritual for Passover

Seder is the meal eaten during the first night of the Passover holiday. It is celebrated by Jews and Christians alike, although rituals vary slightly at the Christian Seder. Passover celebrates the freeing of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Here are some ideas for performing the Karpas Ritual for Passover.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Salad green for each place setting, usually parsley
• Bowl of salt water for each place setting
• Bowl of sweet dressing for each place setting
• Child to ask the question
• Presider to perform the ritual

1. Designate a child to ask this question of the person who is presiding over the Seder: "Why do we have these salad greens?"

2. Listen to the presider's answer: "The salad greens remind us of springtime and new life. The first Passover was a new springtime of hope for God's people, and in a similar way, Easter represents a new springtime for all of humankind. We will taste a bit of salad green."

3. Follow the presider's lead as he or she dips a piece of salad greens into the plate of salt water, saying "This represents the bitter tears of the enslaved Israelites." Eat part of the salad green.

4. Listen while the presider holds up a second piece of salad green for a blessing. "May Jesus, our eternal springtime, bless these greens and all of us who eat them. May we never lose sight of this great hope He puts into our hearts today."

5. Dip the salad green in the bowl of sweet dressing and eat a piece of it.

Tips & Warnings

• An alternate interpretation is that the karpas represents Joseph's fine garment, which is dipped in blood by his envious brothers to make his father believe that Joseph had been killed instead of being sold into slavery. The slavery of Joseph represents the slavery of the Israelites.
• The Jewish Seder may not include the portion of the ritual involving dipping the karpas into sweet dressing nor the mention of Christ and Easter.