Festivals to Remember

 The Jewish feasts are a fascinating topic. In the Old Testament, God instituted many feasts which were either pilgrimage feasts to Jerusalem or appointed times of national celebration called Moedim. Some biblical feasts were not instituted in the Tanak - the five first books of the Jewish Law, and one of these was the feast of Purim.

Students gather together for a Purim celebration

On Purim, we were all seated around long tables in the shape of a square with confetti and party props strewn everywhere. Normally, these tables would be lined in rows and we would all be facing the front of the classroom learning about Biblical geography, Hebrew, or Jesus’ life, but today after class, it was time for reading and celebration.

I haven’t written much about Jewish culture in this blog until now. Much of my focus has been on the ancient sites of the Bible and the different lessons I learned from them. But so much of the history of the Bible is also tied up in its celebrations. In America, we aren’t strangers to holidays. Most of them, Christmas or the Fourth of July for instance, began as remembrances of specific events. But over the years, they’ve become more about taking a break from work to spend time and eat food with friends and family than remembering the event that initiated the celebration. However, the Jewish holidays have been preserved for thousands of years. Although we may consider some of the traditions strange, their uniqueness has kept the holiday alive and focused for the most part.

One such holiday is known as Purim. This is the celebration of the story of Esther. Festivities usually include dressing up in costumes–like on Halloween but without the creepiness, dramatically reading the book of Esther together, giving to the poor, and eating a special cookie known as Hamentashen or “Haman’s ears.”

But why does the small book of Esther get its own holiday? The answer can be found in the book itself. Chapter nine explains how Haman's evil plot to destroy the Jews is overturned and the Jews kill their enemies. Afterward, Mordecai sends letters to all the regions of King Ahasuerus, obliging Jews to keep the 14th of Adar as a day to feast, send gifts to one another, and give to the poor. This Festival is called Purim because Haman chose when he would destroy the Jews by casting lots, called “pur.” Therefore, Mordecai instituted this holiday as a constant reminder of deliverance from their enemies' wicked plot. Esther 9:27-28 reports, “

The Jews firmly obligated themselves and their offspring and all who joined them, that without fail they would keep these two days according to what was written and at the time appointed every year, that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, in every clan, province, and city, and that these days of Purim should never fall into disuse among the Jews, nor should the commemoration of these days cease among their descendants” (ESV). 

They have kept their vow. Today, all across the country of Israel in early spring, families and schools gather to read Esther and celebrate. We had our own celebration led by our Jewish Thought and Culture instructor named Ariel (A-ree-el). His family has a special tradition of giving different reactions when certain names are read in the narrative. Some of these, like shouting for Mordecai and booing Haman, are common in readings. But they add others like sneezing “achoo” for Ahasuerus, saying “aww” for Esther, or waving your finger back and forth for Queen Vashti. 

Reading the whole book through like this was a new experience for me. After we finished, we talked about some of the messages of the book. Through the story, we can see God’s hand at work so clearly, and yet the book doesn’t mention His name once. 

A month later we were in the classroom again with the tables in the same configuration. This time, we were celebrating Pesach, a much more important holiday for the Jewish people. Pesach, or Passover, might be the most important holiday when it comes to the Jewish religion. In short, it is the celebration of God’s rescue of his people from slavery in Egypt as recorded in Exodus, but there is so much more to the holiday than just that.

Our preparation for the Passover - normally the 
setting is ornate but not so much for students

A Pesach meal happens on the night of the fourteenth of Nissan, the first month in the Jewish calendar. Preparations start that week and especially the day before. Families must prepare for their “Seder meal” by concocting a meal and ridding the house of all leaven. This tradition comes from the story of the night before the Hebrews left Egypt. They didn’t have time to let their bread rise, so they had to bake it without leaven. Essentially, it was only flour and water.

As we began our own meal, Ariel’s wife, Devora explained another meaning behind the unleavened bread we were eating that night - Matzah. “By eating the Matzah, we are eating of ourselves,” she said, “we are just essence.” In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul discusses a problem of sexual immorality in the Corinthian church. He frames the issue in light of this idea of us being Matzah. “Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened” (vv.6,7). We are simply what God made us to be and not the yeast of sin which will only fester and deform us. 

Everything we did on that night was to remind us of the story of the Exodus. We ate parsley dipped in salt water to remind us of the tears of the slaves in Egypt. Later we ate bitter herbs and a sweet apple-walnut mixture called Charoset. The herbs showed us the bitterness of slavery in Egypt. We were supposed to eat enough so we would get to the point of tearing up, so I scooped up a huge purple glob on a piece of Matzah and bit down. After the first two bites, a tingling sensation began and I started feeling the tears. My stomach was aching after finishing it. The Charoset reminded us of the deceptive sweetness of life in Egypt. Even though they were in the fertile land of Goshen, by the Nile Delta, the Israelites were slaves to a foreign power. 

The Matzah, purple bitter herbs, and Charoset were
all reminders of the story of the Exodus.

God rescues them from this power with his own “mighty hand and outstretched arm.” He delivered them from the hand of Pharaoh by sending 10 horrible plagues on the Egyptians. We remembered this by dipping our fingers into our cups ten times and putting a row of dots on our plates. Although these plagues were meant to free Israel, we were still to remember the pain of their enemies. We couldn’t lick the “wine” off of our fingers because doing so would give us pleasure from the Egyptians’ pain.

The rest of the night was full of similar reminders. A Pesach dinner wouldn’t be the same without music. Ariel led us through several Hebrew songs, most of which I had never heard and wouldn’t understand if I didn’t have the translation in front of me. 

As we ended the night, we finished two final cups of the four that were drunk during the Passover meal. Each of these cups has a name. Ariel said that the third of these cups is the one Jesus took and gave to his disciples, saying “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28 ESV). Interestingly enough, this third cup is called the Cup of Redemption. We contemplated once more what Christ had done the night of Passover with his disciples. It’s impossible to miss the symbolism. As God passed over the Israelites who had the blood of a spotless lamb on their door so long ago, He also delivered us through the perfect blood of Christ. 

Paul’s message to the church in 1 Corinthians 5 continues thus, “For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (vv. 7b-8 ESV).