Passover and Easter
A Conversation between Board Members Reverend Jesse Garner and Rabbi Reena Spicehandlera
Spring has officially arrived. With this warmer weather, budding flowers, and longer days, we welcome two central holidays of the Jewish and Christian traditions: Passover and Easter.
Reverend Jesse Garner, of the First Presbyterian Church in Center City, and Rabbi Reena Spicehandler, interim Rabbi at Temple Sholom, came together for a conversation exploring the unique aspects of, and connections between, these holidays.
Rabbi Spicehandler said, “One part of the seder says, all who are hungry, come and eat. This year, with all the economic uncertainty, this takes on special significance. Also, the things that we celebrate at Passover and Easter - family, rebirth, deepening spirituality, springtime - all these can help us focus on what we have, rather than what we don’t have.” Reverend Garner added, “At this moment in history, Easter stands before us as a promise that there’s always hope.”
During the conversation, Reverend Garner explained that Easter is the culmination of a series of days known as “Holy Week,” which commemorate the final days of Jesus’ life as well as his death, burial and resurrection. He said, “After remembering Jesus’ death on Good Friday, there is something especially joyful about Easter Sunday, because on Easter, Christians celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and triumph over death. There’s no question: it is the most important holiday in the Christian calendar and more people come to church on Easter than at any other time.”
Rabbi Spicehandler explained that Passover is a seven-day festival. She said, “Historically, it commemorates the freedom of the Jews from Egypt - when they left Egypt with Moses.” This holiday goes through the events leading up to the exodus, in the form of a ritual known as a “seder,” which is typically held in peoples’ homes. Rabbi Spicehandler’s family does most of the “service” in Hebrew, and she and her husband buy a different haggadah each year (the traditional book that guides the telling of the story, used during the Passover seder).
Reverend Garner and Rabbi Spicehandler spoke about how the holidays present related themes - both focus on birth and re-birth, whether through Jesus’ resurrection, or the Jews’ escape from Egypt. They also reflected on the ways in which Passover and Easter have related in the past around the world.
Rabbi Spicehandler discussed the fact that Passover was frequently a time when Jews were persecuted by Christians, because all of the seemingly strange customs, like eating matzah (the flat, unleavened bread that Jews eat during Passover).
She said, “Today we’ve made many strides in mutual understanding, but there’s great potential for holding up this time period each year as an opportunity for sharing our religious traditions with one another.” |
