Pesach - Passover

The most important festival for the family in the Jewish calendar is Passover - Pesach - when almost
every Jewish family gathers together in force to celebrate the liberation of the Jews from their 400 years of slavery in Egypt under the Pharaohs. The Passover Seder, the ceremonial meal, which is prepared with great care and joy, and is rich with symbolism and ritual. This includes eating unleavened bread, or matzah for the eight days of Passover, symbolising the "bread of affliction" which had no time to rise when the Jews fled from the Egyptians.

The most beautiful things the family owns should be on the table, to produce pleasure and contentment, and strangers are welcomed into the family circle to enjoy the abundance of food. There is philosophical reflection on the nature of slavery and liberty. The seder is a sensual, intellectual and spiritual feast.

At the family seder, the Haggadah, a special literary text containing the story of the Exodus as well as much Jewish wisdom from down the ages, is read from by the whole family, including the small children. To quote from the preface of one of the hundreds of different Haggadot (plural form): "the seder, the ceremonial feast of Passover, is an incomparable religious creation. It represents the unique artistry of the Jewish soul."

Haggadot and the tale of the Exodus have always been an outlet for artists, graphic designers and musicians. No other Jewish book, with the exception of the Bible, has been printed as often or in as many languages.