There are no three holidays in Jewish tradition that would be so important and so closely related to one another as Holocaust Memorial Day (Yom Hashoah), Israeli Memorial Day (Yom Hazikaron) and Israeli Independence Day (Yom Ha’atzmaut).

Holocaust Memorial Day is a mournful holiday in which Jewish people commemorate their fellow countryman who fell a victim of Nazis’ merciless brutality and terror in the WWII. The holiday is marked on the 27th of the Hebrew month Nisan, which falls on the 12th of April in 2010. It is the day when Israel puts on its mourning band: flags are lowered; prayers are uttered; government officials address to the public and express their sorrow; six torches are raised above Israel for the six million victims of Holocaust; and people hang their heads and stand to the sound of sirens for 2 minutes all over the country to express their grief and respect for the dead. Since there are holocaust victims in other countries, many Israeli people traditionally meet for demonstration and participate in various ceremonies outside of Israel, particularly in Poland and Germany.

A similar holiday, Israeli Memorial Day, commemorates fallen soldiers who fought for nation’s independence in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Even though Israel’s independence was proclaimed in 1948, there were still numerous victims of terror who protected Israeli people from those who dispute this nation’s right for independence. That is why this holiday is followed by the Independence Day, which symbolizes that these noble soldiers’ blood was not shed in vain. Their heroic deeds still help the nation be free and independent after a long range of Arab oppressions. The traditions and ceremonies of this day are very similar to those observed in Israel on the Holocaust Memorial Day. The holiday is on the 4th day of the Hebrew month Iyar, which is the 19th of April in 2010.
Israeli Independence Day, which is held on the next day after Israeli Memorial Day, or rather starts at the sunset of the same day, is a holiday of joy and happiness when people celebrate independence of their country by various performances, dances, marches and fireworks that illuminate almost every Israeli city.
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Jewish Passover, or Pesach, is celebrated up to these days to keep alive the memory of the great liberation that took place in the Jewish history - the day when ancient Hebrew people cast off the yoke of Egyptians and became free with the help of God and the prophet Moses. The Jewish Passover celebrates the miracle of Jewish people's freedom and independence. It is an eight-day holiday that starts on the 15th of the first month of the Jewish year, Nisan (in March or April). The history of this holiday goes back to the time when Jewish people were held in servitude by Egyptian pharaohs. They were used as slaves to build pyramids, do hard exhausting work and serve Egyptians.

Only after 10 plagues sent by God did the Egyptian Pharaoh, Ramses II, let Jewish slaves go free and leave his lands. The 10th plague was sent to slay the Egyptian firstborns. Jewish people were to put fresh blood of a spring lamb on their doorway, so that the holy spirit would not kill their firstborns. That is how God "passed over" Jewish houses and did not harm them. When Jewish people left Egypt, they could cook and eat only Matza, the bread made of unleavened dough. After a lot of travel and attempts to escape Egyptians, Jewish people found their way out of desert sands through the bottom of the Red Sea.

Since then Jewish Passover has become a holiday of freedom for most Jewish people. In order to prepare yourself for the celebration of Jewish Passover, you need to find and burn all the leavened bread in your house the day before the Passover. However, now Jewish people prefer to give their bread away to the needy, sell it to people of other religions or finish it before the holiday instead of burning it. It takes a lot of time and effort to prepare the traditional Jewish Passover meal, Seder.

That is why Jewish people buy required ingredients and prepare the menu several days in advance. Since the whole family has to get together for such an important holiday, most family members make travel arrangements and plan their meeting in someone's big house. In this respect the Passover is like a great family reunion that unites Jewish families for as long as the tradition is observed. Read more...