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Two the best known Jewish celebrations are Passover and Hannuka. These two traditional holidays perhaps represent the essential Jewish spirit. Passover is especially important as one of the most critical cultural vehicles that assistedthe the Jewish people in the Diaspora to maintain their national identity over more than 2,000 years.
Passover is widely celebrated by Jews around the world, both religious and secular Jews. Almost all Israeli Jews celebrate the Seder each year. The celebration is so widespread because Passover is both a religious and national holiday. The basic theme is liberation from slavery and formation of a nation through divine intervention. And is a perfect examole of how religious, national and social issues are closely interwoven in Judaism regardless of how Jewish relgious precepts have changed over time. Modern historians debate whether or not the Exodus from Egypt as described in the Bible actually occurred. Some also question whether or not Moses actually existed. And they debate precisely which Paroah may have been involved. It will probably be impossible to ever settle this debate with any degree of certainty. There certainly are many historical myths that never have occurred. Others such as the Trojan War have actually been confirmed by archeologists. And other archeologists have found many sites in the Levant that seem to correspond to locations described in the Bible.
Whether are not the events ever actually occurred, there is an essential truth in the Pessah holiday. Every country has their national myths and they are often fashioned to conform to the image that they want for themselves. The Roman foundation myths depicted themselves as descended from gods or Greek heros of the Trojan war. More modern countries can point to actual events, but those evebnts are often highly altered from the actual occurances. The basic Jewish "myth" is that they were made slaves in Egypt and that they achieved nationhood with God's support through a struggle against seemingly undefeatable forces.
The theme of the just few against the unjust many is repeated again and again in Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments. It appears in the Jewish-inspired teachings of Jesus and thus passed into Western Civilization. And is an element in the ideals of democracy and social justice that eventuall emerged in the West.
The story of Passover in Exodus was not lost upon the enslaved Africans brought to the New World. For nearly 2000 years since the Roman conquest, the Jewish people have swore, "Next Year in Jerusalem".
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