The Passover test and The Passion of Passover

These two articles were originally written for Slate's Faith Based. The new article, dealing with the "Passover test" of intermarried couples was published yesterday, the one about Passover and Easter was published last year. I'm adding it here for the benefit of those who did not have the opportunity to read it. There's also a link to a blog from last year in which readers reacted to The Passion of Passover.

Have a Happy Pesach.

From: The Passover Test

"The correlation between the Hanukkah-candle lighting and the Passover Seder - the two most practiced rituals among American Jews - is interesting. Hanukkah is more popular for most Jewish groups. The reason is clear: The holiday competes with Christmas. However, the more affiliated the group, the narrower the gap between these two practices. The "highly affiliated" is the only group in which Seder attendance surpasses Hanukkah candle lighting (96 percent to 94 percent, according to the National Jewish Population Survey). For the intermarried - couples with one Christian spouse - the gap between the two practices is the widest (85 percent celebrate Hanukkah; 41 percent celebrate Passover). "

Read the article here.

From: The Passion of the Passover

"Passover may not be threatened - but that's not necessarily a good thing if one worries about its future status. In reality, the long shadow of Christmas really was a second Hanukkah miracle. While a fairly small minority of Jews have tried to de-emphasize the holiday to prevent it from becoming "the Jewish Christmas," most Jewish leaders and communities continue to elevate it to counterbalance the magnetism of Christmas. Unsurprisingly, the data show that the Passover Seder is observed by a higher number of "highly affiliated" Jews. However, among the "moderately affiliated" and the "nonaffiliated" - those who are more inclined to be influenced by the power of Christmas - it is Hanukkah that's celebrated more feverishly. They need it to make it possible for them to survive the Christmas allure."

Read it here.

From: Readers react to the Passion of the Passover

"I thought you might be interested to know that we in my church as well as some other churches in our area do observe the Passover (to a degree) as part of our Holy Week observance leading up to Easter. While it may be a watered down version of the Passover service that you observe, we do it to pay respects to the Jewish roots of our faith. It is a way to reenact the Passover observance of Jesus and his disciples on the night before his crucifixion. The Seder is a beautiful service that I have come to look forward to every year."

Read it here.