An outline to Eve of Passover and some important reminders about Passover for Greater Boynton Only
Items to ensure, week prior to Passover;
1) Sale of Chometz, in writing, signed and delivered to Rabbi no later than Wednesday, April 16, 12 noon. This sale of Chometz pertains to any place where you own property and certainly not only your residence where you will be for Pesach i.e. a second home, office, or room. Wherever a Jew owns property in which there might be the slightest amount of Chometz, it needs to be sold to a non-Jew.
2) Purchase of Shmurah Matzoh – Hand-made Shmurah Matzoh is that which is watched from the time the wheat is cut in the field until it reaches your Seder table. In fact, it is the exact same Matzoh which our forefathers ate, which we commemorate. At least for the Seder use, where the biblical commandments of eating matzoh is achieved, it is this Matzah which is strongly urged to be used.
Many commentaries are given as to what this special matzoh symbolizes, but the Zohar and Kabbalah are the clearest in their explaining the unmatched power of the eating of this particular type of Matzah. It becomes the bread of Faith and the bread of Good health – two vital components to both the spiritual side of a Jew, and especially one’s good health. Both are ensured by the inculcating, physically, specifically Shmurah Matzoh the first two nights of Pesach, at a minimum.
3) Obviously wine needs also to be purchased. It is much more preferable to use wine than grape juice for the 4 cups. Today wine as low as 4-5% alchohol level can readily be purchased, thus enhancing the mitzvah at a fairly low cost economically and none at all medically.
While ensuring our own needs for the holiday, we need to think of our brethren who might be less fortunate and therefore partake in the giving of Moas Chittim, chrity for those less fortunate to help them in their Passover holiday preparations. Maos Chittim checks can be made to The Rabbi’s discretionary Fund with the memo stating Maos Chittim.
4) Lettuce which is used, Romaine, must be thoroughly checked for insects. There are special brands which can be found in the Kosher markets, where the lettuce is grown in a bug free environment and guaranteed with Rabbinical supervision as being insect free. If unable to obtain this certified lettuce, the tedious and time consuming task to check all the lettuce which will be eaten at the Seder needs to be done in the days prior to the Seder.
5) Chometz, in any form must be put away, out of sight and out of ownership during Pesach. It is forbidden to see it, to find it, or to even have any benefit from it (as in the case of pet food etc.) therefore intense cleaning must be accomplished to ensure that none of the above comes to be. Arrangements to store the chometz which you wish to sell to the goy, including the chometz dishes etc. must be made prior to the holiday, by clearly demarcating and closing off that area or shelves, closets which have the chometz or its utensils. This demarcation needs to be accomplished by Friday as on Shabbos it will be difficult to overcome Halachic challenges, and the demarcation needs to show to all that this area has been sold to the non-Jew and you as a Jew have no relationship to it.
6) Perhaps most important is to disavow yourself from any chometz, through the recitation, in a language which you understand each word, both after the search of your house of chometz on Thursday night and again on Shabbat morning when the final time for its obliteration from your life comes to be. A Jew’s mindset, in his/her mind and heart, and certainly their possession needs to be purged in its entirety of any relationship whatsoever in the slightest amount of anything chometzdik.
7) In today’s day in age with the inexpensive cost of pots, pans, dishes, flatware, and glasses one should definitely purchase special for Pesach utensils and cook ware. Alternatively, one should use cutlery, plates and bowls of plastic and paper. The non stationary items; sinks, ovens, counter tops and cooking utensils is a matter of what their material is. As a general rule anything made of corian, porcelain, china is difficult if not impossible to Kosher. Self Cleaning ovens are to be put on full mode, after they are thoroughly cleaned, and then can be considered Kosher for Pesach.
8) The general rule of Koshering is that is it takes degrees of heat higher than when the prohibited substance was absorbed to extract it from the kosherable utensil. Thus only a kitchen sink of stainless steel, is able to be koshered by pouring boiling water over each section of it so that it purges its chometz. Even so, either liners or aluminum foil should be used on the insides of the sink to try to minimize any contact with food items and the previously chometz sink. Dishwashers, regular ovens are very hard to Kosher. Special free standing ovens can be purchased for Pesach use. In extreme cases a regular over can be koshered, but requires diligent work. Counter tops after being poured with boiling waters should be lined with tinfoil and if a separation of a form of a new countertop, or cutting boards should be obtained. Refrigerators and cupboards need to be cleaned extremely well and lines with tinfoil. Tables should be lined if eating on them. Linen should be thoroughly washed, and without starch.
Thursday, April 17 - The fast for the first born, or the Siyum of a Mesachta which pushes away the need to fast because of the mitzvah of partaking in this festive celebration of completing a tractate of Gemara, a bris, a pidyon haben,. This year, the fast is earlier, on Thursday. We will be having a special siyum on Mesachta Megillah taught by Rabbi Raichik and completed with his entire advanced Talmud studies class. This achievement will be recognized and celebrated after Shachrit on Thursday. Services on Thursday, April 17 are at 8:00 AM. After hearing the siyum, a first born is allowed to eat, as he has partaken in what is followed by a seudat mitzvah. Later in the day the synagogue will be celebrating a bris as well, iy’h.
The search for the Chometz takes place this year on Thursday Night. It is customary to spread 10 pieces of bread wrapped in something flammable, for a number of reasons; a) that there should not be a brocha made in vain in case no chometz is found in the search. B) The number ten according to Kabbalah is a very significant number. While searching one should also have in mind that the search is not only one’s physical Chometz, but ones inner recess’ of the heart where some “prohibited substances” might have taken a place of lodging, and utilize this time to rid oneself of this “chometz” from the inside out.
The search should begin immediately after nightfall. 8:20 PM on Thursday. The blessing is said before the search begins, but one should head for one of the pieces in the closest room situated so that the brocha comes close to its intended purpose, finding the chometz. The first Kol Chameira, verbal nullification, should be recited, in one’s own language, to nullify that which might not have been found “like the dust of the earth” if able the traditional Aramaic can be said as well.
If you are leaving your home for Pesach, prior to Thursday night, one should symbolically search their domicile for chometz, but without the blessing.
Friday, April 18 – The burning of the chometz takes place by 11:38 AM. There will be a communal burning of the Chometz at the shul starting at 11:00 AM at the shul Only that Chometz which one plans to eat for Hamotzi during Shabbat should be saved from burning. The second Kol Chameira is not recited this year at the time of the burning.
During Friday, all of the preparations which would normally take place on the eve of Pesach need to be done during Friday, before Shabbat. Since it is prohibited to prepare on Shabbat for any other day, and obviously those things which entail a desecration of Shabbat cannot be performed. This includes the making of the Charoses, checking of the lettuce, the roasting of the shank bone for the Seder plate, grinding of horseradish for marror and even the refrigeration of those bottles of wine and/or grape juice for the Seder, should be done on Friday. Even the cooking of the egg and the potatoes for the Seder plate should be done Friday so one can go immediately to the Seder once Shabbat has finished and Yom Tov begins. Again, absolutely no Seder preparations may be done on Shabbos for the Seder. Even the setting of the table for the seder cannot be done on Shabbat. If one chooses they can set the table for the seder on Friday, before Shabbat.
The Shabbat meal on Friday night should be of pesachdike food. Any Challah rolls should be carefully watched, especially with small children and should be relegated to one area on one disposable tablecloth. After Kiddush and the eating of the rolls after Hamotzi, the remainder should be discarded. It is not practical to be eating any more Chometz than one has to fulfill Lechem Mishna in an effort to ensure that the home, utensils and eating area and kitchen stay entirely Kosher for Passover.
Shabbat Morning, Shabbat Hagadol, April 19 – Shachrit will be at 7:30 AM to ensure everyone can be headed home by 9:30 AM. The last time allowed to eat the Hamotzi Challah or any chometz is 11:10 AM . By 12:14 PM one is to have disposed of any crumbs or remnants of chometz flushing it out of one’s residence and property via the toilet.
After one disposes of all the chometz left, one should recite with great concentration the Kol Chameira prayer, disavowing, disowning from one’s life, body and property any and all chometz. This should all be accomplished by 12:14 PM. Even one, who is not at home, should say the Kol Chameira at the designated time wherever he/she might be.
After this time, only Kosher for Passover food items are allowed to be eaten.
In our Shul, the customary Shabbat Hagadol Drasha will be one hour prior to Mincha, 6:30 PM. Insights into Pesach, The Haggadah and the Chag will be explored. Men and women are invited.
The Shabbat lighting of the candles by the women are accomplished as on any Friday Night. for Yom Tov, though, one should make a separation between Shabbat and the festival candles by saying the words, Boruch Havdil bein Kodesh L’chol, before lighting the Yom Tov candles and saying Shehechiyanu. One should light the candles from a pre-existing flame, after 8:30 PM.
We wait until Shabbat has ended before setting the Seder table. One can re-heat foods which were cooked on Friday on Yom Tov at this time.
Important Measurements to keep in mind;
Four Cups of wine - 3.3 Fluid ounces of wine need to be drunk in order to fulfill each of the 4 cups of Wine.
Matzoh – for the initial mitzvah of motzei matzoh – a kezayit which is equivalent to 6 inches by 4 inches must be consumed as a minimum, and immediately without talking, after the blessings are made.
Morror – If using Romaine Lettuce the area of 10 inches by 8 inches constitutes the Kzayis needed to fulfill the mitzvah. If using real ground, undiluted, horseradish an amount equal to 1.1. fluid ounces of volume of this horseradish need to be consumed.
The Sandwich – Koraich – The Marror needs to be the portion of a K’zayot as described above in a sandwich of Matzoh 6 inches by 3 inches.
The Afikomen –Two kezaisim need to be eaten each of 6 inches by 4 inches needs to be eaten and preferably before midnight, around 1AM.
Each participant at the seder should have their own cup of wine, for each of the 4 cups and also have their own Haggadah, since there is a special mitzvah to tell the story of the Haggadah on this night, “and all those who do it in great abundance are praiseworthy.”
A Kosher and Frielechen Pesach!!