Passover

Passover begins at sundown today. This is an important holiday to followers of Judaism as well as Christianity...

"For years, the popular media has mocked the biblical accounts of Joseph, Moses, the Passover, and the Exodus as being completely incompatible with standard Egyptian chronology. Year after year, we have been told by numerous scholars that events recorded in the books of Genesis and Exodus are nice legends devoid of any historical or archaeological merit. 

However, a new wind is blowing. An emerging pool of scholars, representing diverse backgrounds, has been openly calling for a drastic reduction in Egyptian chronology. Such a reduction would serve to line up the historical and archaeological records of Egypt and the Old Testament. Surprisingly, there is a substantial amount of evidence to warrant a significant reduction of Egyptian history. And by doing so, the reliability of Genesis, Exodus, and the entire Old Testament will have to be reconsidered as a viable source of historical truth.

...In the traditional chronology, the Egyptian oppression of Hebrew slaves would have occurred in the 18^th dynasty. The problem is there is little to no historical evidence of Hebrew slaves in Egypt at this time. However, when placed in the 12^th dynasty under a revised chronology, there is substantial evidence for Israelite slave laborers in Egypt.

There is much more to be read concerning the accounts of Josephus and others here..."

Another interesting article from Rabbi Brad Hirschfield gives us "13 things you need to know for Passover 2013". Including #8 below:


8. Is Passover Only for Jews?
Definitely not!  While Passover marks the birth of the Jewish people as a free nation, it speaks to the larger human impulse to be free, and that is why so many people, both Jewish and not, celebrate the holiday.

In addition to the large number of Jewish families which either include non-Jewish members or welcome non-Jewish guests to their own Passover celebrations, increasing numbers of Christian communities celebrate their own Seders, emulating what must have been an important part of Jesus’ life experience in the first century.