Religious texts sent from Israel to Bnei Menashe community
Jerusalem: Hundreds of Kilogrammes of ‘matzah’ (unleavened bread) and copies of ‘Hagaddah’ –text recounting the Jewish people’s Exodus from Egypt– with explanatory notes in the Mizo and Thadou-Kuki languages have been despatched to India for the Bnei Menashe community to celebrate Passover.
The new ‘Haggadah’ has been published by a Jewish organisation, Shavei Israel, which has helped people from the Bnei Menashe community immigrate to Israel from Manipur and Mizoram during the last 15 years.
“Members of the Bnei Menashe community will now have a user-friendly guide for participating in the Passover Seder,” Shavei Israel Chairman, Michael Freund, told PTI.
“Passover is ripe with meaning for the Bnei Menashe, who long to return to the land of their ancestors, the Land of Israel. So we hope this new Haggadah will enable them to better observe and understand the holiday’s rituals and symbolism,” Freund said.
The unleavened bread, ‘matzah’, especially used during the weeklong celebrations, commemorates the fact that the Jews leaving Egypt were in a hurry, and did not have time to let their bread rise.
It is also symbolic of removing the “puffiness” (arrogance, pride) from souls.