* * Passover in Mom's dining room

On Good Friday evening, my family got together at my parents’ house for our annual observance of Passover. For me, it has always been Mom’s special event.

Doris Sara Tatarsky Abraham was born and raised in Richmond. Descendants of eastern European Jews, they were part of a group of people who found freedom from persecution in the late 19^th Century unique in the world. I spoke with Mom about her recollections.

“My earliest memories of Passover were from Seder at my grandmother’s house on Stuart Avenue, near the Boulevard in the Near West End. She was my paternal grandmother. In the era of my ancestors, Jews had already been in Richmond for generations.”

Richmond’s Reform Congregation Beth Ahabah was founded in 1789 by immigrants from Spain and Portugal and is one of the oldest synagogues in the nation. From the earliest days of America, our nation was seen as a refuge from Jews who had largely been discriminated against for centuries around the world.

The following year, new President George Washington wrote a letter to the Hebrew Congregations of Newport, Rhode Island telling them essentially that in this nascent republic, the Jews were not to be “tolerated” as a minority but in fact as full and complete citizens. Washington wrote, “…happily the Government of the United States gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.” This was unique and marvelous, quickly establishing the United States of America as the New Jerusalem.

Mom’s people came in later migrations from Russia, Poland, Ukraine, and other eastern European nations in the mid- to late-1800s. Richmond, along with Baltimore, New York, Atlanta, and several other cities, became vital enclaves.

“My grandparents,” Mom continued, “were all born around the time of the end of the Civil War. All my grandparents were from Poland and the Ukraine. I think they came as young adults.

“My Daddy was one of eight (children). All but two lived in Richmond. It was the largest event for the family. Grandma had a big house. The adults all sat in the dining room. My two first cousins, my sister Gladys, and I sat around a card table in the living room. My dad’s brother, Uncle Nat, conducted the service.” The service involves a series of recitations and prayers, sprinkled with mandatory cups of wine.

The Seder is a rich celebration involving a feast, commemorating the Jew’s escape from bondage under the Egyptians. Moses parted the Red Sea in the first Great Escape! The Jews escaped in such haste as to not have time to bake bread. They ate their grain in unleavened bread, the matzoh, which is the primary food even at contemporary Seders. Jesus’ Last Supper is thought to have been a Seder celebration, as he and his disciples were Jewish. 

Mom said that with her father’s five sisters, the event was matriarchal. The women spent considerable time in the procurement and preparation of the feast. A typical grocery list, for both the ceremony and the meal itself, might include a bitter herb like horseradish root, parsley, eggs, lamb bones, charoses (apple, nuts, wine, and cinnamon), and celery, all with symbolism.

Nowadays, in addition to the aforementioned ingredients, mom’s shopping list for the meal includes chicken, asparagus, new potatoes, matzoh meal, carrots, gefilte fish, lettuce, onions, horseradish, tomatoes, and radishes. It’s a full four-course meal that mom takes days to prepare, and nobody leaves the table hungry. Mom uses her best silverware and china. 

This year’s guest list included my older brother and his lady, my wife, daughter, and me, my sister and her husband and daughter, my parents, and one of Mom’s friends.

“My memories are family get-togethers. That’s what makes it nice for me now, to be able to share it with my family. If nobody was going to be here, I wouldn’t do it. Passover is the only major Jewish holiday that is celebrated in the home rather than in the synagogue. Having family is what makes it special. A couple of years, we’ve had close Christian friends to have Seder with us. We’ve enjoyed having them as much as they seem to enjoy being with us. You can share with your friends even if they worship different than you do.”

Mom recently celebrated the 47^th anniversary of her 39^th birthday. Age weighs on us all. No telling how much longer she’ll be able to do this, but every year is a new blessing.

“Passover is the story of the liberation of our people from slavery, from the tyranny of the Egyptian Pharaoh,” Mom said. “It is a sad irony that prior to the Civil War, some southern Jews owned black slaves. How can a people who have been enslaved ever enslave others?”