Guyana’s Hebrew community last Monday evening joined millions around the world to remember the delivery of their people from Egypt following the ushering of its Hebrew New Year.
The ushering-in service was held at the Hebrew Family of Guyana Culture Center after the crescent moon had been sighted.
According to a release from the center, the New Year is an occasion to reflect and remember the wonderful acts of the Lord, on behalf of the community’s forefathers.
“It’s important because it is a memorial for when our fore-parents were delivered from Egypt,” Athalyah Yisral, member of the center’s management committee, said. “It’s the time when we are reassured that the Creator delivered us in the past and will deliver us in the future.”
In commemoration of the event, persons worldwide will observe the Passover Night Feast and the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days.
In preparation for Passover, observers will undergo not only a physical but also a spiritual cleansing during a period of spring cleaning. During the Passover period, commemorators must appease their appetites with fresh foods daily. Foods containing leavening agents as well as processed and fermented foods are prohibited. The memorial season will end on April 21 following the Passover week beginning on April 14.
