Passover

The first and last days of the festival.

Yes.

During Passover we relive the Exodus from Egypt and our birth as a nation, both of which were preparations for receiving the Torah from God.

The highlight of Passover is the Seder meal. This meal is of great importance in Judaism. It is a 3325-year old continuous tradition that began on the night of the Exodus from Egypt (see Exodus chapter 12), and is fully detailed in our ancient Oral Traditions (Talmud, chapter Arvei Pesachim).

The Seder meal is one of those occasions, like Yom Kippur and Hanukkah, that Jews all over the world, Orthodox and non-Orthodox alike, observe in common. During the Seder, we keep the essential mitzva and customs of handing Jewish traditions down to the next generation, with the traditional Seder foods and the ceremony of reading the Passover Haggadah which retells the events of the Exodus.

During the Seder meal, other traditional foods are eaten in addition to the matzah: bitter herbs, parsley, wine and haroset (see below). Salt water, a roasted egg, and a bit of roasted meat are also on the table.

During all the days of Passover, matzah (unleavened bread) is eaten; while leavened foods such as bread, cake, cookies, cereal and pasta are forbidden. Certain prayers are added in the synagogue services, and the Torah is read each day.

Here is the symbolism of the items on the Seder plate:

The bitter herbs (maror) symbolize the harsh slavery which the Israelites suffered in Egypt. Either horseradish or romaine lettuce is traditionally used for maror.

Charoset - A sweet mixture representing the mortar used by the Jewish slaves to build the storehouses of Egypt. In Ashkenazi Jewish homes, charoset is traditionally made from chopped nuts, grated apples, cinnamon, and sweet red wine.

Karpas - A vegetable other than bitter herbs, traditionally parsley, which is dipped into salt water at the beginning of the Seder. The dipping of a simple vegetable into salt water (which represents tears) recalls the pain felt by the Jewish slaves in Egypt.

Beitzah - A hard-boiled egg, symbolizing the korban chagigah (festival sacrifice) that was offered in the Temple in Jerusalem and roasted and eaten as part of the meal on Seder night. Although both the Pesach sacrifice and the chagigah were meat offerings, the chagigah is commemorated by an egg, a symbol of mourning.

Z'roa - A roasted lamb or goat shank-bone, chicken wing, or chicken neck; symbolizing the korban Pesach (Pesach sacrifice), which was a lamb that was offered in the Temple in Jerusalem, then roasted and eaten as part of the meal on Seder night.

Charoset is the sweet dark colored paste made of fruit (usually apples), walnuts, honey, and wine. It's symbolic of the mortar used to hold together the bricks Jews made in Egypt.

This is because before the Exodus from Egypt when the 1st plague (water turning to blood) arrived, the Jews would put lamb's blood on their door so God would know to give them water (and not blood)

As all good Jews would, Jesus would not have missed Passover.

Shavuoth is the fiftieth day after the second day of Passover.

Yes, it can be since it is made from wine, which can be Kosher for passover if created under appropriate supervision. The bottle would require a kosher for Passover hechsher.

yes

Seven days, compared to eight in the Diaspora.

Say the number of which it is and then say the plague

Passover is usually only celebrated by Jews

There is no prohibition against carbs during Passover. There's matzah, matzah products (meal, cake meal), products made with potato and tapioca starch, potatoes, and other items.

I believe so

No, tortillas and other flat breads are chametz.

In America and every other non-Jewish nation, yes the post office runs during Passover. However in Israel the post office is closed the first day and the last day of Passover.

It depends on the person, but most people who feel an attachment to their customs would be upset if they couldn't observe them. There is also a second Passover to allow those who couldn't celebrate it a second opportunity, this is called Pesach Shenei.

Sadly, just as is the case with followers of any religion, some Jews have the idea that simply being Jewish makes them better than people who are not Jewish. This is actually a very unJewish idea, since Judaism commands its followers to respect others regardless of their beliefs and even states that it is easier for those who are not Jewish to get into Heaven. While I have met some Jews who seem to have a real problem with non-Jews, they are thankfully very much in the minority.

Moses is not mention in the Haggadah because we are supposed to focus on HaShem and what He did for us.

Some Christian congregations seek to find meaning in the Jewish celebration of Passover by engaging in "seder meals" that try to replicate the Last Supper which, according to some authorities, was a Seder. Whether or not this is true is not the answer to this question. But it does raise the issue of whether or not there needs to be a Christian Seder.

Other Christian congregations create their own "talk feast" (the Greek antecedent to the Passover Seder) that usurp Jewish symbols and imbue them with Christian interpretations. This is totally inappropriate, and many Jews feel insulted when they learn of these (ab)uses of their traditions.

My answer to this overall question is "no" and here is why. The Seder is a Jewish celebration commemorating an event, legendary or real, in the life of the Jewish people. As such, it would be inappropriate for a Christian denomination to adopt the Seder to any purpose other than understanding their own scriptural roots or their Jewish neighbors. I am not sensitive enough to the need of understanding the Seder in context of the Last Supper; I just don't get the connection myself. But if a Christian congregation wishes to know what the Passover Seder is like in order to get a flavor of the context of biblical times, that would be fine.

There is a danger of changing the Jewish Seder into a Christian observance, and this would be wrong. So, no, there would be no need or use for a Christian Seder.

Preparing for Passover can happen ANY day of the week. You go to the Hebrew Calendar to check for the dates. If Passover falls on Friday, make sure you're ready BEFORE Shabbat at sundown.

Like most religious traditions, removing Chametz before Passover is symbolic and relates to the same reason that Jews do not eat Chametz, or leavened food products, during passover. When the Jews split from Egypt, they were in a bit of a hurry. Without time to prepare, legend has it that they could only make the most basic of breads, without allowing the bread time to rise. Essentially, they at Matzo. In commemoration of their plight, and in celebration of their freedom, Jews eat matzo during Passover as a way of joining their ancestors both for the joy of freedom, the sadness at the losses of the Egyptians, and the pain at the conditions of the departure. Removing the leavened food products, most notably bread, is similar to the way that the fleeing Jews left behind many of the things they enjoyed, including such foods.