"What is Passover?" (this question comes from Ami, a student at encare)

Passover is a Jewish festival of freedom remembering when the Jews were led out of Egypt and out of slavery by Moses. It's an eight-day festival celebrated at the first full moon after the Vernal Equinox. According to legend, an angel "passed over" the homes of the Jews which were marked with the blood obtained from animal sacrifice. The same angel murdered the first-born son and first-born animals of every Egyptian family whose doorway was not marked.

Passover is always in March or April, around the same time as Easter. Many non-religious Americans celebrate Easter, but Passover is mainly celebrated by practicing Jews.

Although my father's side is Jewish (and I have a very Jewish last name--Levine), he didn't grow up in a Jewish environment. My mother's family is Protestant. To be recognized as a Jew, I would have to convert to Judaism because my mother isn't Jewish.