I was invited  to Passover dinner last Tuesday.  This dinner is called a Seder and for the first time I learned that this word means “order”. Certain foods are always served and theses olds have a symbolic meaning.  The picture shows a decorative ritual plate put in the centre of the table.  On this plate are pictures of the pharaoh of Egypt because this feast celebrates the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery under the Egyptians.  Spots on the plate are reserved for an egg, bitter herbs, a shank bone of lamb, a wonderful chopped dish of fruits that symbolizes the mortar used in the building of the pyramids.  Many of you know these traditions and I will not go into the prayers, songs and toasts that go on through the meal.

The point I want to make is how much of these beautiful traditions are carried into Christian celebrations.  This year many of us are celebrating together.  Jews and  Western and Eastern Christians are all remembering, repeating and modifying the traditions passed down to us over thousands of years.

Today, Holy Saturday, I was so happy to be with my daughters and my beloved grandchildren to dye these lovely Easter eggs.  Spring is here.

All is in order.  The moon that determines the dates of our festivals is beautiful these days.  Birds have begun to sing and to search for mates, buds are swelling on my lilac tree.  There is love in my life and for all the chaos, for just a day or two, Spring has brought order.