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Published on Tuesday, 06 December 2011 05:27 | Written by Vernon Gillispie | | | Hits: 7036
Kashering
Observance of Passover (Pesach) has been customary in many Jewish homes for centuries. An important part of this observance is cleaning the house, dishes, utensils, stoves, refrigerators, freezers, and food storage areas. There are numerous books, articles and web sites detailing this process. In addition to the resources already cited in my material I consulted The Quintessential Kashering Primer at Kashrut.com edited by Rabbi David Cohen.
This custom of intensive cleaning has developed and been passed down through teaching derived from Torah (first five books of the Bible).
25 "Say to Aaron and his sons: 'These are the regulations for the sin offering: The sin offering is to be slaughtered before the LORD in the place the burnt offering is slaughtered; it is most holy.
26 The priest who offers it shall eat it; it is to be eaten in a holy place, in the courtyard of the Tent of Meeting.
27 Whatever touches any of the flesh will become holy, and if any of the blood is spattered on a garment, you must wash it in a holy place.
28 The clay pot the meat is cooked in must be broken; but if it is cooked in a bronze pot, the pot is to be scoured and rinsed with water. Lev. 6:25-28; NIV (italics mine).
According to Rabbi Cohen kashering involves two steps: first cleaning which invloves removing all tangible traces of leaven/chametz then purging which involves using heat to remove all absorbed leaven/chametz flavor.
After intensive cleaning smaller articles; dishes, eating utinsils, pots, etc. are boiled in water. Ovens are either set on self-cleaning mode if so equipped or cleaned using an oven cleaner. Some items may even be heated with a torch.
This involves the removal of all deposits of whatever kind including calcium deposits from these articles. If the items contain small cracks or crevices that cannot be cleaned easily they cannot be kashered for Pesach (Passover).
Thus some things cannot be kashered such as: slotted spoon, sink drain screen, colander, bottle brush, sponge, etc. In addition articles made of some materials such as ceramic and glass cannot be kashered. Clothing and other cloth items are washed in hot water. Surfaces such as counter tops, pantry shelves, refrigerator shelves, etc. that cannot easily be kashered are covered.
The idea behind this process is that the holy must not be contaminated by the common (unholy).
Category: Tabernacle
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