Are followers of the Jewish faith allowed to have pork products during Passover?

Practicing Jews never eat Pork or pork products. I live in a Jewish neighborhood even though I am a Christian. I have never known any of my Jewish friends to eat pork, ham or even shellfish.

I am guessing he is Jewish but not very religious.

The followers can’t. But the leaders can.

Ooops—I had some bacon a few mornings ago. One of my childhood friends who became a Rabbi would not be pleased with me.

My dad (who was brought up Orthodox in NYC) loved telling me about the time when, as a young kid, he smuggled some bacon into the family refrigerator (or maybe it was an old-fashioned ice box). His father made him empty and scrub out the ice box multiple times—and who knows what other hellish punishment he was forced to suffer at his father’s strict hands.

But Dad eventually got even. When he moved to Texas after WWII and married my mother, he left his Orthodoxy behind forever.

Sounds like he’s a secular kinda guy who probably promised his Bubbie he wouldn’t eat chametz during Passover or something. Or here’s another guess: some Jews I know use it as a sort of Lent-like week to cut out the carbs. And in general, secular Jews who do not hold to some of the more stringent entire lifestyle rules like keeping kosher or davening every day will often obey at least some High Holy Day rules in order to maintain their sense of their own Jewishness. Like fasting on Yom Kippur, shaking the lulav and etrog on Sukkot if walking by the volunteer Hasids in NYC, or not eating chametz on Passover.

As to the pork: has nothing to do with Passover; prohibited 100% of the time for people who keep kosher. I bet he tried it because he doesn’t keep kosher but also doesn’t normally eat pork in day to day life, and so took the opportunity to try a bite or two. I was raised in a secular Jewish home and we didn’t keep kosher but also didn’t eat pork, ever. College was like this whole world of meat opening up for me, but all I could do for the longest time was steal a bite off my friends’ plates, till I became used to the flavor and texture. Bacon was easy because I’d had turkey bacon before, but ham took by far the longest to like.

Agree with @wildpotato > If he were observant, he would never eat pork; nothing at all to do with Passover. However, there is a wide spectrum of what people who identify culturally as Jews will do and not do.

7 of the 9 people at my Easter Dinner were Jewish and all ate the spiral ham. Perhaps the matzah ball soup I also served neutralized the ham! :)

It’s never sanctioned by the Jewish religion.

That said, I know even a few Orthodox Jews who like to sneak some pork on occasion. I never name names.