In many circles there appears to be an increasing interest in the Jewish roots of the Christian faith. This Easter season numerous congregations across the globe will hold a "Passover Haggadah" or more traditionally known as a "Seder" to gain a greater understanding of the Christian - Jewish relationship.
A Brief History
Passover is the oldest and most important religious festival in Judaism, commemorating God's deliverance of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt and His creation of the Israelite people.
The festival of Passover begins at sunset on the 14th of Nisan (usually in March or April) and marks the beginning of a seven day celebration which includes the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The highlight of Passover is a communal meal, called the Seder (which means "order," because of the fixed order of service), which is a time to rejoice and celebrate the deliverance for the Hebrews that God accomplished through the exodus.
What every Christian needs to know about Passover
As many prepare to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus, knowing the cultural Jewish soil on which Jesus walked is important to a mature and growing Christian faith. Here are a few steps for help along the Passover journey.
Step One: Read the Bible about Passover.
Jesus and the apostles were celebrating Passover at the Last Supper, because they were Jewish men with Jewish observances:
"This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord - a lasting ordinance." (Exodus 12:14)
"Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying ‘go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.'" (Luke 22:7-8)
Step Two: Attend a service at a messianic temple. Most congregations at a messianic temple are made up of both Jews and Gentiles. Or, you might consider having your own service in your home with family and friends. For resources see www.messianicjewish.net.
Step Three: Learn traditional prayers that are said during Passover. You can find these online at www.jewfaq.org/prayer.htm. Or, you can learn them from a rabbi.
Step Four: Cook a traditional Passover meal. You can find out how to do so by obtaining a book about Passover from the library or search on the web articles like, "How to Make Passover Eclairs" or "How to Make Matzo Meal Pancakes for Passover."
A few foods include:
Step Five: Remember to separate Passover from Good Friday and Easter celebrations. Jewish and Christian traditions are different and must be observed as such.
deborahdover, 2010-04-05T15:53:17
Thank you for this article. I am a Christian and all Christians mature and new born should know about Passover. We were instructed by GOD to celebrate the Passover. Before Christ died it was celebrated as a memorial of the exodus from slavery into the promised land and it also pointed to Christ's death as the Sacrificial Lamb of God. After he died we now celebrate it in memorial of his death on the cross because it was his death and shed blood that now delivers us from slavery to sin and the penalty of sin which is death and brings us into the promise land of GOD's Kingdom. 1Cr 5:7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Passover is mentioned 76 times in the KJV of the Bible. Easter is mentioned once and it is a mistranslation of the Hebrew word passover. Jhn 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. It's not what you feel, It's what GOD says that matters.
yincision, 2010-04-02T00:00:27
I am not sure how I feel about Christians "celebrating" Passover or holding Seder meals and such. Certainly it is good for spritually mature Christians who may be seeking more understanding of Jewish tradition and how it relates to Christianity. But for Christians who are not so spiritually mature I am afraid that it may compromise the significance of Christ's sacrifice for us, and at times may lead to confusion. It is important for all Christians to understand our Jewish heritage but I also think there is a big difference between acknowledging that heritage and celebrating it. As with anything of significance like this you must consider "why" you are doing it. Is it to truly honor, worship and glorify Christ, or for some other reason? Just some thoughts...
Sundayfunday, 2010-04-01T20:19:15
Thank you for this article. We celebrate the feast of unleavened bread and often feel very alone as born-again Christians in this. We have only been doing so for two years and have found it is an excellent way to teach the children who God is. I have learned many lessons from this observance, such as how the unleavened bread is hard and represents the hard times in our lives when God challenges us to push through, and is with us all the way. The yeast also represents sin in our lives, and this years lesson to me is how it is lurking in places you never knew and we need the Holy Spirit to help us locate it. I thought I had rid my cupboards of all yeast, but this morning I awoke recalling dry bread crumbs were in back of the cupboard and had to toss them today, while doing so I checked the saltine crackers and here they too had yeast-I never knew this. So they were tossed. This is not easy to just throw this food out, but for this week yeast represents sin. Thank You again!
marysunkes, 2010-04-01T16:52:13
A link to this article has been posted on the website GoodNewsNow.com.
rosi59, 2010-04-01T09:25:34
We had a seder at our church, led by the Pastor, we followed the traditional Haggadah followed by the meal. After dinner we fell into praising and danced the Horah to traditional Hebrew music. While the seder itself was solemn and meaningful the praise was joyful and free. We had a blast and gained another insight into Jesus' life. The more we know of Him, the closer we get. I hope to make this a yearly observation in our family. But, looking forward to a glorious Resurrection Sunday!
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