Passover Seder and the Eucharist

The celebration of Passover by the Jewish community today has its roots in biblical tradition. However, it is not the same celebration as was conducted by Jews at the time of the Roman occupation and the beginnings of Christianity. It reflects more of a Medieval influence.

Nevertheless, the Haggadah (Hebrew -- story) is the same, namely, God delivered the Hebrew slaves from Egyptian bondage and formed them as his Chosen People in the Sinai Desert and gave them the Torah (Hebrew -- law) through the hands of Moses at Mount Sinai.

The celebration of the the Passover is conducted as a supper and there is a seder (Hebrew -- order) to the meal and all that occurs. It is a home liturgy. The basic contents of the celebration are the meal and the story. This is accompanied by the praying of Psalms, especially Psalms 118, 135 and 136 which render thanks to God for his enduring mercy and recount Israel's liberation from slavery.

The Haggadah text on the right (Hebrew letters for Haggadah), and because Hebrew is written from right to left, the book begins from the right end rather than the left.

The traditional principal foods at the time of Jesus would have been the Passover lamb as cental, the unleavened bread, or matzoh and grape wine. The lamb was likely made into a stew to accommodate as many people as possible for the feast.

The Passover lambs were slaughtered by the priests in the Temple in Jerusalem on the day before the feast began, according to custom, and had to be completed before nightfall. In Hebrew usage, the following day begins at sunset.

By the Middle Ages, perhaps before, the Jewish community ceased using lamb for the Passover meal because in the year AD 70, to quell the Jewish Revolt, the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and razed the Temple. The current edifice, the Dome of the Rock -- or Noble Sanctuary -- the third holiest shrine in Islam, is situated on the grounds where the Jewish Temples were once located.

The Old City of Jerusalem as seen from the Mount of Olives with the Dome o f the Rock (or Noble Sanctuary) to the right, where the ancient Jewish Temples once stood. The Russian Orthodox Monastery of St. Mary Magdelene in in the foreground.

The Jewish Passover now uses a chicken in lieu of the lamb -- there is no Temple at which to sacrifice the lambs and there are no priests to conduct the ritual slaughters. It is a tribute of sacred -- and sad -- memory on behalf of the Jewish community to honor these events in such a manner. They maintain the ancient biblical mandate to keep the Passover, but historical realities have caused a reinterpretation by the rabbis as to how it is to be celebrated.

However, the shank bone of the lamb, in honor of the ancient past, is kept on the seder plate as a reminder of how the celebration was once done and is also a reminder of the hope for a renewed celebration of Pesach in the holy city of Jerusalem. Toward the end of the meal the participants cry out, Lashanah haba b'Yerushalayim! Next year in Jersualem!

Jesus, being Jewish and a rabbi, along with his Apostles, disciples and family would have been very famliar with the customs of his day, including the annual ritual slaughter of the Passover lambs in the Temple just prior to the celebration.

Compare the two separate traditions we have in the Gospels -- the Synoptic tradition (Mark, Matthew and Luke) have the Last Supper as their Passover meal while the Johannine tradition has Jesus die on the very day that the Passover lambs were being slaughtered, just before Passover actually begins.

The differences between the traditions are theological. They do not contradict the foundations of Jesus' Passion, death and resurrecton on the Third Day, nor do they deny the Holy Eucharist. John's tradition places this teaching within the Bread of Life discourse in chapter 6 while the Synoptists place it at the Last Supper on the night before Jesus' death.

Byzanitne icon of "The Mystical Supper" of Jesus with the Apostles on Holy Thursday

For us Christians the Eucharist is the New Passover, the universal Passover. What God instituted through Moses for Israel to commemorate annually the great events of the Exodus foreshadowed the deliverance God would accomplish for all humanity through Jesus Christ who was obedient to death, even death on a Cross (cf. Phil. 2:6-11).

The Mass or Divine Liturgy, then, is our seder meal; the Eucharist is our celebration -- not just annually but weekly on Sundays and even daily -- of the saving events that have brought about the gift of salvation for the whole human race. Our haggadah is the institution narrative we hear at every Celebration of the Eucharist when we believe that the simple bread and wine is transformed by the power of God's Spirit through our recounting of the event and words of the Lord Jesus into the very Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Savior.

Jesus himself is our Passover; he is the Paschal Lamb! He is our Pesach. Is this not what we hear in the Roman Rite before approaching the altar for Holy Communion? The priest, addressing the assembly, cries out, "This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world . . ." to which we respond, "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed!"

We properly honor our "elder brothers (and sisters)" as Pope John Paul II was wont to call the Jewish community in their annual celebration of God's great saving event in the formation of the House of Israel -- the Exodus. That is part of our heritage as Christians. Let us remember our Jewish brothers and sisters, then, as we celebrate the seder and recount the haggadah of our salvation in Christ this Holy Week and especially the Sacred Triduum, the Great Passover of the Son of the God of Israel.

Remembering Pesach (Passover) this Holy Week

Pope John Paul II, who served as Bishop of Rome and Pope from October 1978 until April 2005

Pope John Paul II ushered in a new era of warm relationship with the Jewish community. From the Second Vatican Council's phenomenal delaration of respect for people of other religious faiths, especially for Jews in the hailed document, Nostra Aetate (Latin for "Our Age"), there has been a gradually growing trust between the Catholic Church and the wider Jewish community.

The late Holy Father referred to Jews as "our elder brothers (and I would add, sisters)". He even took the uprecedented step of publicly acknowledging the failure of Christians in the past to respect Jews and to apologize for the wrongdoing committed in innumerable atrocities through the centuries, especially in Europe, culminating in the Holocaust rendered by the Nazis in the 1930s and 1940s.

Jewish children at Auschwitz in Nazi-occumpied Poland during the Holocaust of the Jews during the 1940s

This year 2009 we Catholics and other Christians who follow the Gregorian Calendar who are celebrating Holy Week happily coincide with the Jewish Passover (Pesach).

Pesach is the root word for what becomes translated into Greek as "Pascha" and later into Latin as "Pasch". Thus, Jesus Christ as the Paschal Lamb is the Passover Lamb for us Christians. He is the fulfillment of the Law of Moses and the Prophets. He himself is the Paschal Mystery, that great event of salvation which we solemnly celebrate annually during the Sacred Triduum (three days) leading us to Easter -- the Passion, death and resurrection of the Lord.


Pesach means "passing over", as the Book of Exodus relates when the Angel of Death, the Tenth Plague, comes upon Egypt at God's command to slay the first-born of human and beast alike. And among the humans, anyone who does not have the lintels and doorposts marked with the blood of the lamb will lose their first-born, male or female, to the Angel of Death!


Observant (i.e. religious) Jews celebrate the annual commemoration of God delivering Israel from Egyptian slavery -- the Passover meal, the plagues, the flight out of Egypt, the deliverance at the Red Sea, the giving of the Torah, the manna and quail, the water from the rock in the desert, all leading to the entry at the end of forty years into the Promised Land.

Jesus and his Apostles celebrating the Last Supper meal, which the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) portray as the Passover

For us Christians, Jesus is the fulfillment and every Eucharist is our celebration of the Passover of the Lord Jesus from death into resurrection, and our participation in that Paschal Mystery by entering into the Word of God and finally partaking of the Holy Mysteries of the Lord Jesus' Body and Blood at Holy Communion.

Thanksgiving Day is more than "Turkey Day"! Give Thanks to the LORD for He is Good!

Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

The word "thanks" in New Testament Greek is the basis for the word we have for "eucharist". During the Mass or the Divine Liturgy at the Preface Dialog beginning the Eucharistic Prayer/Anaphora, the priest says, "Let us give thanks to the Lord our God", and we respond, "It is right to give him thanks and praise", or, "It is just and right." In effect the priest is addressing us as congregation and saying, "Let us do the eucharist!"

Thanksgiving is deeply ingrained in the entire Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments. It is simply what we as Christians do! We give thanks to God.

Fr.Joachim Studwell, OFM at the Great Entrance of the Divine Liturgy

Fr. Patrick Gawrylewski, OFM (right) and Fr. Brendan Wroblewski, OFM during the Eucharistic Prayer at the chapel of Assumption BVM Parish

Thanksgiving Day is far more than its nickname, "Turkey Day!" It is about an attitude of life. Giving thanks and forgiving someone are both might antidotes to bitterness in human life. Not just the proverbial "counting the blessings", as good as that might be. Just giving thanks!

It takes our attention off ourselves and focuses us on Another, in this case God. Hopefully we have been reared to be grateful -- grateful for presents, sending thank-you cards, showing appreciation to people in our family, at work or in school.

Giving thanks just makes plain sense -- and it's good for mental health, besides. Grateful people are happy people. They notice small things about people and take notice of them in a positive way. People of thanksgiving notice the details of life and express gratitude. As the 12 Step Program calls it cultivating the Attitude of Gratitude!

And so it is with the Lord. Maybe we can look at the New Testament reading (above) again, where St. Paul the Apostle deliberately writes that we are to give thanks in ALL circumstances (please note, not for all circumstances, but in all circumstances)! That means we acknowledge God is supreme and greater than any and all circumstances in which we find ourselves.

I'm grateful for Him, first of all! And for my Franciscan brothers, my family and my friends, for the many who have trusted me and allowed me into their lives through ministry, for all the good things that the Lord has lavished upon me. And I am grateful for my vocation as a Franciscan friar and priest.

What are YOU grateful to the Lord for this Thanksgiving Day?

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, on Juan Diego's tilma ,in the Basilica in Mexico City

La Virgen Morena is the famous celebration of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. She appeared to Juan Diego at Tepeyac, near the former Aztec capital and holy sites, over a series of days in December 1531, about 10 years after Hernán Cortéz and the Spanish conquistadores vanquished the once-proud Aztec people and several the other native peoples of México.

She spoke to Cuauhtlatoatzin, his Nahuatl (Aztec language: “one who speaks like an eagle”) name, in his native tongue, not in Spanish. Similarly, she appeared to him as one of his own, not as a European. She was swarthy, la Virgen morena (the dark-skinned Virgin).

The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is very rich in symbols. Hers is an “icon”, if you will, not made by hands. Her image was miraculously imprinted on Juan Diego’s tunic, the tilma (a piece of clothing fashioned from the fibers of the maguey plant).

Unbeknownst to Juan Diego, when he displayed his tilma with the freshly picked roses, Bishop Juan Zumárraga, OFM (1st bishop of Mexico and a Franciscan friar and priest) was astonished, as were his friars!

The wonderful result of this heavenly visit was a powerful wave of evangelization. Millions of indigenous peoples, Aztec and beyond, professed faith in Jesus Christ and embraced the Catholic faith through the proclamation of the Gospel and were baptized. The story of the Blessed Mother’s arrival to their land and her message swept the land around Mexico.

Here was someone with whom the native peoples could identify. And still do to this day! When I am among Mexican Catholics, in their homes, businesses and even cars, I see Mary’s image, la Guadalupana! The story and her image are deeply ingrained in the consciousness of Mexican Catholics. And, December 12th is a national holiday in all of Mexico! Ser mexicano es ser guadalupano (to be Mexican is to be a devotee of Guadalupe!).

As we celebrate her feast day today, let us recall that Mary, the Mother of God, continues to intercede for us (as the position of her hands displays) and especially considers the poor and the downtrodden to be her special children. She is the pregnant Mother (the black sash around her waist) who came to a conquered people, the Aztecs. It was to them, not their conquerors, that she gave her message; to a peasant, not to an aristocrat or friar or bishop; in Nahuatl not Spanish.

To me, at least, it becomes another example of “minority” – the quality which was so dear to St. Francis of Assisi and which he tried to inculcate among his brothers, to whom he gave the name “minors” (friars minor – lesser brothers). The fruit of minority is solidarity. And this is our vocation as Franciscans!

We are preparing to celebrate the great festival of the Incarnation -- Christmas -- when the Word of God takes on human flesh, in solidarity with us. So great is God's love (see John 3:16).
God in Jesus Christ identifies with us! He becomes flesh of our flesh, bone of our bone, blood of our blood. Is this not true of what we celebrate sacramentally in the Eucharist, when we partake of the Body and Blood of Christ Jesus? The Lord himself feeds us with himself.


We ourselves might be quite surprised how the Lord desires to enter into our lives, to be in solidarity with us. Through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Lady of Guadalupe, may we all come to know the power of God’s grace in our very real human experience.

Come, Lord Jesus!

The ancient cry of Israel, our elder brothers (and sisters), as the late Pope John Paul II called the Jewish community, has been for the fulfillment of the Holy Covenant.



We Christians believe that the fulfillment of the Law of Moses and the Prophets is in the coming and person of Jesus of Nazareth whom we call Messiah (anointed) and Lord.

And yet, not in all its fullness!

An Orthodox Jewish man praying at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem

We await the Lord's return in glory. And, so, how do we do this?

This Advent is an opportunity to grow deeper in our relationship with the Lord -- by focusing on the Scrptures of the Old Covenant that we hear proclaimed daily at Mass, and particularly at the Sunday Eucharst.


During Advent we join as members of the entire Church of God and cry, "Come, Lord Jesus!" The ancient cry of the Church, even from apostolic times in the Aramaic of the Apostles and early disciples of Jesus, is Marana tha! (Come, Lord!).


St. Francis of Assisi taught his friars that we should prepare for the coming of the Lord at Christmas, the great festival of the Incarnation, by fasting from All Saints' Day (1 November) all the way through Christmas Eve. It's in our Rule of 1223 how the friars are to prepare. While we Franciscan friars are not required to maintain a strict fast, we are encouraged to prayerfully and physically prepare for the celebration of the Messiah's birthday.


Like our elder brothers and sisters in the faith, the Jewish people, we pray the psalms and listen attentively to the Word of God, those ancient prophecies from so long ago, believing that this very Word of God is active and living. Unlike our Jewish kin, though, we eagerly anticipate the return of the Messiah!

Icon of Our Lady of the Sign (cf. Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23)

The way that St. Francis called us friars minor, and all in the Franciscan family, to celebrate this Season of Advent is rather countercultural. When so much of our culture wants more and sees the "holiday season" as more and more about profit, sales, being financially solvent (e.g. "Black Friday") -- and advertisements (especially aimed at children) are about more and more toys, electronic gadgets and the like, St. Francis calls his brothers to fast!

Granted, Advent in the Roman Church is not penitential like Lent is. Still, it is an opportunity laden with all kinds of ways to grow in our relationship with the Lord. It is an opportunity . . . if we take it!

So, how about sitting down with the Bible, refrain from TV, computer games, text messaging and the like, and carefully listen and read the prophecies of ancient Israel. You can find their references in your parish's Missalette; sometimes even in your parish bulletin. That the Scritpurre passages are fulfilled in Jesus Christ is certain; still, we await his return in glory, when his Word will be completely fulfilled.

As the priest says after we pray the Lord's Prayer at Mass, ". . . as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ!" Amen. Come, Lord Jesus (cf. Revelation 22: 20b). Marana tha! (cf. 1 Corinthians 16:22b)

Great Gathering of Catholic Youth in Columbus, OH

On November 8-10, about 23,000 teen agers from around the USA descended on Columbus, OH for the biannual National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC). From Dubuque, IA, Kansas City, KS, Green Bay, WI, Albany, NY, Houston, TX -- young people, their chaperones and youth ministers gathered for a festive three days to pray together, meet one another, and grow in their Catholic Faith and identity.





Franciscan Vocation Booth with Fr. Don Miller, OFM and Fr. Kim Studwell, OFM
NCYC 2007, Columbus, OH Photo courtesy of Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC

Fr. Don Miller, OFM from St. John the Baptist Province (Cincinnati, OH) and I stationed the Franciscan Friars' booth for the duration of the conference. Bro. Jack Carnaghi, OFM and Fr. Johnpaul Cafiero, OFM of Sacred Heart Province (St. Louis/Chicago) joined us for Friday. Fr. Don took several pictures, including the shot of the conference here.



The event began, sadly, with a fatal hit-and-run accident of a young lady from the Las Vegas, NV delegations, Veronica Gantt. Their delegation understandably returned shaken and horrified, with grief counselors awaiting their reutrn arrival. The conference continued, with daily reminderes of the tragedy appropriately mentioined -- intentions for Mass, intercessions at prayer times and a place to write messages to Veronica's family and friends.


The theme of this year's NCYC was "Discover the Way". The morning prayer sessions I found to be vibrant, uplifting and energizing. Young adults led the morning prayer and featured speakers gave stirring testimonies of how God worked in their lives through seemingly impossible situations.


Throughout the NCYC, young people visited the area called "Adventureland" where the vocation displays were (strategically!) located. Loads and loads of youth and their chaperones stopped by. Several actually engaged in conversation, either out of curiosity or because there was some kind of interest in religious life. Many youth and adults had questions.




Adventureland at NCYC 2007.
Photo courtesy of Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC






Fr. Don and I, and Bro. Jack and Fr. Johnpaul on Friday, walked among the youth, both inside the vendors' area and beyond. Fr. Don and I helped with confessions during the time, too.

Many young people and their chaperones participated in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Reconciliation Room, NCYC 2007, Columbus, OH
Photo courtesy of Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC




Friends of the Franciscan friars also had their vocation booths -- the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity of Manitowoc, WI. I work periodically with these Sisters in promoting our Franciscan way of life.

Fr. Kim Studwell, OFM with Srs. Julie Ann Sheehan, OSF and Mary
Ann Spanjers, OSF, (Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity)
NCYC 2007, Columbus, OH. Photo courtesy of Fr. Don Miller, OFM





Some others were present, including the Daughters of Divine Charity (FDC) whose foundress, Mother Franziska Lechner, is up for beatification. Sr Carmella Chojnacki, FDC, at their USA Motherhouse in Akron, OH and some of their Sisters represented their community well. She graciously supplied several photos here. And the Capuchin Francisans from the St. Augustine Province in Pittsburgh, PA attended.

Sr. Mary Ann Spanjers, OSF speaking with youth at NCYC 2007
Photo courtesy of Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC



Sr. Carmella Sr. Chojnacki, FDC at NCYC w007 Columbus, OH Fr. Kim Studwell, OFM speaking with Fr. Tom Betz, OFM Cap. at the
Photo courtesy of Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC Vocation Booths, NCYC 2007, Columbus, OH
Photo courtesy of Fr. Don Miller,OFM


The NCYC 2007 was a blessed event, even through a tragedy. I think it was good for young people to be kept aware of Veronica's death without becoming maudlin about it. A final image of the concluding Sunday Vigil Eucharist on Saturday evening, 10 November, may give an idea as to the magnitude of youth from all over the USA and clergy participating. I confess I wasn't there for the closing Mass. However, thanks to Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC, who was there, we have this (I think) powerful photo of youth and adults worshiping God and celebrating the "source of and summit" of our faith, the Holy Eucharist!





Concluding Eucharist at NCYC 2007, Columbus, OH
Photo courtesy of Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC

Thanks, Fr. Don Miller, OFM and Sr. Carmella Chojnacki, FDC for generously sharing your photos of the great youth gathering of NCYC 2007 in Columbus, OH! God bless you both and prosper your ministries and communities!