Passover Fulfilled In Christ

This is My Body, This is My Blood
A Reflection for Holy Thursday
By Rev. Robert Johnnene OFA
Mission Saints Sergius and Bacchus
www.missionstsergius.org


For more than 3000 years, the Jewish people have celebrated a Seder which is called Pesakh, Pesach, Pesah), or Festival of Unleavened Bread in remembrance of the exodus from Egypt. The Exodus includes the deliverance from slavery in Egypt as well as the covenant between God and His people at Sinai. Jesus and His followers, like faithful Jewish person gathered together to fulfill their obligation of celebrating the memorial of the feast of Passover. The word for memorial in Hebrew is Zikkaron and in Greek is ( anamnesis) meaning a liturgical celebration that celebrates and re-presents past mysteries of salvation.
If you remember the story, Moses told his people to sacrifice an unblemished young lamb and slaughter it and spread the blood on the doorposts and lintels of their homes, in that way the angel of Death that would sweep through Egypt would spare all those within.
The Jewish people were told to remember this passing on the fourteenth day of the first month of their calendar year. (This year 2007, the Passover began at sundown Monday April 2) This memorial celebration is what Jesus and His followers were celebrating.
The Passover “Haggadah” or telling is broken into 15 divisions or order of the Seder.
The Passover celebration today is a celebration of all the deliverances God has provided and Jews still look for the final deliverance and exodus of the coming of the Messiah.
Christians see Christ as the person who fulfilled all things that the prophets foretold the Messiah. Even the title “Christ” means the anointed one, which is what Messiah means in Hebrew.
Christ told us he came to bring us a new covenant, Christ became the sacrificial Lamb, It was His blood that set us free from the bondage of sin. Even the words that Jesus spoke and we proclaim at every liturgy of the Eucharist “ Blessed are you O Lord our God, king of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth” in Hebrew (Barukh ata Adonay, Elohenu, melekh ha olam, Ha motzi lechem min ha aretz) are the words Jesus spoke. When Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it and gave it to His apostles saying, “This is my Body, take and eat” and the wine “This is my Blood, the Blood of the new covenant, it will be shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven. Do this is remembrance of me” He became the sacrificial lamb of the Passover.
Every time we partake in the Eucharistic Celebration we are reliving the Passover Celebration, we are carrying out the command of Jesus Christ that we celebrate the memorial feast “The memorial feast of our redemption”, we recall the memory of Jesus Christ, His suffering, death and resurrection. It is most unfortunate that our English language does not really convey very well the true biblical meaning of memorial (anamnesis {GREEK} and Zikkaron {Hebrew}.
Like the Jewish people today who faithfully follow the old covenant made by Moses with God. We, who believe Christ to be the promised one of the prophets, by our participating in the Eucharistic Liturgy, personally die and rise with Christ and we become redeemed together with Him.
By understanding the Passover, we better can understand the beautiful and fulfilling mystery of our faith and of the Eucharistic celebration. Let us work together to realize that as true believers of Christ we need to honor and respect the traditions of the faith that gave us our redeemer and savior Jesus Christ.
PRAYER:
Blessed are you, O Lord God, king of the universe, who has redeemed us from the land of bondage to sin and brought us to freedom and salvation by your willingness to become the sacrificial lamb of the new covenant. Unite your brothers and sisters of all nations on this earth your Almighty Father created together in love and unity so that we can gather as one family giving Almighty God and you thanksgiving and praise. AMEN

Hosanna In The Highest
A Reflection for Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
Based on the readings for the Tridentine and Novus Ordo Traditions
Matt: 21:1-9, Matthew 26 & 27 (Passion of Our Lord); Isaiah 50:4 – 7, Philippians 2:5-11, Luke 22:14 - 23:56 (Passion of Our Lord)
By Fr. Robert Johnnene OFA
Mission Sts. Sergius and Bacchus

“Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel” (Matthew 21:9) shouted the people lining the road into Jerusalem. This joyful reception by the Jewish people to Jesus entrance into Jerusalem, riding on a donkey, could compare to the accolades and reception that the winners of the World Series or the Super Bowl experience on return to their respective cities. They are received as conquering heroes and indeed Jesus was just that kind of hero and still is to those of us who believe in Him and accept Him as the only begotten son of God.
It can be assumed that many of those same people who were shouting Hosanna, four days later would be in the crowds shouting, “Crucify Him, Crucify Him” because he did not meet their expectations of Him or because they succumbed to greed and accepted bribes from the powers of the temple elite.
We have seen in our lives just such a turn around by a super hero of the World Series who deserts the team he played with that won the series and goes over to an opposing team because they offered him a huge sum of money that the deep pocket owner could afford and who places winning over all at any price. When the player returns to his former team he is no longer cheered but booed and treated with contempt.
In the past few years we have seen a great deal of publicity about the newly discovered Gospel of Judas, the supposed discovery of the tomb of Jesus and a resurgence of publicity about THE DIVINCI CODE and HOLY BLOOD, HOLY GRAIL, THE LOST GOSPELS and other “New discoveries that call into question the basis of Christianity.
The speculation, by some, is that these new revelations might change our beliefs.
I do not know how our beliefs or the truth of Jesus teachings could be changed by the supposed revelations.
The truth is, Jesus Christ lived, Christ died, Christ was resurrected, and Christ came to save all people of the world, not a select few and during His life He broke all the rules and regulations of the Jewish faith and did not discriminate against anyone.
If anything, these discoveries should only serve to strengthen our faith and belief. They change nothing about the main facts. All of them and numerous non-religious historical documents acknowledge that Jesus was real. All of them affirm that he gave us a new covenant, “LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH YOUR WHOLE HEART, MIND, SOUL AND BODY AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS I HAVE LOVED YOU”
The “Gnostic Gospels” as they are called are all based on writings of the early Christians; and in most cases, they support and have much of the same information as we find in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which we were raised on.
The Gnostic Gospels, as the lost Gospels are called, proclaimed that salvation could be achieved by knowledge.
That statement is true, we need to have Knowledge of who God is, Knowledge of how we can serve God, Knowledge of God’s intent; all of these are necessary in order for us to faithfully serve God.
They do not disagree with what is found in the Gospels we know as far as the events of the final days of Christ.
Did not Jesus Himself say, “Seek and you will find, Knock and it will be opened to you, Ask and you shall receive” none of these “recent” findings change a thing.
The Passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, according to the versions being read today by either Matthew or Luke, opened the road to everlasting salvation for us.
Even if the most recent finding “The Gospel of Judas” has any truth, it affirms that Jesus had to die in order for our salvation to be assured. In it, it is purported to state, “For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me." By that, scholars familiar with Gnostic thinking said, “Jesus meant that by helping him get rid of his physical flesh, Judas will act to liberate the true spiritual self or divine being within Jesus.”
In many western churches today the Passion of the final days of Christ’s life are read according to Matthew and Luke which detail the last hours of Christ on earth as will Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Matthew and Luke’s Gospels begins with the celebration of Passover and the creation of the Eucharist, The agony in the garden and Christ’s saying, “Father if it is possible, let this cup pass from me, nevereless, not as I will, but as you will” which I say every day as part of my prayers, “Not my will but your will be done Lord”.
The readings continue by detailing the betrayal by Judas, the trials, the way of the cross and the crucifixion and ends with the burial of Christ.
Paul’s letter explains the reasons for all this and who Christ was and says a lot that we need to think about in the face of all the recent supposed contradictions.
Jesus Christ, although he shared God’s nature, did not try to seize equality with God for himself; but he emptied himself and took on the form of a slave, by becoming a human man – not in appearance only, because he humbled himself by accepting death – even death on a cross. For this, God has raised him high, and given him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bend, in heaven, on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue will proclaim “Jesus Christ is Lord”, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2)
During this final week of Lent and this week which celebrates the Jewish freedom from bondage from the Egyptians, and especially as we go through Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, let us reflect on how we live and practice our faith every day.
During this Christian Passion Week and the Holy Jewish week of Passover, let us find ways to put an end to the dissentions and petty jurisdictional and control for power and profit that have separated the followers of Jesus Christ into many churches instead on the One Holy Catholic (Universal) Apostolic Church we profess in the creed.
The time for us is now to be faithful to God and our faith and not allow ourselves to be swayed away by supposed “New Truths”. Let us work together to find ways to come together as the family of Christ and children of God and gather together as one family of faith in Christ. Let us begin living the message of Jesus Christ by our actions, thoughts, words and deeds. Let us be completely and very faithful to Almighty God and His beloved son Jesus Christ and forever and always proclaim loudly,
“HOSANNA, HOSANNA, TO THE SON OF DAVID, HOSANNA! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD! HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST!”

AMEN