Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
At the time of Passover, the Seder table may be set lavishly or in other households
more simply, but that evening meal always serves as the occasion to fulfill the exhor-
tation to tell to one's children the story of the Exodus. The name of the ritual meal,
Seder
, means “order,” the way through which human beings may know God and
participate in God's work on Earth (Cernea, 1995). The food elements of the meal,
indeed the dishes and vessels on the table, a traditional candlelit search for any stray
bit of yeast-leavened bread, a pillow—all provide commentary to answer the ques-
tion, “Why is this night different from all other nights?”
In story and prayers, symbolic foods, and traditional gestures, oppression sur-
renders to liberty. Matzoh is the bread of affliction, bitter herbs are a reminder of
slavery, and Haroset (a paste made of apples, raisins, almonds, and spices) stands
for the mortar used by the Hebrew slaves who did the bidding and building of
their masters. The placement of those elements on plate and table is deliberate and
prayerful. Wine and song add to the story that connects all Jews with their history
and their destiny.
Out of the Passover meal that Jesus of Nazareth shared with his disciples on the
night before his crucifixion has come a sacramental meal known as Holy Communion,
the Eucharist (meaning thanksgiving), or the Lord's Supper. The theological under-
standings of the meal vary according to tradition, but the common elements include
the sharing of bread (the body of Christ) and wine (the “new covenant” in the blood of
Christ), along with the reading of the biblical story of Jesus handing down the meal and
saying, “Do this in remembrance of me.” The bread may be unleavened, a common
loaf of any variety, or small squares of white bread neatly cut for handy distribution.
The wine may well be grape juice in some traditions. In Roman Catholic theology,
the elements are believed to be changed into the actual body and blood of Jesus (tran-
substantiation), while Protestants make no such claim for the symbolic foods but still
affirm that the risen Jesus is present at the meal with his present-day followers.
While Seder is reserved for that one Passover eve annually, Christians may receive
Communion daily, weekly, or as in some more traditional Reformed churches, only
four times a year. Both meals have in common the retelling of table stories that have
long shaped, and continue to nurture, spiritual journeys.
It is important to note here that while Christians gather for many meals together
and have since the earliest days of the church's existence (as in Acts 2:46b, “they
broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts”), Jesus for the
most part broke from the dietary restrictions of Judaism as a sign that his realm was
entirely new. “Is not life more than food?” he once asked (Matthew 6:25 NRSV).
Christians find no prescriptions for foods allowed or prohibited, although there are
numerous passages in the gospels and epistles of the New Testament that tell of
controversies over food and meals. From whom Jesus ate with, to whether it was
permitted to eat food once offered to idols—these stories never led to specific dietary
patterns or choices. It was enough to know that God would continue to provide manna
in the wilderness and daily bread, and that the right response to that grace was, as
always in the Judeo-Christian tradition, to share one's bread as a sign of hospitality
and common blessing.
