The new passover

 

Jesus and the Jewish roots of the Eucharist #4

Picking up again on the Jewish roots of the Christian Eucharist the author, Brant Pitre, draws together several themes that have echoed through the Easter Triduum:

• The once‑for‑all sacrifice of Jesus on Good Friday – the true Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
• The meal of the Last Supper, where Jesus gives his Body and Blood “for you and for many.”
• The proclamation of a new covenant, sealed in Christ’s blood.
• The liberation of God’s people on the night of the Pasch or Passover.
• The real presence of God among His people, made sacramentally present in the Eucharist.

Seeing the Eucharist through Jewish eyes

 

Picture: Ahawah Children's Home, Berlin; Passover Seder Table

Jesus and the Jewish roots of the Eucharist #2

Spiritually, we Christians are rooted in Jewish faith and spirituality. This can feel slightly disconcerting because it is difficult to disentangle the historical, tribal, and political threads that run through Jewish and Christian history. Yet one thing is clear: Jesus was Jewish—completely and faithfully so. The Gospels testify that He and His family observed the Law of Moses. In His teaching and His life, Jesus never allowed any legal precept to override the Great Commandment to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind (see Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37). In this, He fulfilled the Law.