At the Last Supper, Jesus Transformed the Meaning of Ritual Passover Meal
YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT & HOW YOU EAT IT !
Many cultural rituals involve meals. The celebration of meals contributes to the expression of the meaning of events and they exhibit many symbols. Examine the following meal occasions and try to recall what significance they had for you.
- A wedding or holiday meal (thanksgiving)
- A favorite birthday meal
- A meal that was part of a date
- A meal at your favorite restaurant
- A barbecue or a picnic
- A meal with your family
Refer to the following meals that Jesus had with his followers and comment on the significance behind the meal.
PASSAGE / SUMMARY / SIGNIFICANCEMark
6:34-44 / Jesus feeds 5,000 with 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread / Jesus’ words of life is our spiritual nourishment
John
2:1-12 / Jesus turned water into wine at the Wedding at Cana when guests ran out of wine. / First miracle which shows that Jesus was willing to help others in their time of need.
Luke
7:36-50 / Prostitute washed the feet of Jesus and Jesus forgave her sins because she was sorry. / Everybody is welcome to Jesus’ table even if you are a great sinner.
Luke
10:38-42 / Jesus tells Martha not to get upset if Mary decided not to help her with the housework if she was listening to him. / More important to listen to the words of Jesus than to be busy with life.
Mark
2:13-17 / Jesus ate a meal with sinners. The Pharisees told Jesus not to. Jesus tells them that he came to service them whoa re in need of his love. / Sick people need a doctor – not healthy ones.
Jesus uses meals as symbolic events in order to
teach people about the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus takes the Passover to the Next Level
The Last Supper
At the last supper, Jesus transformed the meaning of ritual Passover meal. Compare the events surrounding Last Supper to the events surrounding the Passover Seder by completing the chart below.
PASSOVER SEDER / LAST SUPPERCharacter who redeems the people. / Moses / Jesus
From what type of death is the character saving the people from? / physical death at the hands of the Angel of Death / Spiritual death
What is responsible for bringing about this aspect of death? / Pharaoh would not let the Israelites free / sins
What is sacrificed in order to save the people? / blood of lamb / blood of Jesus
What source of nourishment is used in order to sustain the people on their faith journey? / unleavened bread
(Matzah) / Body of Christ
(form of unleavened bread)
What does broken and shared bread symbolize? / the 2 temples destroyed and the one that is to be rebuilt / sacrificed body of Jesus to be shared with call who wish to be saved
The name given to this sacrament, Eucharist, not only relates to the Passover Seden but it is derived from a Greek word that means “thanksgiving”. So when Christians celebrate the Eucharist, they are thanking and praising God in the context of a sacred meal for all the good that God has done for them through Jesus.
Catholic faith holds that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist:
In the bread & wine given as Jesus himself as his own body & blood
In the people gathered at the celebration
In the word of God being proclaimed & preached
The Eucharist celebrates more than just the past. It calls to mind and brings about a present reality – that Jesus gives of himself to us in the here and now, brining new life to us in the process. Although Jesus’ death is over once and for all, his gift of self to us goes on today.
By being united to Jesus in the Eucharist, we join our own life struggles and sacrifices to his. Our dreams, disappointments, joys and hurts become one with those of Jesus’ own life and death. Thus our own life becomes transformed with new meaning. We become risen with Jesus.
