Thursday 28 March 2013

Learning by doing - Passover and Gethsemane

As the conversations slowly came to an end, it slowly dawned on some of those who had been at the Seder tonight, as they were beginning to leave, that Jesus and the others must also have been mellow as they left for Gethsemane!

The third cup of blessing and the words of 1 Corinthians 11.23b - 26:

'On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.'

Having eaten the bread and drunk the third cup of blessing and sung, the 'communion' instituted, celebrated (and hopefully consigned to memory), we moved to  fourth and final cup - the meal completed.

That was it - the meal was done. We were leaving.

Not for Gethsemane but home.

Then came a voice asking: 'is this how the disciples were? I feel a little 'jolly' .'

'I reckon so,' said I.

'no wonder they fell asleep while He was praying,' came the reply!!

Tonight we were family as we shared the Passover with Christ and His Disciples. Tonight anamnesis  (active remembrance) was ours - hallelujah!!

9 comments:

The warden said...

Sorry I couldnt be there

Vic Van Den Bergh said...

As was I
But at least you get to play today.

Thanks for being part of the family :-)

Steven Carr said...

Why did Jesus feel the need to get people to announce his death in a ritual meal?

Did he think people would forget that he was not dead?

Did he think his disciples would not be picked up by the Romans and killed for making Pilate look like a laughing stock by saying that the person Pilate said he was going to kill was still alive?

Vic Van Den Bergh said...

Yawn!

Vic Van Den Bergh said...

Hit the return too soon!

Was supposed to be followed by: too much proper work to do now (and too knackered to play) - have to leave this (perhaps) for another time.

:-)

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...


Jesus kept the Passover.

Isn't this where the communion comes from?

It makes sense to remember the washing of feet, the commandment to love one another, the communion and the Passover.

A ritual meal announcing His death?

joining your comments together make for something quite obvious.Too polite to say what!

Anonymous said...

Would you forget that you had been born if you did not have a birthday party, Steven Carr?

Many cultures all over the world use festivals and special meals as a form of remembrance for important events. It's not unusual or strange.

Steven Carr said...

'Would you forget that you had been born if you did not have a birthday party, Steven Carr?'

At my birthday party I tell people they are drinking my blood and eating my flesh.

What is unusual about that?

Why did Jesus need to set up a ritual meal so that people could remember him if he was going to be back in 3 days time?


And, of course, in any realistic setting, any real Jesus would have known that his disciples would also have been picked up and killed.

After all, that is what they were supposed to be afraid of.