AThornquist
Puritan Board Doctor
Our family gathers together around this time of year to cut the throat of a lamb and splash its blood around, but we don't celebrate Passover per se.
Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Another thought, along the lines of some things that have been said already.
Why are such rituals needed for those who walk in the light of Christ? If they aren't "worship", what are they? Nobody I have *ever* spoken to has ever given me any shred of hope that this might be practiced in a way that is NOT "worship". Churches hold special services wherein the Seder is practiced, and it very explicitly IS worship. I would ask you if you think that practicing the Seder, but arguing that what is being done is NOT "worship", is not very like the case of those who like images purporting to represent Christ as part of their worship life, but claim that they are not engaging in "worship" as they use those images in their reflections/meditations.
So I ask again - are the commanded practices of the Christian church vis a vis worship - the sacraments of the Lord's Supper and Baptism - not sufficiently "helpful" for us, that we have to dig up something from a pre-Christian age to feel "more special"? This is very hard for me to accept - it's like adding incense and candles to turn the sanctuary of the church into a "more special" worship atmosphere, and to bring those elements into worship as a means of symbolizing things like prayers, the sacrifice of worship, the light of the world, etc., so that worshippers feel "more worshipful". Isn't what Christ commanded sufficient? Why must we continually be looking for "deeper personal experiences" through ritual?
These things mystify me, quite frankly.
Our family gathers together around this time of year to cut the throat of a lamb and splash its blood around, but we don't celebrate Passover per se.
Awesome! Are Exclusive Hyssopists? or do you allow for non-inspired plants?
So, if I am reading you correctly, which I may not be, then anything that reminds of of some "worship service" but is not "true worship" is off limits. Is that correct?...is the practice consistent with the prescribed manner of considering these things as revealed in Scripture?
Also, many of the modern Passover Seders [even the Messianic ones!] partake of later Rabbinic tradition as well as some Biblical tradition, and that throws a whole new light on the interpretive framework of the Passover meal itself.
The problem that I have with a lot of these Passover presentations is that it does not address this issue of the heart. We should have a heart that remembers and gives thanks to God, not just for the salvation of our forefathers from Egypt, but for our own deliverance from sin and death which is given to us in the death of Jesus Christ.
Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that we should not help our political friend Israel; however, that has nothing to do with the people of God as found in the Hebrew Bible. The people of God was a heart issue in the Hebrew Bible.
Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that we should not help our political friend Israel; however, that has nothing to do with the people of God as found in the Hebrew Bible. The people of God was a heart issue in the Hebrew Bible. The sacrifices and Passover were heart issues as found in the Hebrew Bible. To not realize that, and focus upon the actions of the ritual is to totally miss the point of the ritual itself
This thread reminds me that I need to head down to the Jewish area of Dallas and pick up some 'Kosher for Passover' Coca-Cola.
Actually, it doesn't have to be "Coca-cola". Any "fruit of the cola nut" will suffice.
Actually, it doesn't have to be "Coca-cola". Any "fruit of the cola nut" will suffice.
I grew up in Atlanta. So real Coke with sugar is better than the case or two of Throwback Pepsi that I have in the garage.
I am not sure what you mean about the crackers.
The reason I say this is because Passover and Communion are developed in the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament in a way that is rich in meaning. I wrote my post out of concern for the reductionisms that I see in Christianity with regards to how we are to understand Hebrew and Christian ritual. There is a richness in meaning in them, and, rather than going back to the specific practices, it is more important that we have a heart that is indicated by what the text of scripture teaches. Yes, the best place for this to be done is from the pulpit.
If you have a Costco membership, you can buy Real Coke with Sugar all year round. Imported from Mexico,