Passover Sedar Feast
Pesach – to pass over
Seder – meaning order, is a holy meal
The candles symbolize the presence of God and mark this as sacred time.
Exo 12:11 - 15 “And thus shall ye eat it: with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is Jehovah's Passover. For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night, and will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am Jehovah. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and there shall no plague be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial, and ye shall keep it a feast to Jehovah: throughout your generations ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever. Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel”.
1.apples, walnuts, red wine, cinnamon, sugar, shank bone or poultry neck, egg, parsley or potato, celery, horseradish root or prepared horseradish.
2.Charoset is mixture of apples, nuts, wine and spices.
Charoset is symbolic of the mortar the Jewish slaves made in their building for the Egyptians. Representative of the labors and persecution of Jesus.
3.Zeroa is a shank bone or neck of poultry, roasted.
Zeroa is a reminder of the "mighty arm of G-d" as the Bible describes it. It is also symbolic of the Paschal lamb offered as the Passover sacrifice in Temple days.
Baytzah is hard-boiled egg.Baytzah is symbolic of the burnt offering sacrifice brought in the days of the Temple. Some authorities have interpreted this as a symbol of mourning for the loss of the two Temples (the first was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E., the second by the Romans in 70 C.E.). With the Temples destroyed, sacrifices could no longer be offered. The egg symbolized this loss and traditionally became the food of mourners.
4.Karpas is a vegetable. Parsley is generally used.
Karpas is dipped in salt water to represent tears. The custom of serving karpas dates back to Jerusalem of the 1st and 2nd centuries when it was common to begin a formal meal by passing around vegetables as hors d’oeuvres. For Christians it represents the sweat of Jesus in the Garden.
5.Maror is bitter herbs. Horseradish root or prepared horseradish is generally used. Maror represents the bitter life of the Israelite s during the time of their enslavement in Egypt. Represents the trial and persecution of Jesus
6.Chazeret is a bitter vegetable. Celery or lettuce can be used.
Those who do not put chazeret on their Seder Plate sometimes put a dish of salt water in its place.
Mat 26:17, 18 “Now on the first day of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, Where wilt thou that we make ready for thee to eat the passover? And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Teacher saith, My time is at hand; I keep the passover at thy house with my disciples.
The feast of unleavened bread is 7 days long and concluded with Passover feast. By tradition the head of the family had a Seder with their Rabbi on one day before they lead the Seder with their family the next day.
Mat 26:19 And the disciples did as Jesus appointed them; and they made ready the passover.
•The bread of the Last Supper is the Afikomen of Passover, or the middle Matzah which is pulled out and broken in two before the meal begins (death). Half is wrapped in white linen and hidden (burial). The children search for the unleavened bread in the white linen. Whoever finds it brings it back (resurrection) to be redeemed for a price (salvation). The other half of the bread is eaten (sacrament), ending the meal.
Mat 26:26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it; and he gave to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
Jews drink four cups of wine at the Seder.
•The First cup is the cup of Sanctification
•The Second cup is the cup the cup of deliverance before the cup is drunk, the plagues are recited and a single drop of wine is removed for each plague. The drop is removed by dipping the finger into the cup and placing the drop on the table. This symbolizes the finger of God delivering the Judgments and reminding us of God’s Love that we do not have to drink from the whole cup.
•The third cup is called the cup of redemption, the cup is also known as the cup of Elijah. This cup is not drunk and is poured out. Jewish tradition says this cup cannot be drunk until the entire world is redeemed. But this is the cup that Christ drank from and gave to the Disciples
•The fourth cup is the cup of Thanksgiving and Hope
Mat 26:27 And he took a cup, and gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;
Mat 26:28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many unto remission of sins.
Mat 26:30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out unto the mount of Olives.
Perhaps we will learn to conceive of the matza not merely as the bread of affliction (lechem oni) but also as the bread of sufficiency
