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Voor Witte Donderdag doen we er goed aan te overdenken wat J. A. H. Futterman van de Virtual Church of the Blind Chihuahua™, (www.dogchurch.org) te zeggen heeft:

He sat at table leading his friends in a Seder, a combination of banquet and religious celebration. Some of what he and his friends said and did may survive to this day in the Haggadah, the little book of prayers and hymns Jews use at Passover. The man himself had no Haggadah, because it would not be written until a generation after his death. Still, one can imagine the blessings, the recital of the story of the Exodus of Israel from slavery in Egypt, the wine, the meal, the good fellowship, the children’s games, and the songs.

At one point the leader breaks bread — matzoth, because no yeast-bread is consumed during Passover in memory of the Israelites having no time to let their bread rise when they left Egypt. He hands the pieces to all present and asks them to remember him whenever they eat the Passover matzoth, to remember that they draw spiritual nourishment from his presence.

After the dinner and the hymns he takes the extra cup of wine — perhaps the one left in hospitality for any stranger who might come, and which would later be called the cup of Elijah — and passes it around for all to drink. Again he asks them to remember him whenever they drink wine at Passover, to remember that their life is in him, and to remember his sacrifice. It is the last time he will celebrate Passover, for tomorrow the Romans will arrest him and, at the urging of the priests, put him to death. And every one of his friends will, in their own way, betray him.

He was the leader of yet another religious revitalization movement within Judaism, which was simmering with such movements. Israel was again under the domination of a foreign power, Rome, the new Babylon, and people thought that only a return to the true faith would induce God to free them. But Christianity, the movement founded by the charismatic faith-healing rabbi of this Passover story would grow beyond Judaism to absorb and become influenced by the entire Greco-Roman world.

Before that happened the Jewish revolts against Roman oppression in the first and second centuries triggered waves of persecution. The Christians, who by this time included Greeks and Romans unfamiliar with Jewish customs, made as great a distinction between themselves and Jews as possible, in order to avoid being persecuted with them. As a result Christians and Jews were persecuted separately rather than together, and developed a mutual animosity.

What began with Romans persecuting Jews and Christians together proceeded with Jewish Romans like Paul persecuting Christians and ended with Roman Christians persecuting Jews. Christianity had forgotten its roots in Judaism and had fallen into the error of playing religion as a team sport with Christ as its mascot, rather than its Captain.

As this parting of the ways deepened, Christians celebrated a complete agape meal, or ‘love feast,’ for which they were accused of having orgies, but forgot that their meal originated in the Passover Seder (for which the Jews, who prized red wine for the occasion, were accused of drinking blood, even though consuming blood is strictly forbidden by Jewish dietary laws). Then the meal itself was discarded as the Church grew too big for it, leaving only the Communion wine and wafer, and a prejudice by which Christians would prove themselves crucifiers like everyone else.

I think it’s time for Christians to find out what the Last Supper was like by getting friendly enough with Jewish families to get invited to their Seders once in a while. After all, we were once one community, and we hope that one way or another we will be again. Seder is an experience that must be lived rather than described, and a very important part of it (a religious requirement, in fact) is to have a good time. It might also teach Christians a thing or two about ‘family values.’

Of course, if it goes against your belief, don’t do it. On the other hand, some of my Catholic friends occasionally take one of my Jewish friends to Synagogue. I think I’ll go myself — it’s been a long time.