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The Passover Lamb
It is really a sad fact of Christian life that we lost our roots. There were too many times in our history that we not only forgot our roots, but committed the sins of unjustly condemning and being prejudiced against the Jews. The Jews are still God’s chosen people. In fact, as Saint Paul tells us, we have been grafted on the vine. The first reading from tonight’s Mass of the Lord’s Supper reminds us of our history in recalling for us the Passover.
But in order to fully understand what it means to be Christian it is essential we understand the Hebrew Scriptures, which we call the Old Testament. For in here we understand the first covenants God made with his people. We understand how it is we have sinned, and the powerful love God showed us in forgiving us and saving us.
Time and again we read in the Torah the stories of sin and redemption, and about the rise and fall of the Jewish people. We see in God’s Fidelity to His Chosen people that we should not dismiss this promise. The Jews are still the Chosen People. We have been grafted on the vine and profess our faith in Jesus, who represents the fulfillment of the Jewish Law.
While there are many events where we can see the continuity of God’s promise and their fulfillment in Jesus, one of the most clear examples of this is in the Jewish Passover. The Passover was the deliverance of Israel from the Egyptians, and their journey into the promised land.
So too for us, the Passover lamb is about our deliverance too. Jesus is the lamb that died for our sins, so that we could be liberated in a relationship with Him. So much of John’s gospel is about the powerful symbolism of the death of Jesus and the lamb led to sacrifice. (There is also the power of the cleaning water of the Temple after sacrifice flowing out the side of the Temple with the blood of the Lamb, and blood and water flowing out from Jesus on the cross after his death.)
And so if you attend the Mass of the Lord’s supper tonight, do not forget your roots. And see how just as God did centuries ago, God is still delivering His people.
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