Jesus, Our Passover

 

On April 22, our Jewish brothers and sisters will be celebrating the holy feast of Passover.

 Every year, they gather to remember all the wonders God performed to free them from slavery in Egypt. When God sent the angel to kill all the first-born sons of the Egyptians, he passed over the homes of the Hebrews who smeared the blood of the Passover lamb on their doorposts. When the pharaoh changed his mind about allowing them to leave and sent his army to kill them in the desert, they remember how God dried up the Red Sea and allowed them to pass over it to escape the chariots that were pursuing them. During these days of celebration, they will also recall how God led them through the desert with a column of cloud by day and a column of fire by night.

 When Jews celebrate the Passover, they are not only calling to mind historical events of the distant past. They are not just reenacting something that happened long ago to their ancestors. Rather, they celebrate Passover as if they themselves- both as individuals and as a people were liberated from slavery. It is not only the story of what God did in the past but what He continues to do for them in the present. It is not only the story of their ancestors that they recall but their own story.

 As Christians, we too celebrate the liberation of our Jewish brothers and sisters from slavery in Egypt. Like them, we see it not only as their story as God’s chosen people but as our story as fellow believers in the God of the Bible. However, we see God’s work on behalf of His people as a foreshadowing- that is, as a sort of preview- of the liberation that God would accomplish in Jesus Christ.

 Just as the people of Israel were saved by smearing blood on their doorposts, so we are saved by the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. Just as the people of Israel were saved from Pharaoh's army by passing over the waters of the Red Sea, so we are saved by passing through the waters of baptism. Just as the people of Israel were led through the desert by a column of cloud by day and a column of fire by night, we are led through this life by God’s word and by the teaching of the Church which Jesus established.

All the symbols we use during the Easter Vigil point to this. Our procession into church at the beginning of Mass is led by incense, representing the column of cloud. The Easter candle which is blessed at the door of the church, represents the column of fire. As each of us lights our individual candles from the flame of the Easter candle, a darkened church becomes flooded with light. This symbolizes the truth that our world was dark until Jesus came to fill it with the light of God’s love and truth. Later on in this Mass, after we renew our baptismal vows, we bless the waters of the baptismal font, calling to mind that our salvation comes through our baptism.

 On the holy night of Easter - the holiest night for Christians- we celebrate the Passover of Jesus Christ from death into life- and our Passover from death into life along with Him. 

It is not just a story from the past but it is our story. Our world is different- our lives are different- because Jesus Christ is risen from the dead

This Is The Passover Of The Lord

This past Monday, our Jewish sisters and brothers celebrated the feast of Passover.

Gathering in their homes around the dinner table, they called to mind all that God had done to liberate them from slavery in Egypt. They recalled how, because of Pharaoh's stubbornness, God sent an angel to kill the firstborn of the Egyptians; however, the first born of the Hebrews were saved by the blood of a lamb that was smeared on their doors. Reading from the book of Exodus, they celebrated how, through Moses, God parted the Red Sea to give them safe passage into the desert and protect them from Pharaoh's horsemen and charioteers. With songs of joy, they tell once again the story of how God led them through the desert and provided nourishment for them on their way to the land He promised to give them.

When they have recalled all that God had done to deliver them from slavery, they then discuss what they can do to extend His liberating power to those who continue to live in slavery today. They challenge each other to look at the world around them to see where God’s saving power needs to reach those suffering under the tyranny of injustice and poverty. In this way, not only do they celebrate what God has done in the past but they make His saving power present today in their resolve to end all forms of slavery and oppression.

We gather here this evening to celebrate our own Passover. Just as our Heavenly Father delivered the People of Israel from slavery in Egypt so, through Jesus Christ, He has delivered the whole world from its slavery to sin and death. Just as He led His people through the Red Sea, so He has led us into new life through the waters of baptism. Just as He guided His people through the desert, so He guides us today through His word. And just as He established the People of Israel in the Promised Land so He welcomes us into His Church which is the new People of God spread throughout the world. Today we gather to tell the stories of how we were saved. We celebrate with story, song and ritual how God fulfilled His promise to send a Messiah.

In particular, on this night, we celebrate how our Messiah, Jesus Christ, passed over from a humiliating death on the cross to a new, resurrected life. We tell the story of how His tomb was discovered to be empty, how He appeared to the women who had gone there expecting to find a corpse but were instead greeted by angels who proclaimed that Jesus had risen.

Like our Jewish brothers and sisters, however, we do not gather only to remember incidents from the past. Rather we fill this church with rejoicing and song because the resurrected life of Jesus Christ continues to be a reality at work in our lives. We experience it whenever faith conquers fear, whenever hope defeats despair and whenever love casts away hate. It is at work in our lives when we forgive rather than hold on to grudges, when we do good to those who hate us and when we reach our hand out to those who would harm us. And it is present among us when we face our own death with courage knowing that Jesus has conquered death and opened the gates of heaven for us.

If the power of Jesus’ resurrection is to continue in our world, we must then join our Jewish brothers and sisters in asking this question. Where are people still living in the shadow of sin and death? Where are people still struggling under the yoke of fear, despair and hatred? Where are the dark places in our world which are waiting for the light of Easter victory? What can we do to relieve their suffering?

We will stand soon to renew the promises of our baptism. It was through baptism that Christ’s resurrection victory first flooded our souls with light. As we say “I do”, let us remember those who have not yet been blessed with faith and ask God for the courage to bring this light to them so that Christ’s victory may continue to extend itself through all corners of the Earth.