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Seder meal foreshadows the Messiah

Ashleigh Kassock | Catholic Herald

A plate with an egg, parsley, roasted lamb, fresh horseradish and a mixture of fruit, wine and nuts called charoset are placed in a special plate at the leader’s table during the Passover Seder meal at Good Shepherd Church in Mount Vernon March 7. ASHLEIGH KASSOCK | CATHOLIC HERALD

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Renee Fornshill introduces Roy Schoeman, author and Catholic convert, at the Passover Seder meal at Good Shepherd Church in Mount Vernon March 7. ASHLEIGH KASSOCK | CATHOLIC HERALD

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Roy Schoeman hides a piece of matzah in a linen napkin during the Passover Seder meal at Good Shepherd Church in Mount Vernon March 7. ASHLEIGH KASSOCK | CATHOLIC HERALD

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Elena DeLaHunt, 3, watches her brother Nathaniel, 6, break a piece of matzah during the Passover Seder meal at Good Shepherd Church in Mount Vernon March 7. ASHLEIGH KASSOCK | CATHOLIC HERALD

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A young girl raises her hand to be selected for a role in the Passover Seder meal at Good Shepherd Church in Mount Vernon March 7. ASHLEIGH KASSOCK | CATHOLIC HERALD

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While the Passover Seder meal is celebrated traditionally by
Jewish families during the first night of Passover, more than 100 Catholics of
all ages gathered in Creedon Hall at Good Shepherd Church in Alexandria to
learn about the tradition and how it relates to the Mass. 

 

Organizers Renee Fornshill and Lixandra Rosario were motivated to
host the parish-wide Seder March 7 after learning about the meal’s deeper
meaning in their homeschool group’s Bible study. They hoped the experience
would give children a greater appreciation for the Mass.

 

“I think the number one thing we face as families is trying to
engage our children in Mass,” said Fornshill. “The more we can bring the Mass
alive for them, I think the better engaged they will be as Catholics in general.”

 

Roy Schoeman, a renowned international author and Catholic
convert, led participants through the Seder meal as it was celebrated in his
Jewish family. He explained that the word Seder means “order” in Hebrew, and
the meal represents the order by which the Jews escaped Egyptian slavery, as
well as the hope of the coming of the Messiah who was expected at Passover.
Christians who participate in the Seder remember the history of the Old
Testament but also see the fulfillment of the Seder in the New Testament with
Jesus’ death on Calvary.

 

 “You have this whole first
half of salvation history meeting the second half of salvation history at a
very specific time and place, which was the Last Supper, and there is a reason
why the Last Supper was also a Passover Seder,” said Schoeman. “It was the last
supper as a Passover Seder and the first one as a Catholic Mass. That is why we
are doing the Passover Seder.” 

 

At Good Shepherd Church, more than 100 people sat at tables with
the traditional Passover food, which included parsley; saltwater; matzah; a
mixture of fruit, wine and nuts called charoset; and fresh horseradish. The
head table featured a plate with a lamb shank and an egg. During the dinner
portion of the Seder, a buffet was served with items that resembled a
traditional Seder with a few exceptions. The matzah stuffing, coconut macaroons
and matzah ball soup all were unleavened. Chicken was served in place of lamb.

 

Schoeman walked those gathered through the four parts of the
meal, which has a number of different roles designed for children such as the
reading of the four questions, washing of hands and search for the hidden
Matzah.

 

Each of the four parts concluded with a cup of wine or grape
juice. The four cups are the cup of blessing, cup of judgment, cup of
redemption and cup of consummation. During the Last Supper, Jesus intentionally
leaves out drinking the fourth cup of consummation saying, “Amen, I say to you,
I shall not drink again the fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it new
in the kingdom of God”
Mk 14:25.

 

While the majority of those in attendance were from Good
Shepherd, some families came from as far away as Stafford and Fredericksburg.
Although there are no plans to make this an annual event, organizers hope that
with this year’s great turnout, they can bring the Seder back next year.

 

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