So here we are, quarantined during this week leading up to Easter. I hate missing observing Good Friday and celebrating Resurrection Morning with our church family. Church services (at least in-person!), egg hunts, and family gatherings may be cancelled, but that doesn't mean this week needs to pass by without significant times of remembrance.
A number of years ago, we held a "Seder" (Passover meal) with family, and it has become one of our most treasured traditions around the Easter season. A time to simply pause and remember - remember the vast span of God's plan of salvation, the weight of our sin, our deep need for redemption, the hope we have in Jesus, and our calling to share the good news with others. Along the way, it has built in our kids a deeper perspective on what Easter is actually all about, how the Old and
New Testaments speak to one another, the Jewish roots of our Christian faith, and even the significance of observing communion.
During this unique time as we are all quarantined and housebound, I thought I would share how we hold our Seder, along with step-by-step instructions for how you can have a dinner like this at your own house.
This really is very simple - we happen to have official Seder dishes, but you truly don't need anything special. Some years, our Seder meal has been fancy - we've pulled out the nicest china, welcomed friends over, and made it a big celebration. Some years, it's been a last minute addition to Easter week with paper plates, dinner that for sure wasn't anything Kosher, and making do with what we had in the house! We aren't bound by rules, here. In fact, we are celebrating the fact that Jesus fulfilled the demands of the law and set us free!
All you'll need to do is read through these directions, do some simple prep (get your grocery order in for some matzoh, grape juice, parsley, and horseradish... and maybe a lamb bone!), and you'll literally read through the Haggadah (scripted reading through the Seder dinner) together as a family. If you don't have something or can't get it, don't stress about it. Maybe instead of a lamb shank bone it's a sheep from your nativity set this year. ;)
"Come, Lord Jesus! Next year in the New Jerusalem!"
If you decide to hold a family Seder, I would love to hear how it goes! Let me know on facebook!