Are Passover Seders Sinful For Catholics?

[Brother Gilbert Joseph]

#8017

Some Catholic traditionalists are known for attacking the Jews in the Church. They even spread homilies on the internet by anonymous Catholic Tridentine priests who also attack the practice of keeping the Passover Seder by Catholics. They do this by quoting the great doctor of the Church St. Thomas Aquinas. They quote his opinion that a Catholic who keeps the ceremonies and rituals of the Old Covenant as if the Messiah had not already been born is committing a mortal sin. They then decide that this means that those Catholics who attend Passover Seders whether unchanged ones or christianised ones are objectively committing mortal sin. They state that the Passover is part of the animal sacrifices abolished by the first coming of Christ. They also go on to say that the Jewish Passover of today has nothing to do with the ancient Passover celebrated by Jesus.

They thus show that they are blinded by their anti-Semitic prejudices. If it is true that the modern Passover has nothing to do with the ancient Passover (as they say) then it has nothing to do with the rituals or animal sacrifices of the Old Covenant. Then one cannot possibly be sinning unless keeping another ceremony such as Thanksgiving is a sin as well. However I would not agree that the modern Passover Seder kept by the Jews has no connection to the ancient Passover. They are intrinsically connected and spiritually and mystically liked to each other and to the sacrifice of the Messiah on the Cross.

One is not obliged to accept as correct all that St Thomas of Aquinas teaches as is obvious in his opposition to the teaching of the Immaculate Conception and other opinions of his that are not accepted today by the Church. However, I think all Jews in the Church would accept the principle that keeping the ceremonies and rituals of the Old Covenant as necessary for salvation or as if the Messiah had not been born, is wrong. We do not keep the Passover Seder as if the Messiah had not been born nor do we keep it as a means to salvation. In fact it gives us a greater feeling of anticipation for the Second Coming of the Messiah.

We also know, from Benedict XIV’s letter ‘Ex Quo’ (1756) to the Italo-Greeks, that Old Covenant ceremonies and rituals may be kept in the Church even by Gentiles if they are given a New Covenant purpose or meaning. How much more then for the Jews in the Church! Benedict XIV even states that if the Church wishes she could bind the kosher food laws on the Gentile Catholics if she so wishes for a spiritual purpose. How much more then for the Jews in the Church! Pope Benedict XIV’s teaching represented a further development of doctrine in Ex Quo that took priority over any past pastoral applications or understandings.

4. But others remarked wisely that some, surely, of the ceremonial rites of the old Law could be observed under the new Law if only they were not done as obligations of the old Law, which was abrogated, but as a custom, or lawful tradition, or as a new precept issued by one enjoying the recognized and competent authority to make laws and to enforce them, as Vasquez observes (vol. 3, in the 3rd part of the Summa, disp. 210, quest. 80, art. 7).” (Ex Quo of Pope Benedict XIV 1756)

What does the word ‘abrogate’ refer to here. It is not the abrogation of the Law but the abrogation of the need for Gentiles who enter the Church to be obligated to observe the Law as Jews. This is the abrogation for Gentiles discussed in Acts 15. We can be assured that Pope Benedict XIV was not speaking of the abrogation of the Sinai Covenant but of the need for Gentiles to be obligated to the specifically Jewish observances, by the words of Benedict XVI, when he was the Cardinal in charge of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He wrote:

“With regard to the issue of the nature of the covenant, it is important to note that the Last Supper sees itself as making a covenant: it is the prolongation of the Sinai covenant, which is not abrogated, but renewed” (Many Religions, One Covenant, p. 62).

Even for the Jewish Catholic one is not obligated to the old way but observes the customs and ceremonies in the light of the New Covenant with a Messianic, Eucharistic and Marian intention. We do this to more fully adhere to the Will of God and to grow in intimacy with God according to our Election and calling as physical Israelites in the Mystical Body of Christ. Many Hebrew Catholics are drawn to observe as Our Lady and the Apostles and all the first Jewish Catholics of Jerusalem did after Pentecost with zealousness for the Torah (see Acts 21) which we wish to pass to our children and grandchildren.

A Jew who has come to faith in the Messiah Jesus and his Church now sees the Passover Seder with new eyes that perceives Jesus and Mary hidden in the Passover ritual whether one celebrates it as it is or with Christian additions. It is impossible for a Catholic Jew to celebrate Passover as if the Messiah had not come, as everything in the celebration speaks of his Presence and brings one to a deeper understanding and appreciation of the transformed Passover Seder that is the Eucharist. A Catholic Jew who observes the Passover Seder always observes it in the light of the New Covenant which gives it a new meaning and purpose in the interior life of the Catholic Jew. In fact most Jews who enter the church today have found that the Passover means so much more to them now than before they entered the Church. Now we observe it not because we are commanded to in a legalistic way or as a means to salvation but because we see its inner light of sanctification that leads us into the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus.

Some may say that it is fine for the Jews in the Church to keep the Passover as it is part of their heritage but they would exclude the non-Jews in keeping it. However Pope Benedict XVI would disagree with them. Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) in his book “Behold the Pierced One” states:

“…it seems to me, this Passover celebration which has come down to us from the nomads, via Israel and through Christ, also has (in the deepest sense) an eminently political significance. We as a nation, we in Europe, need to go back to our spiritual roots, lest we become lost in self-destruction. This feast needs to become a family celebration once again, for it is the family that is the real bastion of creation and humanity. Passover is a summons, urgently reminding us that the family is the living home in which humanity is nurtured, which banishes chaos and futility, and which must be protected as such. But we must add that the family can only be this sphere of humanity, this bastion of creation, if it is under the banner of the Lamb, if it is protected by the power of faith which comes from the love of Jesus Christ…”

Here we see Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) calling for all Catholics to celebrate with their families the Passover Seder for deep theological and spiritual reasons connected with preserving the faith in the family. Many modern Catholics seem to have lost the customs of making God part of the ordinary life of the family and they could learn much from the Orthodox Jewish families who bring God in a natural and spiritual way into the daily rythm of family life. So those priests and bishops who encourage and participate with the laity in Passover Seders all over the Catholic world are the ones who are in tune with the thinking of our recent Popes.

It is the time of the year when we are thinking about getting ready for our annual Bnei Miriam Havurah Passover Seder at our Beit Achim (House of Brothers). This year in 2020 we will not only have our parish priest in attendance but also another visiting priest from Melbourne. We (the Brothers) have also been invited on March 10 by the Orthodox Jewish Rabbi of Tasmania to the Orthodox Jewish celebration of Purim in Hobart. He laughingly said we won’t have to dress up in fancy dress as in our Catholic habits people will think we were in fancy dress anyway!

Note: This article doesn’t refer to all traditionalist Catholics and in fact there are many other Catholics who also have a mistaken idea of the Church’s position on Jewish observances in the Church.

https://bneimiriam.blogspot.com/2020/03/are-passover-seders-sinful-for.html

[Brother Gilbert Joseph]

#8018

Australian Catholic Bishop’s Committee Guildlines For Passover Seders

Many people wonder what is the position of the Church on the celebration of Passover Seders by Catholics. In 1992 the Bishops’ Committee for Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference gave some guidelines for Catholics holding parish based Seders. These guidelines of course do not effect how individual Catholic families of Jewish origin celebrate Passover in their own homes or groups. In fact the Hebrew Catholics, to whom as Jews the Passover belongs as a right just as much as to others Jews, could be the ones that a parish invites to lead the Seder in order to fulfill the second guideline.

Nevertheless the underlying principles are helpful to keep in mind and if one’s Seder is a parish one it should adhere to the guidelines and to the local diocesan or archdiocesan guidelines if there are any and the wishes of one’s parish priest.

Passover
In recent years numbers of Catholics have become interested in celebrating Passover (Pesach, Seder). Thus it is necessary to draw attention to the following:

i. Passover is a feast sacred to the Jews. When non-Jews demonstrate it, the rites of the Haggadah should be respected in all their integrity. For this reason the use of a text approved by a Rabbi is recommended; even if a text has been approved overseas, the local Rabbi should be consulted, as attitudes vary somewhat with place and circumstances.

ii. It is desirable to invite a Jewish couple or family to conduct the rite.

iii. One of the chief reasons for this celebration by Christians should be to acknowledge and experience some of what we have received from the Jews in the history of salvation.

iv. This ritual has value as background for teaching about the Last Supper, but it should never be a hybrid presentation of Jewish and Christian celebrations.

v. In recent years some Catholics have chosen to attend a Seder on Holy Thursday instead of the Catholic Liturgy. Thus they celebrate the deliverance of the Hebrews from Egypt, while omitting the celebration of our Passover and deliverance in Christ. It is strongly recommended that the Seder experience be held outside Holy Week, or at least at a time allowing for attendance at the Holy Week ceremonies.

For those in Queensland the Catholic/Jewish Subcommittee of the Brisbane Archdiocesan Commission for Ecumenism and Interfaith Relations proposed that those holding or attending Passover Seders should reflect on these three points.

1 The Passover Seder is a Jewish celebration.

2 The study of the Passover is best situated within the academic framework of the study of Judaism. As the SIDIC document states ‘Christians can approach the Passover Seder alone or in groups and study its structure, read the text, explain the rites with the help of a competent person sensitive to Judaism. (1995: p3)

3 Christians may wish to attend a Jewish Passover meal when invited by Jewish friends. As stated in the notes on Nostra Aetate ‘One would then truly be guest of the Jewish tradition and faith by which the Church is linked by its very identity.’ (Nostra Aetate – notes 12)

When reading the literature on this we can see that the Church is concerned that the Jewish integrity of the traditional Jewish Seder is respected and we would agree with them which is why when we hold a Seder or even the Sabbath meal we do it in accord with the traditional orthodox Haggadah and the orthodox Siddur for the Sabbath. We believe that the traditional rites do not need Christianised/ Gentilised additions as they are a better witness to the truths of the Catholic faith as they are celebrated by all Jews.

Of course every Jewish family has its own customs or minhagim and there is nothing wrong with Hebrew Catholics having their own as long as they enhance the Seder as a Jewish celebration rather than confuse it. The Holy Mass is the Christianised Seder for all Catholics and there is no need to have another one that is a cross or hybrid between the Jewish and the Christian Seder (Eucharistic Liturgy).

Some other Hebrew Catholics would disagree with us and they do hold more Christianised Seders. As the guidelines are not canonical laws and their authority is limited one is not bound to adhere to them (even though I think one would be wise to do so) especially if the Seder is not an official parish or diocesan one.We never hold ours during the three day Triduum of Easter but if we can’t keep it on the first or second nights of Pesach then we keep it on one of the other days of the Passover week. However our orthodox Rabbi suggested that I eat some matzah and drink grape juice if the first night of Pesach is on Good Friday which could fit in with Catholic fast and abstinence rules for Good Friday. I do this privately and then celebrate a full Seder with others on another day.

https://bneimiriam.blogspot.com/2019/11/australian-catholic-bishops-committee.html

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