Did Jesus consecrate matzah?

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We celebrated the Passover Seder with Jewish relatives and the beginning of the meal they said a prayer over matzah and then, in turn, wine.

Did Jesus do the same blessings at the Last Supper, and just added the transubstantiation part at the end?

On top of that, is matzah acceptable Eucharist?
 
Unleavened wheat bread - you could say Matzo, as that is what it is.
 
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I have not had matzah or Matzo, so here goes: it depends on what is in it. If it is made only with flour and water, then it would appear to comply with Roman rite Eucharist (Eastern Rites may use leavened bread). If it contains salt or any other addition, then no.
 
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This says salt and olive oil are optional:

www.allrecipes.com

Matzah

Matzah is thin, cracker-like unleavened bread made with flour and water. It's easy to make from scratch and a beautiful way to prepare for Passover.
www.allrecipes.com www.allrecipes.com
 
Episcopalian said:
Did Jesus do the same blessings at the Last Supper, and just added the transubstantiation part at the end?
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The blessings over the bread and wine are from old in Hebrew tradition and would have been the same ones Jesus spoke over the bread and wine:

In English they are, “Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who brings forth bread from the earth”; and “Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has given us the fruit of the vine.”

When at Mass it is said that “Jesus spoke the blessing,” these would have been the words.

It’s neat that you were able to attend a Passover.
 
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If it says “Kosher for Passover” on the package, that means they’re made from wheat flour and water only.

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I have always understood — and that doesn’t mean I’ve been right — that something very similar to kosher-for-Passover matzoh was used at the Last Supper. I know what the Eastern Christians say about leavened bread representing the leaven that is Christ, but I’ve never understood how this wasn’t an illicit departure from the original matter for the Eucharist. I accept it on faith, and I’m not saying their Eucharist is invalid — it certainly is valid — I’ve just never understood how it was “okay” for them to introduce this.

Even their small Western Rite communities use leavened bread that has been pressed down to create a more-or-less flat Host. To my mind, this is just a little bizarre — I respect what they do with the Western Rite (sure would be nice for them to come into communion with the Roman Pontiff), I respect the fact that they are seeking to restore a tradition, but the Western Rite comes across as being an innovation, something created to meet a need, rather than an organic development. It would be kind of like the Roman Rite developing an Eastern-style liturgy under the jurisdiction of Roman Rite bishops, as opposed to sui juris Churches — to my knowledge, canonical Orthodoxy has no “Western Rite bishops”.
 
Well, I guess that shows I don’t buy it very often… :crazy_face: 🤣
 
HomeschoolDad said:
I’ve just never understood how it was “okay” for them to introduce this.
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The history of where each of the Apostles went to preach the Good News indicates they spread out fairly widely geographically. It should not be too hard to understand that rubrics/rules/disciplines developed fairly quickly in different areas, and they had little or no communication on a whole lot of matters - mules, horses, donkeys and camels being generally slow at long distances and all that. And lacking that, 10 miles a day on foot was not exactly conducive to getting back to Jerusalem for a major meeting. Just because we think in terms of multi centuries old traditions (with a small “t”) dos not mean that they did likewise.

In a recent discussion it was said that even in the fairly early Roman rite, both leavened and unleavened bread was used; that is not something I have researched but if true, it is interesting.
 
For most plain and whole wheat matzo, only flour and water. But you have to read the ingredients. Some brands used to add apple cider.

Actually, egg matzo or other varieties which add some flavor are not allowed during the Seder or Passover week. LOL We want it to be as flavorless as possible! Egg matzo is permitted for the elderly or infirm, chocolate matzo for children.
 
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HomeschoolDad said:
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HomeschoolDad:
I’ve just never understood how it was “okay” for them to introduce this.
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The history of where each of the Apostles went to preach the Good News indicates they spread out fairly widely geographically. It should not be too hard to understand that rubrics/rules/disciplines developed fairly quickly in different areas, and they had little or no communication on a whole lot of matters - mules, horses, donkeys and camels being generally slow at long distances and all that. And lacking that, 10 miles a day on foot was not exactly conducive to getting back to Jerusalem for a major meeting. Just because we think in terms of multi centuries old traditions (with a small “t”) dos not mean that they did likewise.
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I have to think that the Holy Spirit intervened to keep these developing rules and disciplines within the bounds of orthodoxy and the Mind of Christ. A bishop in India or Ethiopia didn’t have the luxury of calling or sending an email to Rome or Jerusalem and saying “hey, leavened or unleavened, which should we use, or does it really matter?”.
otjm said:
In a recent discussion it was said that even in the fairly early Roman rite, both leavened and unleavened bread was used; that is not something I have researched but if true, it is interesting.
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I can see how various flatbreads could have evolved, some leavened (such as pita or naan), some unleavened (such as lavash).
meltzerboy2 said:
For most plain and whole wheat matzo, only flour and water. But you have to read the ingredients. Some brands used to add apple cider.
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Would apple cider be kosher for Passover? I ask in all ignorance.
 
Yes, apple cider is fine. In the old days, so my father told me, the menu for Passover was more limited than it became later, but one of the few foods one was permitted to eat were apples.
 
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Jesus transformed and perfected the Passover into the Eucharist.

He said the regular blessings, ate the regular Passover foods, reclined at table, and re-told the story of our liberation from slavery in Egypt.

One new thing Jesus did was to institute a new command (mandatum) by washing his disciples’ feet and commanding them to do likewise.

Blessed are those who dwell on the Exodus of our ancestors,
Deacon Christopher
 
HomeschoolDad said:
I have always understood — and that doesn’t mean I’ve been right — that something very similar to kosher-for-Passover matzoh was used at the Last Supper. I know what the Eastern Christians say about leavened bread representing the leaven that is Christ, but I’ve never understood how this wasn’t an illicit departure from the original matter for the Eucharist. I accept it on faith, and I’m not saying their Eucharist is invalid — it certainly is valid — I’ve just never understood how it was “okay” for them to introduce this.
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Eastern Christians use leavened bread in honor of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. His paschal mystery, including being raised from the dead is more important than the required unleavened bread of Passover.
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It is similar to the sabbath/Sunday issue: The resurrection of Christ our True God on Sunday is more important than the observance of rest on the sixth day of Creation (the sabbath, Saturday).

Christ our True God is risen from the dead,
Deacon Christopher
 
otjm said:
In a recent discussion it was said that even in the fairly early Roman rite, both leavened and unleavened bread was used; that is not something I have researched but if true, it is interesting.
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until the ninth century or the 900s, I forget (Father mentions the specific year every year or two)
 
I had not heard of this until now, but it does not surprise me. There are a number of things which are disciplinary, and appear absolute and many treat as such, but are not absolute.

I suppose there are a few other things I have not heard yet. 🤔
 
I am going to look up chocolate matzo. (It has chocolate I hope that got my attention)
Dominus vobiscum

Just looked, I have something else to try now. Put chocolate on it and I’d probably eat it. Same with cheese.
 
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