"Do this in memory of Me"

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Zundrah

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Why did Jesus say “do this in memory of me”?

Wouldn’t the apostles have continued to see the Pass Over meal after Christ’s passing anyway?

Was it the words He said over the breaking of the bread and passing of the wine the part He was most concerned about to be continued?

The word “memory” in that sentence, it doesn’t come across as having a deep meaning.

If He said, “repeat this act, and concentrate on why I died for you” that would hit hard. But the part where He says “in memory of me”, I don’t know but it sounds too mild.
 
I suggest the Catechism section on the Eucharist, it is very detailed and answers your questions
 
Zundrah said:
Why did Jesus say “do this in memory of me”?

Wouldn’t the apostles have continued to see the Pass Over meal after Christ’s passing anyway?

Was it the words He said over the breaking of the bread and passing of the wine the part He was most concerned about to be continued?

The word “memory” in that sentence, it doesn’t come across as having a deep meaning.

If He said, “repeat this act, and concentrate on why I died for you” that would hit hard. But the part where He says “in memory of me”, I don’t know but it sounds too mild.
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It was actually a very powerful COMMAND. In a few simple words, he gives the Apostles (no one else) this power to call upon the Holy Spirit to change the bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus. In this command, Jesus establishes the central mystery of the New Covenantal Sacrifice and High Priesthood.

It is easy for people who look upon Scripture as a “User’s Guide to Salvation” to misinterpret the meaning of verses, as it wasn’t written for that purpose at all.
 
The actual word used in Scripture is anamnesis, which carries a stronger connotation than the English “in memory”. Anamnesis has a meaning more akin to “make real again” or “make present again”. In Platonic philosophy, for example, anamnesis is when the eternal soul “remembers” knowledge that it has always had, and in Judaism the Passover Seder is an “anamnesis” in which the people celebrating are actually really present with the Hebrews preparing to leave Egypt.

This is why the Church teaches that the Liturgy is a kind of reconnection with the Last Supper, and the words of Consecration are actually Christ’s, not the priest’s.

Peace and God bless!
 
Ghosty said:
The actual word used in Scripture is anamnesis, which carries a stronger connotation than the English “in memory”. Anamnesis has a meaning more akin to “make real again” or “make present again”. In Platonic philosophy, for example, anamnesis is when the eternal soul “remembers” knowledge that it has always had, and in Judaism the Passover Seder is an “anamnesis” in which the people celebrating are actually really present with the Hebrews preparing to leave Egypt.

This is why the Church teaches that the Liturgy is a kind of reconnection with the Last Supper, and the words of Consecration are actually Christ’s, not the priest’s.

Peace and God bless!
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Good point. The Passover Seder is not so much a recollection of past events but rather a command to all Jews to understand what G-d did for them, who are living in the present. One lives the experience of the past in the present rather than remembering it as a past event. This is basically true of most rituals; they serve not to perpetuate the past but to reveal the past as contained in the present time.
 
Zundrah said:
Why did Jesus say “do this in memory of me”?

Wouldn’t the apostles have continued to see the Pass Over meal after Christ’s passing anyway?

Was it the words He said over the breaking of the bread and passing of the wine the part He was most concerned about to be continued?

The word “memory” in that sentence, it doesn’t come across as having a deep meaning.

If He said, “repeat this act, and concentrate on why I died for you” that would hit hard. But the part where He says “in memory of me”, I don’t know but it sounds too mild.
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As has been mentioned, the word translated “memory” had a specific meaning in the Old Testament that was tied to sacrifice. Further explanation here.
 
Zundrah said:
The word “memory” in that sentence, it doesn’t come across as having a deep meaning.
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Others have already pointed out that the English word “memory” does not convey the nuances of *anamenesis *(*meno *- make present; *ana *- by repetition).

But you left off the most important part of that sentence - Our Lord’s command to the Apostles to DO THIS.

What the Apostles (and their ordained successors) do is exactly what Jesus did.
 
Jesus’s words “Do this in memory of me” or “…in remembrance of me” are not only about repeating the ritual with bread and wine. True, that’s part of what he meant. But,what does he mean by “this”?? He was also speaking about living our lives according to his teachings…to be his real presence to the world. Did Jesus only mean to say these words, use these elements and do these actions? No…absolutely not!
 
Keep this in mind, too: they were participating in the Passover Seder, which was a perpetual institution in rememberance of God’s passover of the Israelite people because of the lambs’ blood on their doors marking them as people of God.

Jesus said to do it in rememberance of Him: making Himself the Lamb of God, the perfect sacrifice on behalf of God’s people.
 
Same as the yearly Passover in the OT when they had a celebration of eating lamb in rememberance of God delivering them from Egypt. Instead tho we use bread and wine.
 
Luvtosew said:
Same as the yearly Passover in the OT when they had a celebration of eating lamb in rememberance of God delivering them from Egypt. Instead tho we use bread and wine.
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Thing is, they actually sacrificed and ate the lamb. That’s the whole point.
 
Yes they did eat the lamb, but Jesus changed that when he gave himself on the cross.
 
Luvtosew said:
Yes they did eat the lamb, but Jesus changed that when he gave himself on the cross.
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Yes He did change that. If I understand it correctly, Jesus is the Lamb of God. In other words, we eat His body instead of an ordinary lamb.
 
There is the sacrifice of our lives, given to the Lord in the way of praise and worship and tiths in thanksgiving of the Sacrifice he made for us at Calvary.
 
Luvtosew said:
There is the sacrifice of our lives, given to the Lord in the way of praise and worship and tiths in thanksgiving of the Sacrifice he made for us at Calvary.
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So you are saying that your works have merit before God?
 
No I don’t consider giving our life to God as works, nor do I consider praying or worship as works. We are to have faith in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour and commit our lives to follow him. Good works involve acts of chairty and love for our neighbors but Christians do not consider acts of charity or loving our neighbor as works for salvation we do it because of the gift of the HS in us and our love for God.
 
Luvtosew said:
No I don’t consider giving our life to God as works, nor do I consider praying or worship as works. We are to have faith in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour and commit our lives to follow him. Good works involve acts of chairty and love for our neighbors but Christians do not consider acts of charity or loving our neighbor as works for salvation we do it because of the gift of the HS in us and our love for God.
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So you ARE saying that your works have merit to be put on that altar and sacrificed to God.
 
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