Seder Meal

[Mangy_Donkey]

An acquaintance recently told me that as a Catholic to take part in a seder meal, offered by fellow Catholics, is a sin. I thought that he might be incorrect so I checked with another friend and he said tat the first is correct.

I was really quite surprised by this, I have friends that have this meal every year and I consider them quite orthodox in their faith. Anyone with any info or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Barbkw]

Our parish hosts an educational Sedar Meal (non liturgical) for people interested in understanding Jesus’ transition from Jewish worship practices to the Eucharist at the Last Supper.

 

[PatrickSebast]

The only thing taught against is hosting them as a form of liturgy. Having a Seder meal as fun and educational venue is not against any Church teaching.

 

[Mangy_Donkey]

Hmmm…looks like he is correct. Can I post a link to an audio file from a Catholic site, or does that violate Catholic answer rules?

 

[Phemie]

An acquaintance recently told me that as a Catholic to take part in a seder meal, offered by fellow Catholics, is a sin. I thought that he might be incorrect so I checked with another friend and he said tat the first is correct.

I was really quite surprised by this, I have friends that have this meal every year and I consider them quite orthodox in their faith. Anyone with any info or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

From the 1988 document “God’s Mercy Endures Forever: Guidelines on the Presentation of Jews and Judaism in Catholic Preaching” by the USCCB’s Bishop’s Committee on the Liturgy:

1. It is becoming familiar in many parishes and Catholic homes to participate in a Passover Seder during Holy Week. This practice can have educational and spiritual value. It is wrong, however, to “baptize” the Seder by ending it with New Testament readings about the Last Supper or, worse, turn it into a prologue to the Eucharist. Such mergings distort both traditions. The following advice should prove useful:

When Christians celebrate this sacred feast among themselves, the rites of the haggadah for the seder should be respected in all their integrity. The seder . . . should be celebrated in a dignified manner and with sensitivity to those to whom the seder truly belongs. The primary reason why Christians may celebrate the festival of Passover should be to acknowledge common roots in the history of salvation. Any sense of “restaging” the Last Supper of the Lord Jesus should be avoided … The rites of the Triduum are the [Church’s] annual memorial of the events of Jesus’ dying and rising (Bishops’ Committee on the Liturgy Newsletter, March 1980, p. 12).

That certainly doesn’t sound like it’s a sin to participate in a Seder.