Was the Last Supper a Jewish Passover meal?

[brb3]

The meal was not finished…the last cup not consumed.

What does Brian Petrie, who wrote the book on this ( from Jewish & Catholic perspective ) say ?

 

[steve53]

According to Josephus, and using John, the Paschal meal marks the start of the festival, which is taken on the 14th of Nisan, which would be in the evening and the start of the 14th. For the next 5 days, the feast of the unleavened bread would be celebrated. So the first day would start on the evening of the 15th, and the second on the evening of the 16th.
The 16th was the day of preparation, so it had to be a Friday.

 

[brb3]

Also, Christ directed them to have Eucharist on regular, weekly, Lord’s Day basis …not yearly, as the Passover Meal would be held.

 

[brb3]

John. Chapter 3:1-2 certainly suggests it is not, and John 18:28 is very explicit that the Passover meal that year was on the day Jesus was crucified, not Holy Thursday.

Which suggests …the Lord’s Supper was begun early …to accommodate Christ’s trial & death on same day as normal Passover Meal was to be consummated.

 

[brb3]

We must know, that Christ knew, when his death would occur. So everything done was perfectly choreographed to fit the letter of the Passover. Prophecy demanded it…prophesy fulfillment is always exactly played out.

 

[tafan]

Which suggests …the Lord’s Supper was begun early …to accommodate Christ’s trial & death on same day as normal Passover Meal was to be consummated.

Yes, I guess I was not clear in my op, that is the whole issue. Perhaps not important, but Pope Benedict did spend 10 pages of his book discussing the various versions of the date of the last supper relative to the Passover meal that year.

 

[brb3]

The death of lamb and shed blood must occur BEFORE the Passover Meal eaten.
Thus, Passover that year must of been on Friday. Christ had no choice but, to begin the meal a day early (but, not finish it) …until Friday when he Finished Passion, and his blood shed for the many.

 

[brb3]

One thing that is interesting and pointed out by Pope Benedict in his book. If the Jewish Passover was on Good Friday, as indicated in the Gospel of John. Jesus, the true Pascal Lamb, died on the cross on Good Friday at the same time of day that the lambs in the temple would have been killed in preparation for the Passover meal.

Yes …see u realize this as the key need !! Not that this is the only way possible …but, reasoned logic demands it.

 

[brb3]

Just wondering how you can read John’s Gospel and come away with his suggesting otherwise when it’s the most complete version and in no way suggests or alludes that it wasn’t the Passover meal?

One thing is for sure…John knew the truth of events regarding the Last Supper. Whatever he taught about it …is not errant.
He also wrote his account last …to include additional info/evidence he believed crucial for the Church.

 

[tafan]

Yes …see u realize this as the key need !! Not that this is the only way possible …but, reasoned logic demands it.

I would not be this definitive (and neither was Pope Benedict XVI in his book). But the more I have read the arguments on both sides, I do think you are correct. John’s account of the Passover meal being on Good Friday for the Jews, and the Last Supper not being the Jewish Passover meal, but Jesus’ own Passover meal, makes much more sense to me. After going back and reading the four Gospel accounts, it is much easier to reconcile the synoptic gospels describing it as a Passover because the early Church understood it to be a new Passover, as opposed to taking the explicit statements in John and just pretending they don’t exist.

I do wonder why others (I provided the Jimmy Akins link in the OP) are so definitive the other way. They seem to be making a lot of assumptions about the Jewish Passover meal structure at the time of Christ.

 

[brb3]

I would not be this definitive (and neither was Pope Benedict XVI in his book). But the more I have read the arguments on both sides, I do think you are correct. John’s account of the Passover meal being on Good Friday for the Jews, and the Last Supper not being the Jewish Passover meal, but Jesus’ own Passover meal, makes much more sense to me. After going back and reading the four Gospel accounts, it is much easier to reconcile the synoptic gospels describing it as a Passover because the early Church understood it to be a new Passover, as opposed to taking the explicit statements in John and just pretending they don’t exist.

I do wonder why others (I provided the Jimmy Akins link in the OP) are so definitive the other way. They seem to be making a lot of assumptions about the Jewish Passover meal structure at the time of Christ.

I think they believe Jesus elected to have / start his Passover meal with them early …God being able work from His timetable …since Jesus knew he could not celebrate it with them on Good Friday. Also, it may of been necessary, to start early, in order to reinforce upon the 12, that the NT Passover, the Eucharist of the Church, is to be celebrated ‘as often as ye meet’ …daily these days, never ceasing to occur — “from the rising to the setting of Sun, a pure sacrifice”.

I’ve ordered Brant Petrie’s book …to see what the Jewish/Christian expert says on Passover & Eucharist. Did Benedict reference his book ?

 

[tafan]

I think they believe Jesus elected to have / start his Passover meal with them early …God being able work from His timetable …since Jesus knew he could not celebrate it with them on Good Friday. Also, it may of been necessary, to start early, in order to reinforce upon the 12, that the NT Passover, the Eucharist of the Church, is to be celebrated ‘as often as ye meet’ …daily these days, never ceasing to occur — “from the rising to the setting of Sun, a pure sacrifice”.

I’ve ordered Brant Petrie’s book …to see what the Jewish/Christian expert says on Passover & Eucharist. Did Benedict reference his book ?

That name or book does not ring a bell; I don’t have the book in front of me, bu I am pretty sure he did not.

As to your idea that the last supper was the start of Jesus’ new Passover meal that was completed on Good Friday with his death; that is interesting. It is not a perspective Benedict had in his book.

 

[opus101]

Because of this thread, I especially noticed this passage from the Gospel reading for Good Friday today:

John 18:28
Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the praetorium. It was morning.And they themselves did not enter the praetorium, in order not to be defiled so that they could eat the Passover.

 

[brb3]

Because of this thread, I especially noticed this passage from the Gospel reading for Good Friday today:

John 18:28
Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the praetorium. It was morning.And they themselves did not enter the praetorium, in order not to be defiled so that they could eat the Passover.

John makes clear the Jewish date of. The Synoptics, speak to Passover/ Eucharist Supper from the Christian NT understanding …IMO.

Hopefully Brant Petrie has it all figured out.

 

[fred_conty]

The death of lamb and shed blood must occur BEFORE the Passover Meal eaten.
Thus, Passover that year must of been on Friday. Christ had no choice but, to begin the meal a day early (but, not finish it) …until Friday when he Finished Passion, and his blood shed for the many.

To me it makes perfect logic. John the Baptist said, “there is the Lamb of God”.

The new lamb of the new passover is Jesus. This new lamb he gave his 12 to eat at the Last Supper, his flesh, for He said, “this is my body”. So the new paschal meal was celebrated on Thursday right before the old paschal meal. But in the old paschal meal on Friday, the new lamb was sacrificed at the exact time the lamb was eaten in the old, thereby replacing it.

Sounds right to me. And if so, then Benedict is correct.

 

[opus101]

So, someone please correct me if I’m wrong: The Jewish Passover Seder was to be on Friday that year. In anticipation of His sacrifice on the cross, our Lord celebrated the Last Supper and instituted the Holy Eucharist on Thursday. Since, on the next day, He was the one, true and final Passover sacrifice, the Holy Lamb of God, then the Last Supper was, in anticipation, sacramentally the same sacrifice. In that sense, it was not only a Passover meal, but THE Passover meal, to be perpetuated until the end of the world.

Although the Seder was not celebrated by the other Jews on Thursday that year, the Last Supper (which was the Holy Sacrifice on the Cross in anticipation) was indeed the fulfillment of all Passover Seders.

I hope I got that right.

 

[brb3]

So, someone please correct me if I’m wrong: The Jewish Passover Seder was to be on Friday that year. In anticipation of His sacrifice on the cross, our Lord celebrated the Last Supper and instituted the Holy Eucharist on Thursday. Since, on the next day, He was the one, true and final Passover sacrifice, the Holy Lamb of God, then the Last Supper was, in anticipation, sacramentally the same sacrifice. In that sense, it was not only a Passover meal, but THE Passover meal, to be perpetuated until the end of the world.

Although the Seder was not celebrated by the other Jews on Thursday that year, the Last Supper (which was the Holy Sacrifice on the Cross in anticipation) was indeed the fulfillment of all Passover Seders.

I hope I got that right.

Yes… I think so. I don’t think the 12 & Christ ate roast lamb on Thursday nite. …only bread & wine.

 

[brb3]

tafan …

here is the Brant Pitre video/audio link … that explains it, answers all questions, and moreso.

www.theholyeucharist.com/

 

[Dave_P]

I believe that the synoptics imply that Christ is His own Passover meal.

Luke- “Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.”

Christ IS the Passover lamb. And St John states that Christ is the Lamb crucified at the same time that the lambs are slaughtered on the day before Passover to signify that He is the new Passover!

Isaiah 53: “Like a lamb led to the slaughter”

So it is a new Passover meal in it’s own right, but not necessarily a ‘Jewish’ Passover meal!

 

[Fidelis]

Jesus himself refers to the setting of the meal as Passover in Luke 22:15:

And he said to them, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover (Greek pascha πάσχα]) with you before I suffer.

The phrase “Passover meal” is not in the original text (though it appears that way in some translations). As noted above, he could be referring to either the meal or the Passover season.

Dr. Brant Pitre has a very interesting podcast on this topic on his blog, The Sacred Page. It can be found here.