The Seder meal is the climax of the Jewish Passover celebration. In a Jewish home, the week before Passover is spent preparing for the Passover. Whether or not you plan to attend our Maundy Thursday Seder meal, I though you might enjoy participating in an ancient Seder preparation ritual which I have adapted for Christians.
You will need: a wooden spoon, a candle in a holder, a small paper bag, a piece of string, some bread, a Bible.
This ritual is called the "bedikat chametz," or "hunt for the leaven." In both the Old and New Testaments, leaven (anything that causes bread to rise) symbolized sin, and the Jews were commanded to eat nothing containing leaven during the week before Passover. In a Jewish home, every nook and cranny was scoured and any trace of leavened bread removed. After dark on the night before Passover, the head of the family would lead a search through the whole house by candlelight. If the house had been cleaned thoroughly enough, no pieces of leavened bread would be found, but it has become tradition for the mother of the family to hide a few for the children to find. Since the house will be dark during the search, they need not be hidden in difficult places.
Begin your bedikan chametz by reading together Exodus 12:15, 19, 42. Then the lights are turned off, the candle is lit, and the family forms a search team. Search through the entire house with one person leading the way holding the candle. When a piece of hidden bread is found, it is scooped into the paper bag with the feather and wooden spoon (no one is to touch the bread). The pieces of bread that are found remind us that no one is without sin, and that in His love for us, Christ shines his light on our sin and offers to remove it. Another thing to reflect upon during your search is that no one can go off on his/her own. You need the light of Christ to guide the way, and the help of other members of God's family.
After all the bread is found, take some time to share your thoughts, feelings and insights about the experience. Then tie the bag closed with a piece of string and pray together in response to your experience. Include a time of silent prayer for confession. Turn on the lights and have someone read 1 Corinthians 5:6-8. Have someone else read Psalm 103:12 and dispose of the bag together.
I look forward to sharing our Seder meal with all of you this Thursday at 6. May God bless you in your preparation.
Grace and peace,
Cindy Thomas
Worship Elder
