This is a script we wrote which would work well for a Christian Passover Seder inside a Christian home.
As we have written before; each family is allowed to write their own Seder. We have tailored ours toward Christianity and the belief that Jesus Christ is the Messiah. He was Jewish. That means the DNA from the Jewish people gave us the part of Jesus that was human. That was how the same God that Christians and Jews both believe decided to arrange things. He chose to bless the nation of Israel and to allow them to bless the whole world.
When the scriptures command us to observe the Passover; it is describing God’s Holy Days; not the holy days of only the Jews, or the holy days of only the Christians. This day and this season belong to The Father of All; God Almighty. He commanded ALL of His people to keep it forever.
It is scriptural and proper for Passover to have the elements we have already discussed in this blog; and the most important part of each service/commemoration is to TELL THE PASSOVER STORY.
Begin with the woman of the house lighting the Shabbat candles.
Prayer:
Blessed are You, Adonai, Sovereign of the Universe, who makes us holy through Your commandments and commands us to kindle the light of Shabbot this Passover.
Narrator:
As we begin our Passover Seder, we want you to realize that it was Jesus who asked us to remember Him as our Passover Lamb. God; outside of our gift of time, created the Lamb of God even before He created us and set us inside our gift of time.
The story tonight is just the first shadow of his coming, and it paved the way for Him to become our Messiah. This short video will take us forward to the time of Christ; and then we will look back to before He was with us and see how God was preparing us for this moment in history with everything in the scriptures; especially the Passover.
So; knowing that the blood of Jesus was the true wine that brought us eternal freedom; we will bless the wine that is symbolic of this fact tonight.
KADESH
BLESSING OF THE WINE (Given by Head of the House)
In blessing the wine we separate this moment and this meal from all other moments and meals.
Let’s raise our glasses for this prayer:
Blessed are You, Adonai, Sovereign of the Universe who creates the fruit of the vine.
Blessed are You, Adonai, Sovereign of the Universe. You have chosen us to be your people, sanctifying us with your love.
In Your love, Our God, You have given us Sabbaths of rest, feasts of gladness and seasons of joy.
This Sabbath day and this Festival of Matzot, the season of our freedom, is a holy commemoration, a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt.
God, You have chosen us from all peoples, consecrating us to Your service, giving us the Sabbath this Passover, a sign of your love and favor. You have given us the Feast and Festival of your people; a time of gladness and joy.
Blessed are You, who sanctifies Your people who celebrate the Festivals you have commanded.
URCHATZ
Now we wash our hands. Even if they appear to be already clean! Everyone must wash before the meal.
KARPAS
Now we get to eat! But only a little vegetable. We will dip it in salt water. The liquid represents the tears of the Israelite slaves in Egypt, who were sad and scared. This is like eating that memory. But we must say a blessings first:
BLESSED ARE YOU, ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO CREATES THE FRUIT OF THE EARTH. (Said by the head of the home.)
All dip vegetable in salt water and eat it.
Does anyone feel like they are actually eating tears?
YACHATZ
Here the head of the house will reach under the covered matzah and take out the middle piece. Then they will break that piece in half.
MAGGID
Now the head of the house will uncover the matzah plate and raise up a piece of matzah and say:
THIS IS THE BREAD OF AFFLICTION THAT OUR ANCESTORS ATE IN EGYPT. LET ALL WHO ARE HUNGRY COME AND EAT. LET ALL WHO ARE IN NEED COME AND SHARE THE PASSOVER MEAL. NOW WE ARE HERE, NEXT YEAR WE WILL BE IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL; THIS YEAR WE ARE SLAVES, NEXT YEAR WE WILL BE FREE.
This part of the Seder is a reminder that we are not only supposed to learn about the Exodus, we are actually supposed to feel like it is happening to us.
Also we are to remember that many people DO suffer like the slaves of Israel today. The act of sharing this matzoh helps us realize our freedom. It is hard to share when you are poor, or hungry, or a slave. We must always remember to share our blessings from God with others who may be less fortunate. We must share our spiritual blessings as well as our physical blessings. That is part of the reason we gather together to share this meal among our family members; or anyone who wishes to join in with us.
It is important to remember that this Seder meal is more than just a meal – it is a journey. We will walk from affliction to freedom, from being slaves to tasting true freedom.
THE FOUR QUESTIONS
Now we will recite the four questions. The youngest child must ask them of the adults:
- Why is this night different from all other nights?
- On all other nights we eat leavened products and matzah. Why on this night only matzah?
- On all other nights we eat all vegetables. Why on this night only bitter herbs? On all other nights we don’t dip our food even once. Why on this night do we dip twice?
- On all other nights we eat sitting or reclining. Why on this night do we all recline?
A funny fact is that the Seder doesn’t actually answer any of these questions directly. Why do you think that is so?
Here are a few hints though:
When the Israelites left Egypt they were in a hurry. There was no time for their bread dough to rise. The bread was flat, like matzah. We will eat matzah for tonight and the next seven nights to remember this fact.
The bitter herbs remind us of the bitterness of the slavery they experienced in the land of Egypt.
We recline because we are no longer slaves. We have the luxury to relax when ever we want to.
MAGGID – THE TELLING OF THE STORY
The most important part of the Seder is the telling of the story. You can tell the story in any way that you choose; but it must be told!
Tonight we choose to tell the story by watching it:
SECOND CUP OF WINE
Did you get thirsty during all of that storytelling? Well; now you can have another sip of wine, lean back and relax.
But – let’s say this blessing over the wine first:
BLESSED ARE YOU, ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO CREATES THE FRUIT OF THE VINE.
(All drink wine)
RACHTZAH
It is time to wash our hands again. This time there’s a blessing too.
Why are we washing our hands again? On Passover before we eat the main meal; we wash our hands and we tell the story. Then we taste the unusual foods on the Seder plate to understand better how they connect us to that story. Then we wash our hands again and there is a blessing. We bless the matzah and we eat it. The meal begins for a second time; and this time it is to eat our usual customary dinner.
So; after this blessing; let’s wash again!
BLESSED ARE YOU ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO MAKES US HOLY THROUGH YOUR COMMANDMENTS, AND COMMANDS US REGARDING THE WASHING OF THE HANDS.
(Everyone washes as we listen to a song)
Song for washing the second time:
MOTZI
Now is the time for the blessing over the bread:
BLESSED ARE YOU, ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO BRINGS FORTH BREAD FROM THE GROUND.
BLESSED ARE YOU, ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO MAKES US HOLY THROUGH YOUR COMMANDMENTS, AND COMMANDS US TO EAT MATZAH.
(Everyone leans back and takes a bite of matzah)
Eating this matzah reminds us that tonight we are taking the journey out of Egypt too.
Eating matzah is a humbling experience. The Torah calls it l”echem oni,” which means “bread of affliction” or “poor man’s bread.” Eating the matzah reminds us of what it is like to live through hard times; skipping the luxuries of life; like bread with yeast that the rich usually eat.
MAROR
The Israelites suffered and had a very hard life in slavery. They never got paid. They had no money, no sweet foods or anything pleasant. They only had the bitter foods that the Egyptians did not want to eat. We share a tiny bit of their pain tonight as we eat our bitter herbs.
BLESSED ARE YOU, ADONAI, SOVERIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO MAKES US HOLY THROUGH YOUR COMMANDMENTS, AND COMMANDS US TO EAT MAROR.
(Do NOT lean this time. Sit up and eat a tiny bite of the bitter herb.)
How bitter was that?
Anyone want more?
KORECH
Now we must taste the charoset. It is sweet. The rough texture reminds us of the mud the slaves used to make bricks for the pyramids of Egypt. The sweet flavor speaks of the hope of a Messiah who would lead them to freedom one day. Even in the worst of times; God always sends a way for his people to have hope.
Now we are going to add the charoset to the bitter herb. Taste it together on a piece of matzah. Make it into a matzah sandwich and see if it all doesn’t taste much better when mixed together. (“The Hillel Sandwich.”)
This matzah sandwich is to remind us that we will experience the bitter with the sweet often in this lifetime on earth. Even in slavery the people of God had the sweetness of the love of God and each other. They had their songs and their stories. No one could take those. This is what helped them to get past the bitter taste of being a slave. The sweetness of God’s love and the love for each other helped them to have hope. The matzah made everything taste good together.
Now we look at the Matzah and we think of Jesus.
Can anyone tell us why?
SCULCHAN ORECH
Finally! It is time for us to eat our traditional meal. As you enjoy your meal; please ponder last Passover. What do you remember? What has changed from those days to now? Think about Passover next year. What do you think you will remember most from tonight?
Enjoy your special meal!
Here are a few songs you might enjoy playing during dinner:
TZAFUN
Someone hid the afikomen when we were not looking!
It is supposed to be our last dessert of the evening; the last taste we taste, and it seems to be hidden.
So we send the children to hunt for it. Whoever finds it gets a prize.
Tzafun means “hidden.” When we eat this last piece of matzah (once it is found) we are supposed to be reconnecting with the parts of ourselves that we felt like we had to hide when we were slaves.
Do you feel free?
(Eat your piece of matzah)
BARECH
We have eaten and we are all full! It is time to say the blessing after the meal. Before we do though; we will pour another cup of wine.
BLESSED IS THE MERCIFUL ONE, RULER OF THE WORLD, CREATOR OF THIS BREAD.
(Anyone who wishes to express individual thanks may do so now)
BLESSED ARE YOU, ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO CREATES THE FRUIT OF THE VINE.
(Drink the third cup of wine)
ELIJAH’S CUP
Now we will pour another cup of wine into an extra cup and open our front door to look for a prophet named Elijah. We will set the wine at his place on the table. Will he drink the wine?
You know Elijah ascended into Heaven while he was still alive; so some think he is unique in that he can walk between Heaven and Earth. He carries messages back and forth from God to men. God tells Elijah what He is thinking, and in turn Elijah (symbolic of the prophets) shares God’s Word with us. Elijah was said to the be one who would bring the message of redemption and peace. So we always hope for Elijah to come. We invite him in as we hope and pray for a better future. Elijah is said to be the one who will appear just before the Messiah returns. He is a shadow and type of Jesus. Could Jesus return tonight? Is He not said to be “The Elijah To Come”? We will only drink the last cup with Jesus after his Second Coming at The Marriage Supper of The Lamb. We will only drink this cup with Elijah at The Second Coming.
HALLEL
Now we are all getting a bit tired and we are all full from a great meal together. We want to take just one last time to express our appreciation for our freedom and our family and community.
Let’s offer up a song of praise to God for freedom:
THE FOURTH CUP
It is time to bless one last cup of wine.
BLESSED ARE YOU ADONAI, SOVEREIGN OF THE UNIVERSE, WHO CREATES THE FRUIT OF THE VINE.
(Drink your wine)
Jesus didn’t drink this cup when he had the Passover with his disciples before the crucifixion. He did not want to drink it until we all were together in The Father’s House. This will happen when he comes again.
We will all be waiting and watching for this to happen.
NIRTZAH
We have reached the end of our Passover Seder; yet it isn’t really over.
Some believe that even when we leave the Seder and go back to our daily lives; it is never really done. Every day of our lives should be like leaving Egypt. We will never stop fighting for our freedom and the freedom of others. By each generation making this annual Passover observance; we make memories that hold us together until Messiah does return and brings us perfect peace. It is His blood that resides over the doorposts of our hearts this night.
We carry that hope with us as we leave the Seder.
Our last words are said together:
NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!
The Jerusalem we speak of is The Kingdom of Heaven where God’s peace will reign forever in our hearts. There we all will be free forever and ever.
We leave with that declaration of hope upon our tongues. All go out to continue telling and living out the story.