The Passover Holy Day

  This is Passover week of the Jewish holy day, Passover also called The Festival of Unleavened Bread. Pesach, of Passover, is one of the most important holidays in the Jewish religion. Passover usually takes place in March and or April, from the 15th through the 22nd of the Hebrew month of Nissan. It is a eight day celebration which is symbolic of when the Jewish people, led by Moses fled Egypt more than 3,000 years ago. Passover celebrates liberation and freedom from slavery.

Passover literally means that the Angel of Death passed over the homes of the Israelite's who had marked there doors with the blood of a lamb so that the first born of every Jewish family would be saved. During Passover the Jews eat matzoh a flat unleavened bread to remember the hardships of their ancestors in the desert during their Exodus from Egypt.

On the first two days of Passover, Jewish people prepare a special meal called a seder, meaning "order". During the meal, certain foods are eaten and prayers are said in a particular order. To explain the historical and religious meaning of the holiday, the Haggadah (from the Hebrew word "to tell") is read. Within the Haggadah, there are stories, prayers, psalms and songs that describe the exodus. 

The seder is designed to hold children's interests especially. One of the ways children participate in the seder is by making a cup for the prophet Elijah. This cup is filled with wine and placed in the center of the table. According to tradition, during the dinner Elijah enters every house, sips the wine and heralds the coming of the Messiah.  
Malachi 3:23 or Malachi 4:5  "Behold, I will send you Eli'jah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes."

The Institution of Passover:

Exodus chapter 12 which I have outline below is the institution of Passover as well as specific rules on how the Hebrews were to celebrate it. I will give you some verses to outline it all but I recommend that you go and read the entire Exodus 12 for yourself. This is also the perfect time of year to read the whole book of Exodus. Also see Deuteronomy 16:1-7 and Deuteronomy chapter 12.

"The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,"

"This month shall be for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they shall take every man a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household;"

"Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old; you shall take it from the sheep or from the goats; and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs in the evening. Then they shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat them. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. 

Do not eat any of it raw or boiled with water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning, anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste. 

It is the LORD's passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you, upon the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall fall upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. 

"This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations you shall observe it as an ordinance for ever. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; on the first day you shall put away leaven out of your houses, for if any one eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 

On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly; no work shall be done on those days; but what every one must eat, that only may be prepared by you. And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt: therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as an ordinance for ever. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, and so until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 

For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses; for if any one eats what is leavened, that person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread." Then Moses called all the elders of Israel, and said to them, "Select lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the passover lamb. 

Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood which is in the basin; and none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. For the LORD will pass through to slay the Egyptians; and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to slay you. 

You shall observe this rite as an ordinance for you and for your sons for ever. And when you come to the land which the LORD will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. And when your children say to you, `What do you mean by this service?' you shall say, `It is the sacrifice of the LORD's passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he slew the Egyptians but spared our houses.'" 

And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did."

It has been more than 3,000 years since the institution of the Passover and it is still the most important holy day for the Jewish population. Since the first century it has also become especially important to Christians marking the days of the holy week concerning the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

"Holy Week is the week which precedes the great festival of the Resurrection on Easter Sunday, and which consequently is used to commemorate the Passion of Christ, and the event which immediately led up to it."

I hope you liked my post here about Passover. I hope it helped you to understand what the holy day is all about. It is fun to learn about all of the many different cultures that make our world so great. I feel it is especially important for kids as well. 

Until next time Happy Passover!

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Passover crafts for kids:

DLTK's Passover crafts for kids.

You may also be interested in:

Is Easter Pagan? by Homeschooling Works with special thanks to Jimmy Akin.


Jewish Holy Days:

The Hanukkah Story by Homeschooling Works.

Is Easter Pagan?

  I am sure you have heard from many different people and religious groups that Easter which is a Christian Holy Day is actually Pagan. In my opinion this is an attempt to Peganize Christianity and in some cases more specifically the Catholic Church. For Christians Easter is about the resurrection of Christ who died and rose again for the sins of the world and not bunnies or goddesses. My friend Jimmy Akin has done some research on the subject in his article titled Is Easter a Pagan Holiday? He has also done a great video on the subject you can see this below.

 

Is Easter a Pagan Holiday?

Q: Isn’t Easter a pagan rather than a Christian holiday, as shown by its very name by the fact that its date is determined by the full moon after the Spring equinox?

A: Anyone making this charge shows a total lack of comprehension of global Christianity. In fact, only a person speaking English or German could even possibly make this charge.

First, let’s deal with the date. Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon following March 21 (historically, the Spring equinox). The reason, however, has nothing to do with paganism. It has everything to do with Judaism and with Christ’s Resurrection.

Christ was resurrected on Sunday — the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1) — thus since the First Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325 all Christians have celebrated his Resurrection on Sunday. Prior to that, most celebrated it on Sunday, but some, known as Quartodecimians (“Fourteenth-ers”) celebrated it on the 14th day of the Jewish month of Nisan, when Passover occurred. At First Nicaea all Christians agreed to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ on first Sunday after 14 Nisan because that was the day Christ was Resurrected in the first century — the Sunday after Passover...

Continue reading...

I hope you have found the info helpful and I wish everyone a blessed Ester!

Saint Patrick's Day

Happy Saint Patrick's Day Everyone!


I love Saint Patrick's Day! He is one of my favorite saints. I love to learn about the saints. This time of year is a great time to learn about Saint Patrick. Read or listen to Saint Patrick's Confessions his life in his own words. Link at the bottom :)

History:

      Saint Patrick was ordained by St. Germanus, of Auxerre, whom he had studied under for years. Later, Patrick was ordained a bishop, and was sent to take the Gospel to Ireland. He arrived in Ireland March 25, 433, at Slane.

One legend says that he met a chieftain of one of the tribes, who tried to kill Patrick. Patrick converted Dichu (the chieftain) after he was unable to move his arm until he became friendly to Patrick.

Patrick began preaching the Gospel throughout Ireland, converting many. He and his disciples preached and converted thousands! They began building churches all over the country. Kings, their families, and entire kingdoms converted to Christianity when hearing Patrick's message.

Patrick by now had many disciples among them Beningnus, Auxilius, Iserninus, and Fiaac, (all later canonized as well). Patrick preached and converted all of Ireland for 40 years. He worked many miracles and wrote about his life in his Confessions. After years of living in poverty, traveling and enduring much suffering he died March 17, 461. He died at Saul, where he had built the first church.

Why a shamrock? Patrick used the shamrock to explain the Trinity Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He explained that like the clover which is three leaves on one stem God is three persons in one God. It has been associated with him and the Irish since that time.

In His Footsteps: Patrick was a humble, pious, gentle man. His love, devotion and trust in God should be a shining example to each of us. He feared nothing, not even death, so complete was his trust in God.

Every year I love to listen to the audio recordings of the writings of Saint Patrick. I especially love his short bio titled Confessions. You can download the collected works of Saint Patrick audios for free at Librivox.org

Also check out!

Download Confessions by Saint Patrick pdf
More on the history of Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick with some additional information

An Old Irish Blessing For You!

May the road rise up to meet you. 

May the wind always be at your back. 

May the sun shine warm upon your face, 

and rains fall soft upon your fields. 

And until we meet again, May God hold 

you in the palm of His hand.

ST. PATRICK'S PRAYER

        St. Patrick's prayer for the faithful captures the wonderful spirit that made him Ireland's patron saint, and one of the Church’s most beloved missionaries. Born in Britain shortly before the 5th century, St. Patrick, was taken captive to Ireland by raiders at the age of 16. 

In his Confessions he talks about how while on the ship of the raiders/pirates that captured him there was a harsh storm. The men said to him Christian why don't you ask your God to save us? Saint Patrick said to them if you submit to God and convert we will be saved. Long story short they all converted and submitted to the Christian God and safely landed on land.

He lived there for six years as a shepherd under harsh conditions and became intensely devoted to God in prayer, as he puts it, “because the spirit was then fervent within me.” Tradition has it that divine dreams inspired both his escape from captivity in Ireland and his return there later in his life as a bishop.

In this prayer he asks for God’s help in various ways:

May the Strength of God pilot us. 

May the Power of God preserve us.

May the Wisdom of God instruct us.

May the Hand of God protect us.

May the Way of God direct us.

May the Shield of God defend us.

May the Host of God guard us.

Against the snares of the evil ones.

Against temptations of the world 

May Christ be with us!

May Christ be before us!

May Christ be in us,

Christ be over all!

May Thy Salvation, Lord,

Always be ours,

This day, O Lord, and evermore. 

Amen.

     St. Patrick's prayer no doubt helped him in his missionary efforts. Although he faced his share of resistance, St. Patrick was so successful in preaching the gospel and organizing the Church in Ireland that he is largely credited with converting the Irish to Christianity.

His emblems are the snakes that legends claim he drove out of Ireland and the Shamrock he used to great effect to explain the Holy Trinity. (This is a wonderful illustration of three distinct entities, the three leaves of the clover, making up one shamrock, much like the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit constitute One God!)

St. Patrick's prayer for the faithful, much like the famous Breastplate prayer also attributed to him, can truly inspire us to ask for divine assistance in living our faith each day.

As Our Lord said in Matthew's gospel, if our requests are in accordance with His will, “ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you” Matthew (7:6). The “Strength of God” mentioned in the first line of this prayer should give us strength indeed!

Saint Patrick pray for us : )

By Joanne Utke

ourcatholicprayers.com