Free-Text First Friday: Are Seders Appropriate for Christians?

You’ve undoubtedly heard of the Seder meal: a ritual feast that began the festival of weeks, also known as Passover. The Seder meal that modern Jews observe is a far departure from what Jesus and his disciples would have had when he instituted the Lord’s Supper. So why do we see many Christians over the past few decades trying to reclaim the Seder meal for use in churches? Many argue that Christ’s institution of the Lord’s Supper should supersede and preclude any practice of Seders among Christians, while others say the symbolic and devotional nature of the Seder help us understand the background of the Lord’s Supper. The Rev. Dr. Daniel Gard, guest professor at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, IN, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to discuss the so-called “Christian seder.” Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations.