Summerlea United Church
225 50th Ave, Lachine, Québec, H8T2T7, Canada. 514-634-2651
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Maundy Thursday Seder April 9, 2009
Posted 11 April, 2009
On Thursday evening, 9 April 2009, some forty Summerlea folk celebrated the Seder supper, an ancient Jewish tradition celebrating the exodus from Egypt and the Passover, as celebrated by Jesus in the Last Supper. The ceremony begins with the lighting of candles and the telling of the meaning of the seder symbols:

Zeroah: the shank bone of a lamb, reminder of the lamb offered on Passover and that God struck the Egyptians but passed over the houses of the Hebrew people in Egypt.
Behtza: roasted egg offered at the Temple of Jerusalem at the Passover festival.
Maror: a piece of bitter herbs (or radish), reminder of the bitterness and hardship of slavery.
Haroset: a mixture of chopped apple, cinnamon, nuts and wine, reminder of the mortar used by the forced Hebrew labourers in Egypt.
Karpas: a piece of celery or parsley, is a reminder of springtime, the season of Passover. It is used as a sign of gratitude to God for the goodness of the earth, for our bread and food.
Salt Water: symbolic of the tears which Israel endured in its experience of slavery, used as a dip for the karpas.
Matzo: unleavened bread, symbol of the bread made by the Israelites while fleeing Egypt, when they did not have time to wait for yeast to rise.

The ceremony continues with washing of hands and eating the symbols with of four cups of wine or juice, accompanied by stories of how the symbols remind us of the past.

At this point the pot luck supper is consumed, followed by the eating of the Afikoman, reminder that what has been lost can be found.

After the seder ceremony, the assemblage proceeds to the sanctuary to strip it of all ornamentation, to be replaced Easter Sunday morning.

All in all, a moving reminder of the ancient history from which Christianity was born.


The Seder symbols, and the ceremonial wine to accompany them.
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Some snaps of the assemblage as the Seder ritual is followed,
with readings by Howard and members of the communicants class.
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Then it's time to enjoy the pot luck - and quite a feast it is!
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The last food of the Seder is the afikoman - a reminder of the simplicity and hurry in which our ancestors left Egypt.
The children look for the afikomen and receive a reward.
Howard had rewards for all, and Phillip Freud high fives Cassandra McKenzie.
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Our thanks to the communicants for setting up the tables
after school under the direction of Caroline Legault,
and to all those who brought food for supper and who
cleaned up afterwards.
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