Remember Me : Today starts a new series at St James for 3 weeks exploring what communion is all about. What is communion? Why do we celebrate communion? Where did it all start? Who/what are we remembering?
This week we look back to Moses and the Israelites and what happened for Pharoah to ‘let the people go’. We will find out about Passover and see how God saved the Israelites through what happened at Passover, but Jesus came to save us through his death on the cross. The Jewish people celebrate Passover every week… what are they remembering…
Bible story
You can find out what happened that very first passover in Exodus 12.
There is a little verse right in the middle of the chapter which says this:
“You are always to remember this day and celebrate it with a feast to the Lord. Your descendants are to honor the Lord with this feast from now on”
Exodus 12: 14
If you want to find out more about the Passover and how christian families are celebrating it today have a look at this blog Victoria from Godventure https://godventure.co.uk/news/how-celebrating-passover-could-be-good-for-your-faith-at-home/
Some questions to think about together
- What are the Israelites remembering when they celebrate passover?
- As part of the passover there is a Sedar plate – there are very specific foods on the Sedar plate – try and find out what they are and how they can help remember the story of Passover
- I wonder is there anything in this story that reminds you of the story of the Last supper.
Activities
Song
Prayers
I love active sorry prayers which use a forgiveness metaphor from the Bible. This one takes the metaphor of forgiveness being like being washed clean.
All you need is a bowl of water and a towel. Take it in turns to slowly wash your hands. As you wash, either silently or out loud, say sorry to God for any thoughts, words or deeds, then dry your hands. You might also want to say sorry to the person you have wronged, especially if they are in the room!
(You might find it helpful to remind everyone that the Bible says that when we confess our sins, that is speak out the things we’ve done wrong, God is faithful and will forgive us.)
This activity prayer is part of our weekly Shabbat ritual which we do each Friday.