When the Church uses the term, the “Paschal mystery,” she is referring to the mystery of Jesus’ passion, death, and resurrection. The word “paschal” comes from the Greek pascha , meaning Passover, so it is the “Passover mystery.” The Jewish Passover meal had its own rules and regulations. Today the meal is called the Passover Seder , from the Hebrew word for “order.” That order revolved around four cups of wine, all of which must be drunk. Jesus, however, did not do this that Thursday night at the Lord’s Supper , His final Passover on earth. The details are described in the book, Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist , by Brant Pitre, Ph.D., Chapter 6 titled “The Fourth Cup and the Death of Jesus.”   Below is a quick summary. From the descriptions in the New Testament of how Jesus celebrated that last Passover meal, which we now know of as the Last Supper, three of the four cups can be identified. But what Jesus does differently is that he does not drink the fourth cup....

The Gospel of the Forty Days:  The Church as the Restored Kingdom       Last week we developed the theme of the Messianic expectation of the restoration of the Kingdom of David, and asserted that in Jesus’s teaching about the “kingdom of God” during the forty days between His resurrection and ascension (Ac 1:3), He would have taught that this kingdom is now the Church. Let’s explore that a bit more.       David’s kingdom was based on covenant with God (2 Sam 7:1-29), which included God’s promise to establish an eternal kingdom with a descendant of David, and “I will be His Father, and He shall be My Son.” Luke’s Gospel makes it clear that Jesus, in the flesh, is a descendant of David (Lk 2:4-7, 3:31); and in previous articles we have discussed some of the Bible’s evidence that Jesus is, at the same time, in His Divinity, the Son of God.       Now at the Last Supper, Jesus says to the Twelve, “As My Father appoin...

The Gospel of the Forty Days: Breaking Bread       We are continuing to see what commands (Ac 1:2) and teachings (Ac 1:3) the resurrected Lord Jesus gave, or might have given, during the forty days between His Resurrection and Ascension – what Jaroslav Pelikan called the “Gospel of the Forty Days.”       St. Luke’s Gospel shows us some of Jesus’ teaching, and a reminder of a command, on that first evening of Jesus’ Resurrection when Jesus joined the two disciples on their way to Emmaus. “Beginning with Moses and all the prophets He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Lk 24:27). The disciples later said their hearts were burning within them as Jesus was speaking (Lk 24:32), but they did not recognize that it was the Lord Jesus until they were at table.  Jesus “took the bread, gave thanks, and broke it, and gave it to them” (Lk 24:30). Recall that on the prior Thursday Passover evening, Jesus “took...

Palm Sunday       This Sunday is Palm Sunday, or Passion Sunday, and is the commencement of Holy Week.  Good Friday is April 10, and Easter Sunday is April 12.        Unfortunately, due to the coronavirus closures we will not be able to attend Mass – but we can still watch and pray the Mass online ( ollcalcity.org ), and remember the events and meaning of this day when Jesus triumphantly, yet humbly, came into Jerusalem.       To give a likely chronological sequence of events that Holy Week of likely AD 30, consider that this Saturday would be when Jesus was likely in Bethany with Lazarus, Mary, Martha, His disciples and many followers.  Jesus is warned that the Jewish authorities have decided to kill him (Mt. 26:3-5).  They have a meal together and Mary, for the second time, anoints Jesus’ feet in an act of sincere love (Jn. 12:2-11, Mt. 26:6-13).  Judas Iscariot, on the other hand, meets wi...