I met my best friend, Monsignor Tom Hartman (Tommy to me), at this time of the year in 1987. Our friend Chuck Dolan asked us to appear together on a local cable news program to explain the similarities and differences between Passover and Easter. He wanted us to meet each other, and the friendship formed on that day birthed “The God Squad.”
What I remember saying on air was this, “There are no chocolate bunnies in Passover and no horseradish in Easter.” So, in honor of my dearly beloved friend, and in the spirit of these two springtime holidays, I offer this long-delayed answer that goes a bit beyond chocolate bunnies and horseradish. Happy Easter, Tommy! Rest in peace.
Ways Passover and Easter are the same:
Both Passover and Easter are both about freedom. Freedom from original sin in Easter and freedom from Egyptian slavery in Passover. It is hell to live without hope, and religion saves people from hell.
Both Passover and Easter save us from the death of hope by teaching us that freedom is God’s gift to every soul. The freedom of Passover is freedom from slavery. That slavery can take many forms. It can be actual physical slavery, or it can be slavery to addictions and destructive behavior. Egypt is the symbol of slavery, and the Exodus is the symbol of all freedoms. Easter is about the freedom from sin. The atoning death and resurrection of Jesus as the Christ frees people from the inherited effects of Adam’s original sin. This is God’s gift and Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice. What we cannot do to save ourselves is freely given to us as God’s gift.
Both Passover and Easter celebrate miracles. The plagues of Egypt and the slitting of the Red Sea were miracles. The resurrection of Jesus on the third day after his death was a miracle. Miracles are unprecedented interventions by God into human history. They give us hope that no matter how broken our world may be, there is always hope that God will have mercy upon us and intervene. We cannot demand miracles but we can be grateful when they arrive. Passover and Easter are annual remembrances of the greatest miracles.
Both Passover and Easter have the same name and occur at about the same time in the spring. Wednesday, April 5, is the first Passover Seder meal. The next Sunday, April 9, is Easter Sunday. They are always close to each other because they are both calculated on a lunisolar calendar, which is a combination of the solar calendar and the lunar calendar, which guarantees that both holidays always occur in the spring. The Hebrew name for Passover is pesach and the name for Easter is pascha.
The power of the rebirth of nature in the springtime (symbolized by the use of eggs and lamb in both holidays) is conjoined to the power of miraculous events in human history (the Exodus and the Resurrection) to bring us a message of hope that is both natural and supernatural.
Both Passover and Easter begin a 50-day period ending in another holiday.
Both Passover and Easter involve children in rituals and traditions. The Easter egg hunt and the search for the hidden matzah at the end of the Seder meal give children an important role to play in an otherwise adult holiday.
…continued
swipe to next page
(c) 2023 THE GOD SQUAD DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
For more latest Health News Click Here