In Wikipedia I learned that the term “Judeo-Christian is used to group Christianity and Judaism together, either in reference to Christianity’s derivation from Judaism, both religions’ common use of the Bible, or due to perceived parallels or commonalities and shared values between the two religions.” If you are reading this story on Friday, April 10th, it is the Christian holiday, “Good Friday”, which commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. Three days later is Easter Sunday, a joyful celebration of Christ’s resurrection.
All of these take place while Jews are celebrating Passover, which started on Wednesday, April 8th, and lasts for eight days, until April 16th. Both holidays always happen in the spring, which in Hebrew is called Aviv, which actually means fresh ears of barley. The Torah states, “You go free on this day in the month of Aviv” (Exodus 13:4). Jesus was crucified shortly after he, being Jewish, participated in together with his disciples at the Passover Seder, which became known as the Last Supper. In 325 AD, the First Council of Nicaea determined that Easter should always fall on first Sunday after the first full moon following the Vernal Equinox. As a result, Easter remains without a fixed date, and coincides with Passover, which always starts on the 15th of the Hebrew month Nisan.
But there is something not less significant, which unifies both religions and brings it to the issues of today – the coronavirus. Both holidays signify death, sacrifice and a brighter future. Passover story contains the 10th plague during which an uncountable number of the first-born Egyptians died to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites slaves leave Egypt on the way to their freedom. And then thousands of former slaves died during their forty years in the desert to allow the new generation to arrive to their destination – the Land of Israel. And this is where the next drama developed about thirteen hundred years later. At about 4 B.C., the Jewish carpenter Joseph’s son was born, who was named Yeshua or Joshua, which in Hebrew means “God is salvation”. He was a preacher whose message was that the end of the known world, which was the Roman occupation of his homeland Palestine, was coming to an end. The Jews had to repent and change the way they live to be saved in the world to come. After he was arrested for his provocative unorthodox teachings by the Jewish authorities, he was forwarded to the Romans and was crucified, as it was a common practice of killing of rebels in those days. Years later, his teachings continued to excite people and he was given the Greek name Jesus with the added Christ, which in Greek means “the anointed one”. Thus, Jesus Christ became the founder of Christianity with many followers and gospels, who told his stories. It was not an easy journey and thousands of Christians were killed on their way to create one of the major world religions in our times.
And now we are brought to 2020, the unfortunate time of the Corona virus pandemic. Many people have been affected, and have died or are going to. After it is over, I do not think there is going to be a major event to commemorate COVID-19, but in a short time, it managed to accomplish what no other historic major events or wars ever did, it united people all over the world to confront and to cooperate protecting ourselves and saving lives. Will this bring peace, salvation or the Messiah? Time will tell. In the meantime, let’s express our gratitude for being alive and many other blessings.
Happy Holidays! Stay Safe!
P.S. Spring is the time of new beginnings, joy and beauty, which you can see in the four images of flowers, which grow in my neighborhood.
Enjoy and Share with a Friend!
