Rethinking the Afikomen

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. . . The rabbis teach that after the destruction of the Temple, the Afikomen has taken the place of the Lambs that were sacrificed in the Temple and that it is the most important part of the Seder. Its taste should be what you remember from the meal. This Afikomen symbolizes the ultimate Passover sacrifice, our Messiah Yeshua, who gave His body for the atonement of our sins. Let us bless Adonai and eat the Afikomen. . .

With these words, I and 13 other individuals partook of the Afikomen matzah as the bread representing the body of Yeshua, at the Seder I attended with my Torah Community this past Wednesday night (Nisan 15).  This was the fifth Messianic Seder I have participated in and the first one I did not host in my home for exclusively family and friends.  The first two Seders I hosted were not held on the evening of Nisan 15 but rather on the Saturday afternoon prior to Easter Sunday.  I used the Seder as a “demonstration” to introduce family and friends to the beauty and profound meaning of celebrating Passover “the way Jesus would have”.  These Seders were a huge hit and my extended family would ask months in advance about the date of the Seder for the following year. 

The third year I hosted two Seders.  Being convicted that the Seder was not meant to be a demonstration but was a specific date given by HaShem and meant to be observed, I hosted a small Seder on the night of Nisan 15 in which a neighbor couple (who once were involved in a Messianic Synagogue I attended) were the only guests. The following Saturday afternoon I held the “demonstration” Seder for my extended family due to popular demand and not wanting to disappoint them.

Year four I was a little bolder.  Nisan 15 was a Saturday night that year, so the “friends and family Seder” could actually be held on the correct date. But along with this I insisted that instead of starting during mid-afternoon, as we had in previous years, we would start the Seder at nightfall according to the Biblical instructions.  A couple of family members bowed-out because of the inconvenience of the late hour (and the fact that they would have trouble getting up for church the next day). There were also some who questioned why I didn’t hold the Seder on the Saturday before Easter (which had occurred three weeks earlier) and expressed discomfort with it being held after Easter was long over.  

This year I haven’t heard a word from extended family and friends that have attended Seder meals in my home in previous years.  There are many reasons for this, but most specifically they realize that I am going to observe Pesach according to the Biblical/Jewish date and time.  It would appear that the novelty of it isn’t worth attending a very Jewish meal in the middle of the week, which seems so disconnected from Easter Sunday itself. 

Yet, despite the way my Pesach observance has “evolved” over the years, in every Seder I have hosted or attended, the Afikomen has always been used as the bread of communion, in remembrance of Yeshua’s body.  Of course the handling of the Afikomen; its being the larger broken half of the middle of three matzot, wrapped in a linen napkin and hidden away, only to be retrieved and reappear at the Seder table at a later time, immediately evokes imagery of the death (breaking), burial (hiding) and resurrection (reappearing) of Yeshua.

Trinitarians will also see the three persons of the Godhead as represented in the three matzot used during the Yachatz portion of the Seder which are placed in a special three compartment bag (Matzah Tasch) with the middle matsah being broken.  How easy it is to imagine the Trinity as represented in the three matzot with the 2^nd person, the son, being broken and suffering. 

Along with what seems to be very pointed Messianic symbolism, the Greek word for Afikomen, aphikomenos, used in the aorist tense, literally means “He has come”.  In some Messianic Haggadahs it is pointed out that the rabbis offer no explanation as to why the Afikomen part of the Seder is performed the way it is.  Among the wisest men of Israel this is a hidden mystery that is clear to those who believe in Yeshua and recognize in the Afikomen the identity of “he” who “has come”.  But is the Afikomen really the most fitting matzah to be used in remembrance of Yeshua’s body and death on the cross in a Seder setting?

Apart from the ongoing debates and opinions as to whether the Last Supper was a Seder meal or if it was a meal held before the evening of Nisan 15, the Synoptic accounts agree that Yeshua blessed the bread prior to distributing it during the meal. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 also highlights this fact.  In the original meal of the Last Supper the bread of communion had HaMotzi pronounced over it before being partaken of.  In the Seder, the Afikomen is most unusual because a blessing is not pronounced prior to eating it.  Although some Messianic Seders include HaMotzi before the eating of the Afikomen this is an addition not in keeping with the traditional Haggadah.  Also, the Afikomen is not part of the meal; it is considered the “dessert” which is partaken of after the meal portion (Shulchan Orech) is completed. 

Although the Greek aphikomenos means “He has come”, this is not the understanding of the word Afikomen as used in Talmudic accounts.  The Afikomen is discussed in both the Babylonian (Pesachim 119b) and Jerusalem (Pesachim 10:4-11) Talmud.  The Mishnah of Pesachim 119b states; “You may not conclude after the Paschal meal (by saying) ‘now to the Afikomen’”.  Immediately the Chazal begin to discuss “what does Afikomen mean?”

The first opinion, given by Rav, is that “they must not remove from one company to another.” In other words, once the Paschal meal is completed one must not go on to other Pesach (chavurah) groups to celebrate or participate in the korban Pesach with them. According to the opinion of Samuel (and others) the Afikomen describes snacks and desserts that should not be eaten after partaking of the korban Pesach.  In the Jerusalem Talmud (Pesachim 10:6) R. Inaini and R. Sisai understand Afikomen as entertainment with musical instruments which one should not become involved with after the Seder is concluded.  

The Talmudic opinions address well established norms in the time of the Mishnah surrounding the concept of the Greek symposia.  At the end of a symposium it was traditional for the participants to proceed to neighboring homes where there would be delicacies to eat, merry-making and music. This practice was called epikomion, or “after-dinner activities/entertainment”.  Therefore, although the exact etymology of Afikomen is not explained in the Talmud and the meaning of the word includes many Midrashic and folk etymologies, the most widely held view is that the Mishnah is making a point of forbidding “after dinner activities” common to a Greek/pagan culture in relation to the Seder.  [1]

Because the high point and focus of the Seder is the partaking of the meat of the Paschal lamb, later Rishonim (Rashi, Rashbam and others) designated the last piece of matzah, coming from the hidden and broken piece, to be the Afikomen, or the “after meal” food/dessert. [2] But apart from these points which could be seen as needlessly “picky” or unrelated to the reality of Yeshua’s death, lies the fact that the Afikomen in the Seder is used to represent the korban Pesach, which was not a sin offering or a burnt offering but was a peace offering which in itself had no atoning qualities at all.

The peace offering (Shelamim) in Torah (Leviticus 3) was brought for two reasons;

1. As a thanksgiving offering in recognition of a miraculous event. This offering is referred to by the rabbis as Shalmei Todah.  Before offering a Shalmei Todah the individual would lean his hands on the head of the animal to express his thanks to G-d. Since the peace offering did not atone for sin no confession of sin was made. The sacrifice was accompanied by leavened bread, and was required to be completely consumed by the morning after it was brought with no leftovers remaining.  In order to consume the sacrificial portion by the following morning others would be invited to join in the eating of the Shalmei Todah.  The purpose of this offering (to thank and praise G-d for a miraculous event) was best accomplished when the meal was shared and the story of G-d’s faithfulness related to many. 
2.  As a vow or freewill offering brought by an individual who swore to bring an offering to HaShem that was unrelated to any particular event.  This offering is referred to by the rabbis as Shalmei Neder u’ Nedavah, and differed from the Shalmei Todah as two days were allowed for the total consumption of it, instead of just one.

 The korban Pesach was a korban Todah with a slight difference being that no leavened bread was brought with it due to the stipulations of Pesach as found in Torah.  As a Shalmei Todah, the korban Pesach needed to be completely consumed the night of Passover, and involved a meal with a group of people through which G-d’s miracle of the Exodus from Egypt was retold and remembered.

Therefore, the Pesach lamb was not brought on account of sin and did not atone for sin.  The Afikomen in the Seder represents this lamb.  Yeshua in instituting the Lord’s Supper did not liken his body to the lamb of the Seder, but rather to bread.  Although Yeshua certainly is referred to as “the Lamb of G-d” in the Apostolic Scriptures, this “lamb” symbolism speaks of his atoning and redeeming function as taking away “the sin of the world”.  This function cannot be represented in the Afikomen which symbolizes the korban Pesach, a peace offering sacrifice with no atoning or redeeming features inherent to it at all.

The rabbis recognize two korban Pesach in the pages of Torah.  One is referred to as Pesach Mitzrayim and the other as Pesach Dorot.  Pesach Mitzrayim was the unique and one time sacrifice of the lamb in Egypt prior to the Exodus.  It was a lamb whose blood was applied to the door frames of the homes that the death of the firstborn would “Passover” the Children of Israel. This sacrifice was a one time, unique sacrifice, never to be repeated again.  Pesach Dorot was the yearly memorial of the Exodus from Egypt and therefore was a peace offering brought in recognition and praise of the miracle of redemption already accomplished.  The original Pesach Mitzrayim was brought with faith that redemption was imminent and would occur.  The memorial Pesach Dorot was brought with thanksgiving and remembrance for redemption which had already been realized.

Perhaps Yeshua did not liken his body to the korban Pesach (a memorial/peace offering) because the full reality of his sacrifice and the complete redemption it will bring is yet future.  Like the Pesach Mitzrayim, Yeshua’s sacrifice was a unique and one time event of which the complete redemptive reality is something we still anticipate in times ahead.  Therefore we cannot praise and thank G-d for redemption through Yeshua as something already completed and memorialized, as a Pesach Dorot, but instead look with anticipation to what we believe by faith is still ahead. 

 With these thoughts in mind it would seem that the Afikomen is not meant to be used as the bread of the Lord’s Supper in relation to a Messianic Seder. Reasons for this include:

1. The Afikomen receives no blessing before distribution and is partaken of after the meal is concluded.  Yeshua blessed the bread of the Last Supper prior to distributing it during the meal.  Paul reiterates these instructions regarding the bread of Communion in 1 Corinthians 11.  
2. The Greek aphikomenos (“he has come”) is not the understood etymology of the word Afikomen as used in both the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmud. Instead, prohibiting the cultural practice of epikomion or “after dinner activities” in relation to the Seder seems to be in view.    
3. The Afikomen matzah represents the meat of the Paschal lamb, a peace offering with no atoning qualities. The “Lamb of G-d” title of Yeshua in the Apostolic Scriptures symbolizes the atoning and redeeming function of his sacrificial death.  The korban Pesach, represented by the Afikomen matzah of the Seder cannot properly symbolize Yeshua as “the Lamb of G-d”.  
4. Yeshua did not refer to the Pesach lamb to symbolize his body, but instead taught his disciples to partake of bread in remembrance of him. Like the original Passover lamb of Egypt (Pesach Mitzrayim) Yeshua’s death was a unique and one time sacrifice that promises a full and complete redemption in the future. The Afikomen represents the Pesach Dorot (peace offering) which memorializes a completed act of redemption (from Egypt).   

Perhaps the Motzi-Matzah (step 7-8 of the Seder) would provide a more fitting symbol by which to recognize and remember Yeshua’s body. For a blessing is said over this matzah prior to it being broken and distributed to others.  It is also part of the “lead in” to the meal of the Seder, being followed by the eating of the Maror (bitter herbs) and the Korech (matzah sandwich) before the Shulchan Orech (festive meal) is served. 

Yet, the Motzi-Matzah fulfills the mitzvah to eat unleavened bread at Pesach and symbolizes the bread of affliction and haste of the Exodus from Egypt itself.  Therefore, perhaps a better means of recognizing the Lord’s body during a Seder might be to pronounce HaMotzi over matzah during some point in the eating of the festive meal, break and distributed it, and take a moment to contemplate and recognize Yeshua’s sacrifice then.

. . . . . . .

In response to my previous post “As Often as You Do This” (April 3, 2009) a reader commented privately by saying that the details and concerns I related there were little more than “much ado about nothing”.  Perhaps my ponderings about the Afikomen might be viewed in the same way as well. For if inspirational meaning which honors Yeshua can be found in the details of the Afikomen then why try to “reinvent the wheel” of the standard Messianic Haggadah, so to speak. 

Yet, by applying details and symbolism of Yeshua into the Seder in a manner that disregards rabbinic understanding and Torah details; don’t Messianics come dangerously close to practicing a form of supersessionism?  Who is it then that is trying to reinvent the wheel?  I truly wonder who instituted the Afikomen as the bread of communion in the Messianic Seder.  Where did this practice originate?  This was one detail I was unable to find in my studying over the past couple of weeks.

With all this in mind I can’t help but wonder . . what the sixth annual Pesach Seder will be like for me on the night of March 29, 2010?   For I have a feeling my observance of this will continue to evolve even in ways I never would have imagined before.

 

[1] Balashon – Hebrew Language Detective; “Afikoman” (April 6, 2006). Available at: http://www.balashon.com/2006/04/afikoman.html

[2] Ibid.

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