Many holidays are celebrated this time of year: Hannukah in the Jewish tradition, Yule/Solstice in Neo-Pagan and ancient traditions, Christmas in Christian households, Bodhi Day in some Buddhist traditions... Have you ever celebrated with others in a tradition that is NOT your own? If so, tell us about it. If not, would you consider it, and which holiday would you choose as your first such experience?
Many celebrations and traditions have come and gone, and many more still lie ahead š. As for me, I havenāt really celebrated othersā traditions. Though I come from a Christian home, I donāt celebrate Christmas. Not that I condemn those who doāitās a personal choice.
But does that mean I donāt celebrate anything? Nooo š , I do celebrateāthe death of our Lord Jesus. On the night before He died, He set up a celebration with His 12 apostles, which the Bible calls the Lordās Supper (or the Lordās Evening Meal). He used unleavened bread, which signifies His perfect body, and red wine, which represents His blood. After sharing the bread and wine with His disciples, He said, āKeep doing this in remembrance of me.ā
So, each year, I join millions of people around the world to celebrate our Lordās Evening Meal. Why is this celebration my first choice? Because Jesus commanded His followers to observe it. As a follower of Jesus, I follow His directions. This celebration is not limited to one countryāit is observed by all true disciples of Jesus once a year, according to the Jewish calendar, on Nisan 14 after sundown.
Jesus death brings us back to God because on the basis of Christ ransom, our sins where forgiven. When I reflect on what Jesus did for us, sacrificing his perfect body to redeem us from sin and death, I choose to celebrate his or observe the evening meal which he established before his death.