Taking apart the Memorial

by jgnat 77 Replies latest watchtower bible

heathen

I think when jesus said ,"keep doing this in remembrance of me , he was talking about the actual eating and drinking , not passing it around leaving it to be thrown out or consumed by the elders after the meeting .That's a WTBTS ritual not a christian one .It is a serious matter and the most holy day of the year for christians but the apostle Paul stated if you are not going to eat and drink then stay home .You can only discern for yourself your worthiness .
myelaine

dear jgnat...
1 Corinthians 11:20-22...these Scriptures also read like Paul is upset that the "hungry/unsaved" are being pushed aside by the "saved" in their dash to consume...pure gluttony. Let the hungry learn to eat, first...in this you show love for fellow man.
love michelle
Narkissos

Was that the outline used this year? It doesn't seem to have changed from what I remember it was 20 + years ago (in spite of several "new lights" about the "anointed" in the meantime). Seems like the WT is still in a "wait and see" attitude, re: the number of partakers.
A little detail which I didn't remember made me chuckle: going out of their way to explain that a specific part of the ritual (i.e. breaking the bread) has no significance is probably the best way to highlight it (by all means don't look, there's nothing to see!).
TD

I'm not really a believer but can I play?
The JW's assume that the new covenant (Matthew 26:28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20) is the same covenant that Jesus concluded with those that stuck with him in his trials. He promised that they would "..sit on thrones and judge the twelve tribes of Israel" (Luke 22:28,29).
This is a lynchpin of the JW two class doctrine. In JW theology, the only purpose in humans going to heaven is to reign with Christ.
Is this a robust assumption? Many Christians would say no. There were certainly other believers at the time (cf. Luke 10:1) who were not invited that night and who would have been actually excluded by the phrase, "YOU are the ones that have struck with me in my trials."

jgnat

Everyone can play. More background, below. Here are the "closest to eyewitness" accounts, the description of the same events by Mattthew, Mark, Luke and John.

In context: Jesus is anointed by a woman of ill-repute, and he mentions that her gift prepares for his burial. (We know that at least Judas is horrified by this news) Jesus is anticipating his coming sacrifice. Judas decides to betray, and we are told the Pharisees plot Jesus' arrest. In the midst of this, the passover meal is about to start.

The final meal is then described, and from this we get the ritual of the breaking of bread with each other, in rememberance of Jesus. They end with a hymn, as with the Jewish passover.

After the passover meal, Jesus goes to the Mount of Olives, with his disciples, for his final prayer. He is in deep distress. That night the Pharisees arrange for his capture for execution.

Matthew	Mark	Luke	John
Mat 26:17 Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?" Mat 26:18 He said, "Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’" Mat 26:19 And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover.	Mar 14:12 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, "Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?" Mar 14:13 And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, Mar 14:14 "and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ Mar 14:15 "And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us." Mar 14:16 And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.	Luk 22:7 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Luk 22:8 So Jesus[fn1] sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it." Luk 22:9 They said to him, "Where will you have us prepare it?" Luk 22:10 He said to them, "Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters Luk 22:11 "and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ Luk 22:12 "And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there." Luk 22:13 And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.	Jhn 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
Mat 26:20 When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve.[fn2] Mat 26:21 And as they were eating, he said, "Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me." Mat 26:22 And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, "Is it I, Lord?" Mat 26:23 He answered, "He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me. Mat 26:24 "The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born." Mat 26:25 Judas, who would betray him, answered, "Is it I, Rabbi?" He said to him, "You have said so."	Mar 14:17 And when it was evening, he came with the twelve. Mar 14:18 And as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me." Mar 14:19 They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, "Is it I?" Mar 14:20 He said to them, "It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. Mar 14:21 "For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born."	Luk 22:21 "But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. Luk 22:22 "For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!" Luk 22:23 And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this. (note the order is reversed from Matthew and Mark)	Jhn 13:2 During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, He speaks of his betrayal, and Judas leaves John 13:18-30
Mat 26:26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." Mat 26:27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, Mat 26:28 "for this is my blood of the [fn3] covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.	Mar 14:22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, "Take; this is my body." Mar 14:23 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. Mar 14:24 And he said to them, "This is my blood of the [fn3] covenant, which is poured out for many.	Luk 22:14 And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. Luk 22:15 And he said to them, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. Luk 22:16 "For I tell you I will not eat it[fn2] until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." Luk 22:17 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves. Luk 22:18 "For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." Luk 22:19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." Luk 22:20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.[fn3]
		Jesus settles a dispute over who will be greatest. (Luke 22:24-27)	Jesus institutes the foot-washing ritual. The least will be the greatest. (John 13:3-17)
		Jesus speaks of the Kingdom to come. (Luke 22:28:30)	He speaks of God's promises and his leaving. Jesus and his Father are one. He again exhorts the disciples to love one another and to keep his commandments. (John 13:39-14:25) His appointment of the disciples, and the persecution to come. (John 15:15-25)
		He predicts Simon Peter’s betrayal (Luke 22:29-34)	He speaks of leaving, and exhorts the disciples to love one another. Peter denies he will betray Jesus. (John 13:31-38)
		He again predicts his death (Luke 22:35-38)	He speaks again of the coming Holy Spirit, and being witnesses of Jesus' works. He speaks again of his leaving and coming back. (John 15:26-16:22)
Mat 26:29 "I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom."	Mar 14:25 "Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."		Jesus is the vine, bear fruit. Love one another. (John 15:1-14.) The Father's promises. Jesus and their Father are one. He prays.( John 16:23-17:26)
Mat 26:30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.	Mar 14:26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.	Luk 22:39 And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him.	Joh 18:1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the brook Kidron, where was a garden, into the which he entered, himself and his disciples.

John dedicates four chapters to Jesus’ speeches in that upper room, but does not give an account of the breaking of bread. Instead, he describes Jesus’ institution of the foot-washing ritual. John’s account heavily emphasizes Jesus’ exhortations for the disciples to love one another.

jgnat

Narkissos, the version I have is marked S-31, 11/90 with a handwritten notation, 1/93. I cannot confirm that this was the same talk given this year, but if I were a betting woman, I'd say it's near identical.
JCanon

do intend to get there, reniaa, but I want this to be a complete study, berean style. We'll start with the bible and work outward. The next text I will be including is what the scriptures say, and if the Witness version has captured the intent and meaning of the memorial.
The very last thing I would do is look at what other churches are doing.
Let's be sure of our foundation first.
The BIG PICTURE: Christ sent out ten slaves to do business. One slave proved unfaithful, namely the WTS. They became the evil slave though they had the most cherished position as the temple class. Therefore, what is required of JWs is a separate thing than what might be accepted by the others organizations. You can academically make comparisons but it won't work out toward the actual spiritual reality.
When Christ comes, he sees the corrupt WTS, he does not correct that organization, but simply removes his sheep from that organization in a spiritual sense. He says, "I have other sheep, not of this fold.." So Christ is doing his own thing gathering here and there based upon other criteria than for the witnesses. It's just like the rules for the rest of the world to get saved is not the same as for the Jews. The Jews have some extra things to deal with that comes with their privileges, etc.
So there is no need to worry about formal beliefs and rituals out in Christendom. Jehovah does not recognize formal Christendom. In the Bible Christendom is the 666-Beast coming out of the sea. The WTS is the Lamb-Dragon-False Prophet that comes out of the earth. Both are creatures of Satan and under his influence and both are destroyed in the lake of fire together "while still alive", which means while still actively functioning as a religion. They are thu shut down in some legal way by the UN when BTG is shut down.
JC
JCanon

Jgant: Excellent breakdown of the chain of events.
For your further note, the reference in John is to a specific time of the day in relation to the watch. That is when he notes, "It was but night (de nox)" he means it is jsut before the "night watch" which is a short form of the "midnight watch" which is from 9 p.m. to midnight. So John left just before 9 p.m. Just some technical "trivia" for you since you broke it all down.
JC

jgnat

Other New Testament verses, or "second-string" descriptions of the event.

Verse

In Context

Comments

Act 2:42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Act 2:46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,

These are the very first converts after Jesus’ death, describing how they spent their time together.

These early Christians lived communally, sharing everything in common. They spent a lot of time together, praying and eating together.

Here, the breaking of bread could be a daily event.

Act 20:7 On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.

Act 20:11 And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while, until daybreak, and so departed.

This was one of Paul’s late talks. In the middle, a young man topples out of an upstairs window. Paul miraculously heals the boy.

Here, the breaking of bread together is a weekly event.

Act 27:34-36 "Therefore I urge you to take some food. It will give you strength, for not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you." And when he had said these things, he took bread, and giving thanks to God in the presence of all he broke it and began to eat. Then they all were encouraged and ate some food themselves.

Paul was on his way to trial. The trip was dangerous, and even his captors despaired that they would arrive safely. Paul calms them down with these words.

Eating together is a way to bring comfort and community.

1Cr 10:16-17 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.

Here Paul speaks of what is profane and what is holy, and settles differences between Gentile and Jewish convert practices.

Note that all believers are of the same body, so partake of the same bread.

1Cr 11:20-34 When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk.

What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for[fn4] you. Do this in remembrance of me."[fn5] In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.[fn6]

But if we judged[fn7] ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined[fn8] so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

So then, my brothers,[fn9] when you come together to eat, wait for[fn10] one another— if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. About the other things I will give directions when I come.

The Corinthians have been excessive, and Paul reins them in.

Corinthians were preparing feasts, and they were not sharing!

Paul reminds them that this is to remember Jesus’ sacrifice. They should be filled with love for the "body of Christ", or the body of believers, when they partake.

Remember also John’s account, where Jesus exhorted the brothers over and over to love one another.

jgnat

My conclusion from these bible verses:
The most important features of Christian communion is honoring the memory of Jesus' sacrifice, and to love one another. Not one is to be considered over the other and the greatest amongst us are those who serve the best.
The form of partaking is secondary, and there are many variations in the early church. In some cases entire feasts were prepared (including that fateful night). The early church met daily or weekly in prayer and the "breaking of bread". Again, the regular sharing of bread and prayer ties the community together and reminds them first Jesus' sacrifice, and second of their love for one another. Eating together makes us one.

Taking apart the Memorial

Share this