POOLVILLE – This past Tuesday night the Poolville United Methodist Church (PUMC) in Poolville held a Passover Seder, which is traditionally viewed as a Jewish ritual dinner. Pastor Nancy Araujo led the seder to remind church members of the Exodus story, as well as to commemorate Jesus' sacrifice and later resurrection on Easter day.

According to Pastor Nancy, the last dinner Jesus had with his disciples was a Passover Seder. This meal is significant because the Passover Seder is conducted to symbolize God's decision to save the Israelites from slavery and hardship under Pharaoh’s rule in Egypt.

Pastor Nancy continued by explaining that after this salvation God required his people to sacrifice a lamb and hold Passover Seder in remembrance of his actions. Passover Seder connects to Easter because, “Christ was our lamb. He sacrificed his life for us instead of us having to sacrifice a lamb every year,” said Pastor Nancy.

She suggested that, though Passover Seder is traditionally practiced by those of the Jewish faith, Passover Seder holds importance for all Christians. In essence, “I think that Christians need to be reminded of where Jesus is in Passover. Jesus celebrated Passover with his disciples and he did it before he died,” said Pastor Nancy.

PUMC has a sister church in Earlville, Earlville United Methodist Church (EUMC), and the Passover Seder had attendees from both churches who inhabit various parts of Chenango and Madison counties. One church member took a head count and was deeply affected by the fact that the table held 13 members – the same number of people who took part in the Last Supper.

Pastor Nancy led the Seder and wore a traditional kittel (robe). The long table held two Seder plates, which contained various ceremonial items that symbolized different parts of the Exodus story. Pastor Nancy handed out pamphlets that prompted the members throughout the ceremony.