SPRING CLEANING ORIGIN WINDOWS

As the blood of the Passover lamb protected Israel from the angel of death, so too the blood of the Messiah promised victory over death for all who are his. These customs demonstrate the shared desire to be delivered from the ‘sin that so easily besets us.’ Both rely on the mercy of God demonstrated by mighty acts of salvation, the one by the death of Pharaoh's firstborn, the other by the firstborn of God one by passing through the Red Sea, the other by the baptism of repentance. In the high churches, Lent is a period grief in remembrance of the death of Christ at Passover, but tempered by the joy of his eventual resurrection. In the Christian realm, Lent is a period of introspection and penance characterized by abstention from meat on Fridays and by special daily devotionals and scripture readings. One should examine himself so that he would have been deemed worthy to be delivered from bondage to Pharaoh had he lived then. The Talmud equates leaven with our propensity to sin (b.Berachot 17a). Behind all the busyness, these faiths have also made this period a time of introspection and repentance.Īccording to Chasidic Jewish thought, leaven is associated with haughtiness and selfishness. In Catholic churches, it is often customary to clean the altar on Maundy Thursday, the day before Good Friday. It is traditional in Greece and in Orthodox churches to thoroughly clean the home the week before Lent begins. While all of this is taking place in Jewish homes and in Messianic Judaism, Christians are also cleaning their homes in anticipation of Easter.

It became customary to begin removing the leaven about two weeks prior and culminates in an evening ritual the day before the Passover meal was undertaken. This falls in March or April and usually overlaps Holy Week and Easter. The Jewish people are commanded to remove all leaven from their dwelling and their possession in preparation for the festival of Passover.

Traditions associated with Lent, Easter and Passover in the spring are candidates. I dread the thought of it!īut what is the origin of the tedious ritual? Some have suggested a religious origin.

SPRING CLEANING ORIGIN WINDOWS

Carpets will be vacuumed and deep cleaned, drapes will be taken down and washed, the home will be dusted and cleaned of cobwebs from ceiling to floor, walls washed, and windows thoroughly cleaned. Spring is nearly here and the time for spring cleaning will be fast upon us.

Spring cleaning origin