Teaching Team
The Cup of Blessing
In First Fruits of Zion's new book on the commandment of Grace After Meals, Breaking Bread, we discuss the ancient custom of some to say this after meal prayer over a cup of wine. This practice is very old, pre-dating the time of the Master, and is still practiced today by some groups within Orthodox Judaism.
Here is a sampling of the various customs surrounding this practice:
- For some it is a custom to do this only on Festivals and Sabbaths, while for others whenever wine is available.
- Halachic authorities debate whether it is an obligation to only recite when three men are present or should it be done even if one is alone. Opinions are divided.
- It is the honor of either a kohen ("priest") if he is present or the Torah scholar in the group to hold the cup while reciting Grace After Meals.
- The cup is held in the right hand for the entire Grace After Meals and then at the end the blessing "borei pri hagafen" is recited and the cup holder then takes a drink. In some circles the cup is then distributed amongst the group.
The Sages felt that if a blessing was recited over wine it elevated and beautified the mitzvah based on the verse, "I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD" (Psalm 116:13). In fact some Sephardic Jews recite this verse at the end of Grace After Meals just before the blessing for wine is recited.
For disciples of the Master there appears to be a connection between the cup of wine at Grace After Meals and the Last Seder. In the Gospel of Mark we read:
And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. (Mark 14:23-24, also Matthew 26:27-28)
According to Luke 22:20 (also 1 Corinthians 11:25) the blessing of this cup took place after the disciples had eaten. So what was the "thanks" he offered up over this cup of wine after the meal? Most likely it was Grace After Meals. Therefore the Master recited Grace After Meals here over a cup of wine. We also find another clue of this connection in Paul's letter to the Corinthians:
The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:16)
Paul calls this cup, the "cup of blessing" which would be in Hebrew kos shel berachah. He is using the rabbinic technical term for the cup with which Grace After Meals was recited (see b.Pesachim 107a).
After putting all these clues together my family and I have begun reciting our Grace After Meals over a cup of wine on Shabbat. For us it is just one more way to connect with the Master. While certainly not a replacement for Passover or a form of communion, it is a weekly reminder of the blood he shed for us and the abundant life we have in him.
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Visitor Feedback:
Quite interesting! Great thoughts! I will have to purchase a copy of Breaking Bread and perhaps include this custom in some of my mealtimes as well. I wonder if this could historically be the connection between the "breaking of bread" in Acts and the "eucharist" (thanksgiving) meal in the Didache.
**Toby's Response:** We talk about the connection of the Didache in the book. I think you will enjoy it. Our conclusion is that the Eucharist in the Didache is not really a Eucharist in the communion sense but rather was a time to remember Yeshua at communal meals.
Ryan | August 13, 2008 11:27 AM
Deuteronomy 8:10 You will eat your fill and then praise the LORD your God because of the good land he has given you.
I've attended Boaz's seminar, ordered and read some of the literature FFOZ has put out concerning Grace after meals.
In this article you clearly refer to Grace after meals as a Commandment then the next sentence it is referred to as a custom.
I am hoping for clarification. I've spoken with people I respect in my congregation and the opinion I'm getting is the phrase is taken out of context and is referring to Blessing Adonai for the Land, not a Commandment to do a certain Blessing every time we eat.
I'm not trying to be objectionable just confused.
Please help.
**Toby's Response:** Thanks for the question. The confusion comes in when we look at the "custom" to say the traditional Grace After Meal prayer, whereas the “commandment” of the Torah is to say thanks after we eat. Both Judaism and the early church seem to be in agreement that this was a commandment and both practiced it. Does that helps?
Dennis P Pfabe | August 19, 2008 9:43 AM