The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary, today, are those of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, as this evening we begin the three day liturgy, Triduum, marking Jesus' mission, death, and resurrection.
In the reading from the Book of Exodus the First Passover is instituted.
* [12:1–20] This section, which interrupts the narrative of the exodus, contains later legislation concerning the celebration of Passover.
* [12:2] As if to affirm victory over Pharaoh and sovereignty over the Israelites, the Lord proclaims a new calendar for Israel. This month: Abib, the month of “ripe grain.” Cf. 13:4; 23:15; 34:18; Dt 16:1. It occurred near the vernal equinox, March–April. Later it was known by the Babylonian name of Nisan. Cf. Neh 2:1; Est 3:7.
* [12:4] The lamb’s cost: some render the Hebrew, “reckon for the lamb the number of persons required to eat it.” Cf. v. 10. (Exodus, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 116 is a thanksgiving for recovery from illness.
* [Psalm 116] A thanksgiving in which the psalmist responds to divine rescue from mortal danger (Ps 116:3–4) and from near despair (Ps 116:10–11) with vows and Temple sacrifices (Ps 116:13–14, 17–19). The Greek and Latin versions divide the Psalm into two parts: Ps 116:1–9 and Ps 116:10–19, corresponding to its two major divisions. (Psalms, PSALM 116 | USCCB, n.d.)
The reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians describes the Institution of the Lord’s Supper.
* [11:23–25] This is the earliest written account of the institution of the Lord’s Supper in the New Testament. The narrative emphasizes Jesus’ action of self-giving (expressed in the words over the bread and the cup) and his double command to repeat his own action. (1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB, n.d.)
In the Gospel of John, Jesus washes the Disciples’ Feet.
* [13:1–20] Washing of the disciples’ feet. This episode occurs in John at the place of the narration of the institution of the Eucharist in the synoptics. It may be a dramatization of Lk 22:27—“I am your servant.” It is presented as a “model” (“pattern”) of the crucifixion. It symbolizes cleansing from sin by sacrificial death.
* [13:1] Before the feast of Passover: this would be Thursday evening, before the day of preparation; in the synoptics, the Last Supper is a Passover meal taking place, in John’s chronology, on Friday evening. To the end: or, “completely.”
* [13:2] Induced: literally, “The devil put into the heart that Judas should hand him over.”
* [13:5] The act of washing another’s feet was one that could not be required of the lowliest Jewish slave. It is an allusion to the humiliating death of the crucifixion.
* [13:10] Bathed: many have suggested that this passage is a symbolic reference to baptism. The Greek root involved is used in baptismal contexts in 1 Cor 6:11; Eph 5:26; Ti 3:5; Heb 10:22. (John, CHAPTER 13 | USCCB, n.d.)
Jay Carney comments that there is something to this foot-washing! On this holy night, may we soak in this ritual practice that Jesus handed down to us. And then go and do likewise.
Yet when I look back on beautiful moments in my own Christian journey, foot-washing stands out. I think of a university community in Madison, Wisconsin that set up a dozen Holy Thursday foot washing stations, calling all of us to take turns bathing each other’s feet. I recall a memorable Holy Thursday in Uganda when a priest called me out of the congregation to join my Ugandan brothers and sisters before the altar, symbolizing (as he told the crowd) the universal nature of the church. I look back on an intentional Catholic community in West Virginia who closed service weeks by washing the feet of all volunteers, reminding us that our week was about just that – receiving gifts in service. I remember Pope Francis in March 2013, setting the tone for his entire papacy by going to a Roman youth jail to wash the feet of all prisoners, male and female, Christian and Muslim. Perhaps most of all, I recall washing my own young children’s feet in the old Jesuit Gardens here at Creighton, knowing they were too little to get the Holy Thursday liturgy—yet could really embrace the sensory experience and symbolism of Mom and Dad washing their feet. (Carney, 2024)
Don Schwager quotes “Christ chose to be a servant who offered himself for us,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Even though the man Christ Jesus, in the form of God together with the Father with whom He is one God, accepts our sacrifice, nonetheless He has chosen in the form of a servant to be the sacrifice rather than accept it. Therefore, He is the priest Himself Who presents the offering, and He Himself is what is offered." (excerpt from City of God, 10,20) (Schwager, 2017)
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 13:1-15 comments that when he washed his disciples’ feet, Jesus told them, “I have given you a model to follow” (John 13:15, emphasis added). That “model” wasn’t just the foot washing; it was Jesus’ entire life. It was the model of a servant who washed people’s feet throughout his ministry. Every time Jesus healed someone, forgave someone, or welcomed someone, he was humbling himself to lift them up. So to follow Jesus’ model means to bend down and serve. It means to put the needs of someone else ahead of our own. It means obeying his command to “love one another” as he has loved us (John 13:34).
So when you come to Mass tonight, fix your eyes on Jesus, who has given himself as a model for you. Watch him pour himself out as he washes feet and offers his Body and Blood. Let the depth of his love captivate you. Then go and do likewise.
“Jesus, thank you for your Body and Blood! As I receive you today, may I become more like you!” (Meditation on John 13:1-15, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the celebration of Passover connected to the Exodus and an original agricultural feast marking the birth of new lambs in the spring. With the celebration of the Eucharist and with the Passover we pass outside of time and become present at the event. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians contains the first written account of the Last Supper. Friar Jude notes the horizontal meaning of the Eucharist expressed in Jesus washing the feet of the Apostles.
Sr Anouska Robinson-Biggin FCJ, responsible for Young Adult Ministries at the Mount Street Jesuit Centre, shares that the liturgies of the Easter Triduum are rich and evocative, and the depth of their meaning and impact can only be discovered if we participate fully in them.
We are reminded of that first Passover in the First Reading of the Mass (Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14). But for Jesus, this celebration was so much more. As Monty Williams SJ recounts:
With the meal, [Jesus] gives a way of being united with God that is more than just memory and ritual. He makes the bread and wine of that Passover meal his body and blood. He shares that with his companions. He ensures that his essence remains with those with whom he shares his life and mission. We become what we eat. We become partakers of the same relationship he has with the Father.[iii] (Robinson, 2017)
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, names how fear diminishes our ability to love and forgive.
Only people who have moved beyond their wounded ego and the need to control all outcomes, only those practiced at letting go, can see fear for the impostor that it is. To be trapped inside of our small ego is always to be afraid. Great religion tries its best to free individuals from the tyranny of their small and fragile selves. It always points toward a larger identity that we call the Godself, the True Self, the self “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3), the trustworthy Lover. Healthy and true religion, like Jesus himself modeled, tells us there is Someone we can trust. [1]
Jesus came to reveal and resolve the central and essential problem—humanity’s tendency toward fear and hate. Love is the totally enlightened, entirely nonsensical way out of this pattern. Love has to be worked toward, received, and enjoyed; the first move is to recognize our deep capacity for fear and hate. But remember, we gather around the negative space quickly, while we “fall into” love rather slowly, and only with lots of practice at falling. [2] (Rohr, 2017)
As we begin the three days of the Triduum, we contemplate the new life we have experienced as we have shown love in “washing feet”.
References
Carney, J. (2024, March 28). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/032824.html
Exodus, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/exodus/12?1
John, CHAPTER 13 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/13?
Meditation on John 13:1-15. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/03/28/924666/
1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians/11?23
Psalms, PSALM 116 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/116?12
Robinson, A. (2017, April 7). Remember, stay, rejoice: Praying the Triduum. Thinking Faith. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/remember-stay-rejoice-praying-triduum
Rohr, R. (2017, November 9). Perfect Love Casts Out Fear. CAC Daily Meditations. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/perfect-love-casts-out-fear-2024/
Schwager, D. (2017, November 9). Jesus' Supreme Humility and Unfailing Love. YouTube: Home. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=mar28
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