MAUNDY THURSDAY HOMILY

 

HOMILY FOR 28 MARCH 2024 MAUNDY THURSDAY - EVENING MASS

Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14; Psalm 116:12-13, 15-16, 17-18; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-15

DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME

I pray that you will find the time to reflect and pray during the Triduum. May you be able to make present this moment of our salvation. May your reflection on this most holy day draw you ever closer to your Master and Teacher and Lord. And may you model Him in your service of others. AMEN

 

On Holy Thursday, we begin the liturgy which celebrates OUR SAVING EVENTS. Some scholars speak of the one great liturgical rite which begins with the Evening Liturgy of the  Supper of the Lord Jesus Christ and ends with the Easter Vigil. 

Today, our journey with the Master and Teacher takes us to the celebration of the Passover Feast which celebrates the saving of the Chosen People of God through the blood of the lamb by God himself. 

Today, we also see our Great Master and Teacher perform an act of loving service for His followers as He washes their feet and invites them to lovingly serve one another in His memory. 

Today, Jesus Christ also gives new meaning to the bread and wine of the Seder (Passover meal) by declaring that the bread is now His Body which is given up for His disciples and the wine is His Blood which is poured out for all people.  

Today, his instruction to, and prayer for, His disciples remind them of their duty to continue His ministry and service to all people, even if they, like their Master and Teacher, will face opposition and death. 

Today, we are invited to make our remembrance of His actions of love become a part of our lives as we journey with Him into the Garden of Gethsemane where He asks us to pray with Him during His time of trial and His hour of glory.

It is good for us to take the time to reflect on the events of this Holy Thursday. I particularly invite you to reflect on the prayer of Jesus Christ for all of His followers as found in John 17.  The evening Mass of the Supper of the Lord is the first part of the liturgical rite known as the TRIDUUM (three days).

During Triduum, we journey with Jesus Christ the Great Teacher, as He celebrates His Last Supper with the Passover rites, from the Upper Room into the Garden of Gethsemane, through His trial and passion, to the cross.  We follow Him as He proceeds into the Garden of Gethsemane. We are witnesses to His trial and condemnation. We are able to watch as He carries His cross through the streets of Jerusalem, up to the hill of Golgotha (Calvary, Skull Place) where we experience His crucifixion, death, and burial. This will happen on Good Friday. We continue to reflect on the meaning of life as Jesus Christ is buried in the tomb. The culmination of the Triduum is the Easter Vigil when we reflect on how the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) spoke of the saving mystery of faith; on how all of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) have announced the plan of salvation of God which culminates in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We joyously sing a hymn to the Risen Lord symbolized by the Paschal Candle. We welcome new members into our faith community through Baptism and the other Sacraments of Initiation. This is the celebration of our faith. Jesus Christ has given Himself to us through the Eucharist and His death on the cross; Jesus Christ is risen and alive; Jesus Christ will welcome us into the fullness of His Reign. 

The Triduum is the re-living of mystery of salvation. Its climax will be the Easter Vigil when we recall our being baptized into this mystery and receiving new life with the Risen Lord. We are encouraged today to continue to be drawn into the mystery of our salvation as you recall, reflect, and re-live what Jesus Christ has done for you, especially during the Triduum, the three most holy days of the church year.

The Triduum begins with the celebration of the Evening Mass of the Supper of Our Lord. The readings speak of the blood covenants which God established with the Chosen People.  They also speak of signs of the love of God and total care for the Chosen People.

The First Reading of today from Exodus recounts the origin of the Feast of Passover. Moses tells the Israelites to set this feast at the top of the calendar, for this is the event which brought them freedom from slavery and the beginning of a new life. They are to slaughter a lamb without blemish. The blood of the lamb is to be put on the doorposts and lintels (horizontal part of door frame) of their homes. They are to feast on the cooked lamb and celebrate the Passover of the Lord. However even in their celebration, they must be ready to move on, for after the Lord has passed over their houses and the Lord has saved them from death, they are to leave their old lives of slavery and move out to journey to the Promised Land. They are to eat the meal with unleavened bread, because of their haste and because this is to be new bread, not mixed with the old leavened bread. This is the blood covenant relationship God is making with the Chosen People and through the blood of the lamb, the people are freed from death and slavery, and are led by their God to a new life.

The psalmist in Psalm 116 questions how he can give thanksgiving to God. He decides to take up the cup of salvation and give thanks to God. The blessing cup used during Passover is filled with wine at four key points in the Seder (Passover meal). As the cup is filled the fourth and last time, a special berakah (blessing) prayer is said. This is the cup of blessing during which the Hallel (Praise) Psalms are prayed/sung. Psalm 116 continues in praising God and saying that the death of one of the faithful ones of God is precious in the eyes of God. The praise offered by the Servant of God is His faithful service. The response for the psalm bridges the readings from Hebrew Scripture (Old Testament) to Christian Scripture (New Testament):  Our blessing cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ. 

In the second reading, Paul reminds us that Jesus Christ celebrates this feast of Passover with His followers at His last supper before his death. While saying the berakah (prayer of praise and blessing) over the unleavened bread, Jesus Christ gives new meaning to the bread. It is His Body which will be broken and given for all of His followers. They are to continue to break the bread and recognize the presence of the Lord Jesus when they break the bread in His memory (zikaron in Hebrew, and anamnesis in Greek). He will be there, feeding them with His very Body whenever they break the bread. Paul continues to speak of what Jesus Christ did at the Seder meal of the Last Supper. At the end of the meal, as the fourth cup of wine is passed, Jesus Christ says the berakah over the cup. He again gives new meaning to the cup. It is the cup of His Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant-relationship. Jesus Christ is the unblemished Lamb of God, whose Blood will be poured out to set the Chosen People free from the slavery to sin and give them new life through the death of the Lamb. It is by sharing in the Blood of the Lamb of God that the reality of this covenant relationship is manifested.  

In the Gospel, Jesus Christ gives himself in service. Although the three Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) parallel the account of the Last Supper of Paul and focus on Jesus Christ giving Himself, His Body and Blood, to His disciples during the Last Supper, the Gospel of John has a different focus. The focus of the Last Supper in the Gospel according to John is the giving of Himself by Jesus Christ in service. Thus many churches tonight, not only celebrate communion as they receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, but they also re-enact the act of service of Jesus Christ, which is the washing of the feet. A renewal of commitment of those who serve the church is also celebrated in many churches; except those with the cases of Corona Virus.

The washing of the feet of His disciples by Jesus Christ is a powerful demonstration of the love of Jesus Christ for His followers. Jesus Christ rises from the supper table, and takes on the role of the servant. He lovingly washes the feet of His disciples. The dialog with Peter also shows the impetuousness of Peter. He refuses to have Jesus Christ, his Master, wash his feet. Jesus Christ says that it is necessary for Him to wash the feet of Peter, otherwise Peter cannot be in relationship with Him. Thus, Peter asked Jesus Christ to be wash him totally. Jesus Christ remarks that only the feet need to be washed if a person is already clean. As Jesus Christ returns to His place at the head of the table, He reflects on the action He has just done.  He reminds His followers (including us) that it is right that they call Him the Master and Lord, for that is Who He is. And if the Master washes the feet of His disciples in an act of service, so then all of the disciples are called to act in similar ways of serving one another. Service is the hallmark of the disciple (disciplined learner) of the Master.  

The next four chapters of the Gospel aaccording to John (14-17) comprise of the final will and testament of Jesus Christ to His disciples. It is a powerful reading, especially during the Triduum. Chapter 17 is the prayer of Jesus Christ for His followers (including us). 

Dear Sisters and Brothers, within the Catholic tradition, the celebration of the Supper of the Lord tonight normally ends with a procession with Eucharistic Bread (the Body of Christ) from the church to AN ALTAR OF REPOSE. But because of the Corona Virus in some places, this procession may not place in the churches in those places. We, however, are invited to journey along with Jesus Christ as He leaves the Upper Room and goes out into the Garden of Olives to the place called Gethsemane (Olive Press). Here, Jesus Christ, asks His followers to pray with Him. He particularly asks His closest three (Peter, James, and John) to stay awake and pray. He goes forward and asks His Father if there is any way that He need not go through what is about to happen and that He be spared. Notwithstanding, Jesus Christ submits to the will of His Father and is willing to undergo whatever is necessary for our salvation. He returns to find His disciples sleeping. The question asked of the disciples can be asked of us:  Can we not spend at least a little time in prayer with our Master and Lord?

Dearly beloved in Christ Jesus, today, Jesus Christ tells us: Do this in memory of me. We must serve others in love; we should be ready to sacrifice ourselves for the people we are leading; and we must adore and worship Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Sacrament.

Three great important things happened today: (1) Institution of the Holy Eucharist; (2) Institution of the Holy Order of Priesthood (and Bishop); and (3) the New Commnment of Love.

MEDITATION What does it mean to me that Jesus invites me to eat at His table and to be fed by and with Him?  What can I do to fulfill my call to be a servant to others as my Master-Teacher has demonstrated through His acts of giving Himself to others? How can I spend more time in prayer with my Master?

PRAYER Lord God, give us the strength and courage to imitate our Master and Lord in acts of loving service for others.  Help us bring the Good News of Your loving relationship to others by our servant attitude and actions. Continue to motivate us to stay awake and pray with our Master and Lord as we reflect on all that He has done to bring us to new life with You. Through Christ Our Lord.  Amen.

O DIVINE WORD WHO TOOK FLESH FOR HUMAN SAKE, REDEEM US IN OUR SITUATIONS

© Rev. Fr. Utazi Prince Marie Benignus