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Posted on 04/16/2014 7:07:53 PM PDT by Salvation
April 17, 2014 | Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper
Holy Thursday
Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper
Reading 1 Ex 12:1-8, 11-14
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,
“This month shall stand at the head of your calendar;
you shall reckon it the first month of the year.
Tell the whole community of Israel:
On the tenth of this month every one of your families
must procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.
If a family is too small for a whole lamb,
it shall join the nearest household in procuring one
and shall share in the lamb
in proportion to the number of persons who partake of it.
The lamb must be a year-old male and without blemish.
You may take it from either the sheep or the goats.
You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month,
and then, with the whole assembly of Israel present,
it shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight.
They shall take some of its blood
and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel
of every house in which they partake of the lamb.
That same night they shall eat its roasted flesh
with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
“This is how you are to eat it:
with your loins girt, sandals on your feet and your staff in hand,
you shall eat like those who are in flight.
It is the Passover of the LORD.
For on this same night I will go through Egypt,
striking down every firstborn of the land, both man and beast,
and executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt—I, the LORD!
But the blood will mark the houses where you are.
Seeing the blood, I will pass over you;
thus, when I strike the land of Egypt,
no destructive blow will come upon you.
“This day shall be a memorial feast for you,
which all your generations shall celebrate
with pilgrimage to the LORD, as a perpetual institution.”
Responsorial Psalm Ps 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18
R/. (cf. 1 Cor 10:16) Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R/. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
R/. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
R/. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
Reading 2 1 Cor 11:23-26
Brothers and sisters:
I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you,
that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over,
took bread, and, after he had given thanks,
broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
Gospel Jn 13:1-15
Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come
to pass from this world to the Father.
He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.
The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.
So, during supper,
fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power
and that he had come from God and was returning to God,
he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.
He took a towel and tied it around his waist.
Then he poured water into a basin
and began to wash the disciples’ feet
and dry them with the towel around his waist.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him,
“Master, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“What I am doing, you do not understand now,
but you will understand later.”
Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered him,
“Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”
Simon Peter said to him,
“Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.”
Jesus said to him,
“Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,
for he is clean all over;
so you are clean, but not all.”
For he knew who would betray him;
for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
So when he had washed their feet
and put his garments back on and reclined at table again,
he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?
You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet,
you ought to wash one another’s feet.
I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”
Holy Thursday - Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper
Commentary of the day
Saint Anthony of Padua (c.1195-1231), Franciscan, Doctor of the Church
Sermons for Sundays and Feasts, Maundy Thursday
« I am among you as one who serves » (Lk 22,27)
"Jesus rose from supper and took off his outer garments. He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet." We read a story of the same kind in Genesis. Abraham says to the messengers – the three angels who visit him: “Let some water be brought that you may bathe your feet and then rest yourselves under the tree; let me bring you a little food that you may refresh yourselves” (18,4-5). What Abraham did for the three angels, Christ did for his apostles, those messengers of the truth, who were to preach faith in the Blessed Trinity to all the world.
He stoops down to them like a child; he stoops down and washes their feet. What an incomprehensible humility; what inexpressible goodness! He whom the angels adore in heaven is at these fishermen's feet! The face that causes angels to tremble bends over the feet of these poor men! Therefore Peter is seized with fear... When he has washed their feet he makes them “lie down under the tree” as it says in the Song of Songs: “I delight to rest in his shadow and his fruit is sweet to my mouth” (2,3). This fruit is his Body and Blood, given them today by him. It is the “morsel of bread” he set before them and that gave them strength for the work they must undertake...
Behold, “on this mountain the Lord of Hosts will prepare for all peoples a feast of rich meat with the marrow” (Is 25,6)... In the upper room where the apostles are to receive the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the Lord of all the world throws a feast today for all the peoples who believe in him... This is what the Church does today throughout the world. It was for her sake that Christ prepared this feast on Mount Zion, this food that restores us, his true Body, rich in every spiritual virtue and charity. This he has given to his apostles and has commanded them to give to those who believe in him.
| Thursday, April 17, 2014 Holy Thursday Evening – Mass of the Lord's Supper |
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Just A Minute (Listen) Some of EWTN's most popular hosts and guests in a collection of one minute inspirational messages. A different message each time you click. |
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The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary:
Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word.
And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us.
Amen. |
Thanks, I am reading these tomorrow night and am lined up for a foot washing.
Holy Thursday
The Last Supper - Chartres Cathedral - stained glass window (detail)
Family Activities | Stations of the Cross | Christian Passover Seder | Readings | Adoremus: Articles and Document on Footwashing
Nos autem gloriari oportet in cruce Domini nostri Iesu Christi,
in quo est salus, vita et resurrectio nostra per quem salvati et liberati sumus.
We should glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, for He is our salvation, our life and our resurrection; through Him we are saved and made free. (cf. Galations 6:14)
-- Entrance Antiphon for Holy Thursday
HOLY THURSDAY is the most complex and profound of all religious observances, saving only the Easter Vigil. It celebrates both the institution by Christ Himself of the Eucharist and of the institution of the sacerdotal priesthood (as distinct from the "priesthood of all believers") for in this, His last supper with the disciples, a celebration of Passover, He is the self-offered Passover Victim, and every ordained priest to this day presents this same sacrifice, by Christ's authority and command, in exactly the same way. The Last Supper was also Christ's farewell to His assembled disciples, some of whom would betray, desert or deny Him before the sun rose again.
On Holy Thursday morning there is a special Mass in Cathedral Churches, celebrated by the bishop and as many priests of the diocese as can attend, because it is a solemn observance of Christ's institution of the priesthood at the Last Supper. At this "Chrism Mass" the bishop also blesses the Oil of Chrism used for Baptism, Confirmation and Anointing of the sick or dying. The bishop may wash the feet of twelve of the priests, to symbolize Christ's washing the feet of His Apostles, the first priests.
The evening Holy Thursday Liturgy, marks the end of Lent and the beginning of the sacred "Triduum" ("three days") of Holy Week, which culminates in the Easter Vigil, and concludes at Vespers on the evening of Easter day (see Paschalis Sollemnitatis, §§ 38-40). The Mass begins in the evening, because Passover began at sundown; it commemorates Our Lord's institution of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper. It also shows both the worth God ascribes to the humility of service, and the need for cleansing with water (a symbol of baptism) in the Mandatum, washing, commemorating Jesus' washing the feet of His apostles, as well as in the priest's stripping and washing of the altar. Cleansing, in fact, gave this day of Holy Week the name Maundy Thursday.
The action of the Church on this night also witnesses to the Church's esteem for Christ's Body present in the consecrated Host in the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, carried in solemn procession to the flower-bedecked Altar of Repose, where it will remain "entombed" until the communion service on Good Friday. No Mass will be celebrated again in the Church until the Easter Vigil proclaims the Resurrection.
And finally, there is the continued Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament by the people during the night, just as the disciples stayed with the Lord during His agony on the Mount of Olives before the betrayal by Judas.
There is such an abundance of symbolism in the solemn celebration of the events of Holy Thursday layer upon layer, in fact that we can no more than hint at it in these few words. For many centuries, the Last Supper of Our Lord has inspired great works of art and literature, such as the glorious stained glass window in Chartres cathedral (above), Leonardo's ever popular (and much imitated) Last Supper in the 16th century; and a reminiscence called Holy Thursday, by the French novelist François Mauriac, written in the 1930s. (A chapter of Mauriac's meditation was reprinted in Voices, Lent-Easter 2002, with permission from Sophia Institute Press).
Family Activities for Holy Thursday
When you eat this bread and drink this cup
you proclaim the Lord's death, until He comes again.
I Corinthians 11:26
We have prepared a Christian adaptation of a Passover Seder, simple enough for use in families with young children. This special meal stresses the Christian significance of elements of the traditional Jewish Passover meal (seder) as it may have been celebrated in our Lord's time. It is neither a re-enactment of the Last Supper, nor a Jewish service. But we believe this festive family meal can be a very expressive way of helping young children to understand more about the historic origins of their faith as well as the importance of this day of Holy Week. (This is in the full edition of the Family Sourcebook for Lent and Easter. You may make photocopies of the service so everyone can have one.)
Maundy Thursday's emphasis on ritual washing also gave rise to the ancient tradition of spring cleaning, evidently related to the Jewish custom of ritually cleaning the home in preparation for the Feast of Passover. Everything was to be cleaned and polished in preparation for the Easter celebration. You can tell children about this tradition and ask to them to clean their rooms in order to observe Maundy Thursday. (Be sure to let us know if this works!)
Adults and children who are old enough to accompany their parents can return to Church after Mass for a period of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. If this is not possible, candles can be lighted and special prayers could be said after returning home from Mass and before bedtime. To give you some ideas, on the Stations of the Cross page we have included suggestions for a family observance of the Stations (also known as Via Crucis, or Way of the Cross) as a form of Tenebrae.
Chrism Mass
Collect:
O God, who anointed your Only Begotten Son with the Holy Spirit
and made him Christ and Lord,
graciously grant
that, being made shares in his consecration,
we may bear witness to your Redemption in the world.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. +Amen.
First Reading: Isaiah 61:1-3a, 6a, 8b-9
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good tidings to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion -- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, but you shall be called the priests of the Lord, men shall speak of you as the ministers of our God
I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring in the midst of the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.
Second Reading: Revelation 1:5-8
From Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.
To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, every one who pierced Him; and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen.
"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
Gospel Reading:Luke 4:16-21
He[Jesus] came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and He went to the synagogue, as His custom was, on the sabbath day. And He stood up to read; and there was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah. He opened the book and found the place where it was written, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." And He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Mass of the Lord's Supper
Collect:
O God, who have called us to participate
in this most sacred Supper,
in which your Only Begotten Son,
when about to hand himself over to death,
entrusted to the Church a sacrifice new for all eternity,
the banquet of his love,
grant, we pray,
that we may draw from so great a mystery,
the fullness of charity and of life.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. +Amen.
First Reading: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, "This month shall be for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they shall take every man a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household; and if the household is too small for a lamb, then a man and his neighbor next to his house shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old; you shall take it from the sheep or from the goats; and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs in the evening. Then they shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat them. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.
In this manner you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, upon the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall fall upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.
"This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as an ordinance for ever.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when He was betrayed took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it, and said, "This is My body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of Me." In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.
Gospel Reading:John 13:1-15
Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. And during supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, rose from supper, laid aside His garments, and girded Himself with a towel. Then He poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. He came to Simon Peter; and Peter said to him, "Lord, do you wash my feet?" Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand." Peter said to Him, "You shall never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part in Me." Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" Jesus said to him, "He who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but he is clean all over; and you are clean, but not every one of you." For He knew who was to betray Him; that was why He said, "You are not all clean."
When He had washed their feet, and taken His garments, and resumed His place, He said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.
Adoremus: Articles and Document on Footwashing:
The Footwashing -- Jesus Christ Establishes the New Covenant Before Calvary -- by The Rev. Msgr. Anthony A. LaFemina [March 2006]
Relevant paragraphs of Paschalis Sollemnitatis follow:
45. Careful attention should be given to the mysteries that are commemorated in this Mass: the institution of the Eucharist, the institution of the priesthood, and Christ's command of brotherly love; the homily should explain these points.
51. The washing of the feet of chosen men [viri selecti] which, according to tradition, is performed on this day, represents the service and charity of Christ, who came "not to be served, but to serve." [58] This tradition should be maintained, and its proper significance explained.
Feast Day: April 17
Born: Dorset, England
Died: 28 March 1134
Major Shrine: Church of St. Stephen Harding in Apátistvánfalva, Hungary, district of Szentgotthárd.
St. Stephen Harding
Feast Day: April 17
Born: (about) 1060 :: Died: 1134
Stephen was born at Sherborne, Dorsetshire in England. He first studied at the monastery of Sherborne and later in Paris and Rome. He was a good student who liked to learn. Stephen was especially interested in literature. He was serious about life and prayed daily.
When Stephen completed his studies, he and his friend set out on foot as pilgrims for Rome. On their way back, they stopped at the monastery of Molesme in Burgundy. Stephen was very impressed by the holiness of St. Robert who was the abbot there and decided to join this poor and holy group of monks.
These men prayed, fasted and worked hard. That was their way of showing their love for God. Stephen noticed how happy they were. For a while, Stephen served God joyfully with them. But little by little the monks did not want to live such a strict life anymore.
So St. Robert and St. Stephen and twenty of the monks started a new monastery. They built it themselves in the wilderness in France called Citeaux. They lived a life of work and great poverty. They wanted to imitate the poverty of Jesus. They followed the Rule of St. Benedict and kept strict silence.
When St. Robert was called back to Molesme, Stephen became the abbot and founded the order of the Cistercians. But these were difficult times. The monks had very little food and then more than half of the monks became sick and died. It looked as though the community would come to an end. They needed new, young members to continue their life.
Stephen prayed with faith and God answered his prayer. God sent to these monks thirty young men who wanted to join them. They arrived at the monastery gate all together. Their leader, St. Bernard was to become a great saint too. This was a marvelous day for St. Stephen and the monks.
St. Stephen spent the last few years of his life setting up twelve more monasteries. He wrote a book of rules for the Cistercian monks and the famous "Charter of Charity". With great fatherly affection, he trained St. Bernard to take his place.
When he lay dying, St. Stephen heard the monks around him whispering that Stephen did not have to be afraid to die. He had worked so hard and loved God so much. But St. Stephen said that he was afraid he had not been good enough. And he really meant it. That shows us how humble this great saint was. He died in 1134.
Holy Thursday: The God who Washes Feet
The significance of Holy Thursday (institution of the Eucharist and priesthood)
Holy Thursday and the washing of the feet [Mandatum]
The Hunt for the Fourth Cup
Great and Holy Thursday [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Maundy Thursday, Holy Thursday, Shire Thursday
Holy Thursday
Maundy Thursday
HOMILIES PREACHED BY FATHER ALTIER ON HOLY THURSDAY IN 2004 AND 2005.
Paths to Rome: Washing of Feet on Holy Thursday
Washing of the Feet on Holy Thursday And More on Days of Abstinence
Reflections for Maundy Thursday: The Carrying of the Cross
Past Not Over (Why Passover is the most widely observed Jewish holiday.)
The Chrism Mass
Celebration of a Family Seder Meal
Washing the Feet of Men Only on Holy Thursday
ALTAR OF REPOSE - Catholic Liturgy for Maundy Thursday
Catholic Caucus: Maundy (Holy) Thursday
The Fourth Cup: The Sacrament of the Eucharist [Holy Thursday] [Passover]
Holy Thursday - When the moon is full
Catholic
Almanac:
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Thursday, April 17 |
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Liturgical Color: White |
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Daily Readings for:April 17, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)
Collect: O God, who have called us to participate in this most sacred Supper, in which your Only Begotten Son, when about to hand himself over to death, entrusted to the Church a sacrifice new for all eternity, the banquet of his love, grant, we pray, that we may draw from so great a mystery, the fullness of charity and of life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
RECIPES
o Arnaki Gemisto (Stuffed Easter Lamb)
o Beranek
o Charoses
o Haroset
o Horoseth
o Matzah
ACTIVITIES
o Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
o Eucharist Hymn: Pange Lingua
o Holy Thursday Activities in the Home
o Holy Thursday in the Home with the Trapp Family
o Holy Thursday Meal in the Home -- Remembering the Last Supper
o Holy Week in the Catholic Tradition
o Lent Hymn: Open, O Hard and Sinful Heart!
o Lenten Customs of the Russian Germans
o Maundy Thursday and the Passover Meal
o Maundy Thursday: Do Unto Others
o Music for Lent and Easter: St. Matthew Passion by Bach
o Popular Customs and Traditions of Maundy Thursday
o Tenebræ
o The Passover Meal: 1. Introduction
o The Passover Meal: 2. Preparing for the Celebration
o The Passover Meal: 3. Meal Preparation
o The Passover Meal: 4. Introductory Blessings
o The Passover Meal: 5. Traditional Passover Prayers
o The Passover Meal: 6. The Questions
o The Passover Meal: 7. Hallel: Psalms of Praise
o The Passover Meal: 8. The Concluding Hallel
o The Seder Meal as a Christian Home Celebration: Preparing and Celebrating the Holy Thursday Meal
o A Passover Supper On Holy Thursday
PRAYERS
o Holy Thursday Table Blessing
o Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Sacred Triduum (2nd Plan)
o Table Blessing for Holy Thursday
o Family Evening Prayer for Holy Week
o Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Sacred Triduum (1st Plan)
· Lent: April 17th
· Holy Thursday
Old Calendar: Holy Thursday (Maundy Thursday) ; Other Titles: Maundy Thursday; Green Thursday
The last three days of Holy Week are referred to as the Easter or Sacred Triduum (Triduum Sacrum), the three-part drama of Christ's redemption: Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
Holy Thursday is also known as "Maundy Thursday." The word maundy comes from the Latin word mandatum (commandment) which is the first word of the Gospel acclamation:
Mandátum novum do vobis dicit Dóminus, ut diligátis ínvicem, sicut diléxi vos. "I give you a new commandment: Love one another as I have loved you." (John 13:34)
These are the words spoken by our Lord to His apostles at the Last Supper, after he completed the washing of the feet. We should imitate Christ's humility in the washing of the feet.
By meditating on the Gospels (cf. Matt 26:1 ff.; Mark 14:1 ff.; Luke 22:1 ff.; John 13:1 ff.), we can recall to mind Jesus' actions of that day. Father Bernard Strasser summarizes all the events of that first Holy Thursday:
...They included: (1) the eating of the Easter lamb or the paschal meal; (2) the washing of the disciple's feet; (3) the institution of the Most Holy Eucharist (the first Mass at which Jesus Christ, the eternal high priest, is the celebrant; the first Communion of the apostles; the first conferring of Holy Orders); (4) the foretelling of Judas' betrayal and Peter's denials; (5) the farewell discourse and priestly prayer of Jesus; (6) the agony and capture of Jesus in the Garden of Olives. — ©1947, With Christ Through the Year
In all the German speaking countries, Slavic nations and in Hungary this day is also known as "Green Thursday." The word is a corruption of the German word grunen (to mourn) to the German word for green (grün). Many people believe they must eat green at today's meal, which is probably derived from from the Jewish Passover meal that included bitter herbs.
Chrism Mass
There are only two Masses allowed on Holy Thursday -- the Chrism Mass and the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper. In each diocese there is a Chrism Mass or Mass of the Holy Oils, usually said in the morning at the cathedral of the diocese. Catholics should make an effort to participate at the Mass at least once in their lives, to experience the communion of priests with their bishop. All the priests of the diocese are invited to concelebrate with the bishop. The holy oils to be used throughout the diocese for the following year in the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Orders and the Sacrament of the Sick are blessed by the bishop at this Mass. This Mass also celebrates the institution of the priesthood.
Mass of the Lord's Supper 
During the evening of Holy Thursday, the Mass of the Lord's Supper is celebrated. It is celebrated in the evening because the Passover began at sundown. There is only one Mass, at which the whole community and priests of the parish participate. This is a very joyful Mass, as we recall the institution of the Holy Eucharist and the priesthood. The priests wear white vestments, the altar is filled with flowers, the Gloria is sung and the bells are rung. After the Gloria, we shall not hear organ music and the bells until the Easter Vigil. The Liturgy of the Mass recalls the Passover, the Last Supper, which includes the Washing of the Feet. The hymn Ubi Caritas or Where Charity and Love Prevail is usually sung at this time. After the Communion Prayer, there is no final blessing. The Holy Eucharist is carried in procession through Church and then transferred into a place of reposition, usually a side chapel. The hymn Pange Lingua is also usually sung at this time.
After the Mass, we recall the Agony in the Garden, and the arrest and imprisonment of Jesus. The altar is stripped bare, crosses are removed or covered. The Eucharist has been placed in an altar of repose, and most churches are open for silent adoration, to answer Christ's invitation "Could you not, then, watch one hour with me?" (Matt 26:40)
The Altar of Repose 
When the Eucharist is processed to the altar of repose after the Mass of the Lord's Supper, we should remain in quiet prayer and adoration, keeping Christ company. There is a tradition, particularly in big cities with many parishes, to try and visit seven churches and their altar of repose during this evening.
Popular piety is particularly sensitive to the adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament in the wake of the Mass of the Lord's supper. Because of a long historical process, whose origins are not entirely clear, the place of repose has traditionally been referred to as "a holy sepulchre". The faithful go there to venerate Jesus who was placed in a tomb following the crucifixion and in which he remained for some forty hours.
It is necessary to instruct the faithful on the meaning of the reposition: it is an austere solemn conservation of the Body of Christ for the community of the faithful which takes part in the liturgy of Good Friday and for the viaticum of the infirmed. It is an invitation to silent and prolonged adoration of the wondrous sacrament instituted by Jesus on this day.
In reference to the altar of repose, therefore, the term "sepulchre" should be avoided, and its decoration should not have any suggestion of a tomb. The tabernacle on this altar should not be in the form of a tomb or funerary urn. The Blessed Sacrament should be conserved in a closed tabernacle and should not be exposed in a monstrance.
After mid-night on Holy Thursday, the adoration should conclude without solemnity, since the day of the Lord's Passion has already begun.
— Directory on Popular Piety
Washing of Feet and a Seder Meal 
In imitation of Christ's last supper, many Christians prepare a seder meal or the pasch. Celebrating a paschal meal helps us comprehend the plan of redemption. We see the lamb, cooked whole, with no bones broken, foreshadowing the death of Christ, the Lamb of God. We eat the unleavened bread and recall to mind the Eucharist. We eat the whole meal in prayerful reminder of that Last Supper that Jesus spent with His apostles, His friends, instituting Holy Orders and leaving His greatest gift, the Holy Eucharist.
A typical paschal meal includes the roast lamb, bitter herbs, haroset, matzoh and wine. The meal can be as authentic or representative as desired. There are numerous sources, both Christian and Jewish, that can give recipes, prayers and procedure for an authentic paschal feast.
The Station today is at St. John Lateran. Maundy Thursday is devoted to the institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood. On this day the bishop blesses the Holy Oils; thus is made clear that the sacraments have their source in Christ and derive their fruitfulness from the paschal mystery of salvation.
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Why is there music at liturgies, and what kind of music must it be to be suitable for liturgy?
Where words are not enough to praise God, music comes to our aid.
When we turn to God, there is always something ineffable and unsaid left over. Then music can help out. In rejoicing, language becomes song - that is why the angels sing. Music in a worship service should make prayer more beautiful and more fervent, move more deeply the hearts of all in attendance and bring them closer to God, and prepare for God a feast of melody.
How does the liturgy affect time?
In the liturgy time becomes time for God.
Often we do not know what to do with our time - we look for a pastime. In the liturgy, time becomes quite dense, because every second is filled with meaning. When we celebrate the liturgy, we experience the fact that God has sanctified time and made every second a gateway into eternity. (YOUCAT questions 183-184)
Dig Deeper: CCC section (1156-1158) and other references here.
Part 2: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery (1066 - 1690)
Section 1: The Sacramental Economy (1076 - 1209)
Chapter 2: The Sacramental Celebration of the Paschal Mystery (1135 - 1209)
Article 1: Celebrating the Church's Liturgy (1136 - 1199)
II. HOW IS THE LITURGY CELEBRATED? ⇡
Singing and music ⇡
"The musical tradition of the universal Church is a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art. The main reason for this pre-eminence is that, as a combination of sacred music and words, it forms a necessary or integral part of solemn liturgy."20 The composition and singing of inspired psalms, often accompanied by musical instruments, were already closely linked to the liturgical celebrations of the Old Covenant. The Church continues and develops this tradition: "Address ... one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart." "He who sings prays twice."21
20.
SC 112.
21.
Eph 5:19; St. Augustine, En. in Ps. 72,1:PL 36,914; cf. Col 3:16.
Song and music fulfill their function as signs in a manner all the more significant when they are "more closely connected ... with the liturgical action,"22 according to three principal criteria: beauty expressive of prayer, the unanimous participation of the assembly at the designated moments, and the solemn character of the celebration. In this way they participate in the purpose of the liturgical words and actions: the glory of God and the sanctification of the faithful:23 How I wept, deeply moved by your hymns, songs, and the voices that echoed through your Church! What emotion I experienced in them! Those sounds flowed into my ears distilling the truth in my heart. A feeling of devotion surged within me, and tears streamed down my face — tears that did me good.24
22.
SC 112 § 3.
23.
Cf. SC 112.
24.
St. Augustine, Conf. 9,6,14:PL 32,769-770.
The harmony of signs (song, music, words, and actions) is all the more expressive and fruitful when expressed in the cultural richness of the People of God who celebrate.25 Hence "religious singing by the faithful is to be intelligently fostered so that in devotions and sacred exercises as well as in liturgical services," in conformity with the Church's norms, "the voices of the faithful may be heard." But "the texts intended to be sung must always be in conformity with Catholic doctrine. Indeed they should be drawn chiefly from the Sacred Scripture and from liturgical sources."26
25.
Cf. SC 119.
26.
SC 118; 121.
Holy Thursday: Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper
Not only my feet, but my hands and head as well. (John 13:9)
Science has shown that if you walk barefoot in public places, you risk picking up all sorts of nasty microorganisms: E. coli, tetanus, and many different types of fungi. These germs seem to consider the human foot a very welcoming environment, and they turn our feet into petri dishes!
Can you imagine how dirty people’s feet were during the time of Jesus? The apostles’ feet were probably tougher, more calloused, and just plain uglier than anything most of us have seen. No wonder it was the role of a slave to wash the feet of the wealthy—no one else would want to!
So you can understand Peter’s shock at the sight of Jesus stooping to wash his feet. Through his time with Jesus, he had come to understand that Jesus was the Messiah. Just to share a meal with him was an honor. So why in the world would this holy, wise man take on such a menial task? Jesus had to explain the importance of this gesture patiently before Peter would relent. And even then, he got it mixed up! Jesus had to wash only Peter’s feet because he had already believed. His head and hands were already clean.
The significance of this act of humility is so profound that some have called it the gospel in miniature. Others have likened it to the Eucharist. God so loved the world that he sent his only Son to save us. And he still loves us so much that he bends down at every Mass to teach us, feed us, and refresh us. Both in the Incarnation and at Mass, he sends his only Son as a humble servant—all so that we can be filled with his life and transformed into his image!
On this Holy Thursday, focus on this truth: Jesus loves you so much that he is willing to wash your feet. He cares for you so deeply that he wants to tend to your every need, even to the point of feeding you with his Bread of Life and the cup of his own Blood. How loving and generous is our Savior!
“Lord, thank you for offering me a whole new life with you! Teach me how to love and serve as fully as you have done.”
Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14; Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
JESUS’ HEART IS THE SAME YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND FOREVER [JOHN 13:1-15]
JESUS did not come into our midst demanding honor and homage. Rather, He came in humility, desiring only to reveal the love of God to everyone. Even on the night when He was to be betrayed by one of His own disciples, His greatest concern was that His disciples, His greatest concern was that His disciples be assured of His love. Confident of His care for them, they could love others and share His words with them.
Jesus’ heart is the same yesterday, today, and forever. In love, He invites us all to an intimate supper with Him, where we receive His flesh and blood in the Eucharist. As we partake of this divine food, Jesus comes to us to “wash our feet,” cleansing away the cares and stains of life in this fallen world. He comes to fill us with His love and to empower us to desire the best for our sisters and brothers in Christ.
It is humbling to allow someone to take care of our basic needs, let alone kneel before us and wash our feet. The very idea clashes with the pride we derive from doing everything ourselves, or thinking we have to earn such love. No doubt Peter experienced this as he exclaimed: “You will never wash my feet!” Imagine his surprise when Jesus responded: “If I do not wash you, you have no part in me” (John 13:8).
Jesus knows how deeply we need His love if we are to know the joy of living for Him. He kneels before us now – today – ready to wash us, love us, and fill us. Can we allow Him to do this? By “washing our feet” through the Eucharist, He restores us to the Father. He strengthens us, softens the hardness of our hearts, and heals us. And it is this very love of God that compels us to walk as Jesus did, sharing His love with others in humility and mercy.
Daily Marriage Tip for April 17, 2014:
“As I have done for you, you should also do,” Jesus tells his disciples after washing their feet. (Jn 13:15) A tall order! Talk with your spouse about ways to “wash their feet” – do small, humble acts of service for each other.
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So we are soon to begin the Triduum, this profound reflection on three earth-shaking events which form the pillars of our salvation: Eucharist, Crucifixion, Resurrection. The Readings for the Holy Thursday Mass focus on the continuity between the ancient Jewish Passover and the institution of the Eucharist. As the Passover was the meal that marked the transition from slavery to Egypt to the freedom of the Exodus, so the Eucharist is the meal that marks the transition from slavery to sin to the glorious freedom of the children of God.
1. Our First Reading is from Ex 12:1-8, 11-14:
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,
“This month shall stand at the head of your calendar;
you shall reckon it the first month of the year.
Tell the whole community of Israel:
On the tenth of this month every one of your families
must procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.
If a family is too small for a whole lamb,
it shall join the nearest household in procuring one
and shall share in the lamb
in proportion to the number of persons who partake of it.
The lamb must be a year-old male and without blemish.
You may take it from either the sheep or the goats.
You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month,
and then, with the whole assembly of Israel present,
it shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight.
They shall take some of its blood
and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel
of every house in which they partake of the lamb.
That same night they shall eat its roasted flesh
with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
“This is how you are to eat it:
with your loins girt, sandals on your feet and your staff in hand,
you shall eat like those who are in flight.
It is the Passover of the LORD.
For on this same night I will go through Egypt,
striking down every firstborn of the land, both man and beast,
and executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt—I, the LORD!
But the blood will mark the houses where you are.
Seeing the blood, I will pass over you;
thus, when I strike the land of Egypt,
no destructive blow will come upon you.
“This day shall be a memorial feast for you,
which all your generations shall celebrate
with pilgrimage to the LORD, as a perpetual institution.”
Strangely, ancient Israel had at least two “beginnings” to their year, one in Nisan (the spring) marked by Passover, and one in Tishri (the fall) marked by the Day of Atonement. Thus both beginnings were marked by blood ceremonies symbolizing the redemption of the people. Blood was (among other things) a sign of death. The blood rituals of Passover and Yom Kippur emphasized that “the wages of sin is death” (Rom 6:23). Why? Because the LORD is harsh and cruel? Not at all; in fact, quite to the contrary. The LORD is the source of life and all that is good. To turn away from Him is to turn away from life, which leads to death. Sin is turning away from Him. Therefore, to sin is to turn from life and choose death.
The Passover Lamb had to be perfect: a type of the sinless Son of God, the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Curiously, the original Passover Lamb could be a young goat, but in time the tradition settled on sheep exclusively.
The Lamb had to be eaten by the family within a single house. The one house in which the Lamb was eaten symbolized the unity of the family of God; in time, the Church Fathers would see the house as a type of the Catholic Church. Only that Eucharist (New Passover) was valid which was celebrated within the unity of the “one house,” the universal (i.e. "catholic") Church.
The blood of the lamb—the sign of an atoning death for sin—marked the lintels and doorposts of each house, causing the Angel of Death to “pass over” the houses of the Israelites. But the Angel of death struck “down every firstborn of the land, both man and beast, and executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt.” Was God harsh in his judgment of the nation of Egypt, by striking down their firstborn? In evaluating that issue, we must keep in mind that the Egyptians had originally attempted to eliminate all the males of the Israelites (Ex 1:22). So God in his judgments is more merciful than man in his violence. Furthermore, the phrase “executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt” gives us a theological clue to understand the meaning of the Ten Plagues, of which Passover is the culmination. These plagues were ritual defeats of the Egyptian gods, starting with Hapi, the Nile God (ritually slain and turned to blood in the first plague), continuing with Hekhet, the frog-headed fertility god (mocked by an excessive plague of frog-fertility) and several others, and culminating with three days of “death” for Amon-Re, the sun god (the three days of darkness) and the death of the heir to the throne (during Passover), who was considered divine. In the process of the plagues, God was showing a certain severe mercy to the Egyptians, demonstrating to them that their gods were impotent and powerless before him, not true gods at all. The LORD God of Israel alone was creator and master of all other powers in the cosmos, whether natural or supernatural. The plagues were a sort of “power evangelism” of Egypt and the surrounding nations, which led some Egyptians to place their trust in the true God.
In remembrance of God’s great demonstration of power, Israel was commanded to institute this feast. True religion revolves inevitably around “remembrance”—the calling to mind of the truth about God and what he has done for us in history. Thus Jesus will command us to “do this in remembrance of me.”
2. The Responsorial Psalm is Ps 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18:
R/. (cf. 1 Cor 10:16) Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R/. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
R/. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
R/. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
This Psalm is very rich in symbolism for the Holy Thursday liturgy. First, it is taken from the heart of the Jewish Hallel (“Praise!”), the set of Psalms (Pss 113-118) recited at the Jewish “seder” or Passover meal. At the seder, the Hallel is recited in two parts: first, Pss 113-114, a retrospective on the Exodus; then Pss 115-118, understood as a prospective of the final age of the Messiah.
Psalm 116 is clearly a todah psalm, written to be recited during the performance of the todah (“thanksgiving”) sacrifice. The todah sacrifice (see Lev. 7:11-15), unlike other kinds of offering, was not performed in atonement for sin or in reparation, but in thanks and praise to God for a specific act of deliverance. The todah was a festive occasion, because the sacrificial animal was eaten (rather than burnt up) along with many types of fine bread. The Rabbis classified the Passover as a kind or type of todah sacrifice, since it was offered in thanksgiving for the Exodus, and eaten rather than consumed in flame. Of course, we see great continuity here with the New Passover, the “Eucharist” (from Greek eucharisteo, “to give thanks”).
The todah is referred to in this psalm, when we say, “I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving.” In antiquity, this referred not to a pseudo-sacrifice that consists only in thanking God in song (a common misconception), but a real animal sacrifice offered in gratitude for God’s saving act. Its contemporary analogue is not a non-sacramental “praise and worship” service, but the celebration of the Eucharist itself.
From this Psalm we learn that it was common to offer a wine-libation as part of the todah ritual. This cup of wine, poured out (probably on the altar) in offering to God, is described in v. 13: “The cup of salvation I will take up.” Over this “cup of salvation” Jesus will later speak: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.”
3. Reading 2 1 Cor 11:23-26:
Brothers and sisters:
I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you,
that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over,
took bread, and, after he had given thanks,
broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
In this Liturgy, we actually take the account of the institution of the Eucharist from St. Paul in the Epistle Reading, rather than in the Gospel. St. Paul recalls that the Lord took bread and “gave thanks” (eucharisteo), then offered his body, and gave a command to “do this in remembrance of me.” The term “remembrance” here is full of liturgical connotation, because “remembrance” was a primary function of the liturgy. We recall that the original Passover was also instituted as a remembrance. The Israelites had an entire class of sacrificial offerings categorized as “remembrance” or “memorial” offerings.” Jesus is creating a new kind of “memorial” offering and commissioning his disciples as the priest who will celebrate it.
The Lord speaks over the cup: “this is the new covenant in my blood,” that is, “consisting of my blood.” This phrase draws on many important concepts from the Scriptures of Israel. First, Jesus is indicating a fulfillment of Jeremiah 31:31, the famous prophecy of a coming “new covenant”; indeed, the only passage of the Old Testament that uses the exact phrase “new covenant.” This new covenant consists of Jesus’ blood, which makes sense because a covenant extended kinship (i.e. blood relations) between parties. We who partake are now “blood relatives” of Jesus. And since “the life is in the blood” (Lev 17:11), we now share in the divine life. By giving his body and blood as the “new covenant,” Jesus fulfills Isaiah 42:6 and 49:8, which prophesied that the servant of the LORD would not merely make a covenant but become one. Finally, the “new covenant in my blood” recalls Moses “blood of the covenant” (Exod 24:8) at Mt. Sinai, which formed the twelve tribes into the family of God. Now Jesus renews and transforms that divine covenant, only with the twelve apostles on Mt. Zion.
4. The Gospel is Jn 13:1-15:
Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come
to pass from this world to the Father.
He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.
The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.
So, during supper,
fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power
and that he had come from God and was returning to God,
he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.
He took a towel and tied it around his waist.
Then he poured water into a basin
and began to wash the disciples’ feet
and dry them with the towel around his waist.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him,
“Master, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“What I am doing, you do not understand now,
but you will understand later.”
Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered him,
“Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”
Simon Peter said to him,
“Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.”
Jesus said to him,
“Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,
for he is clean all over;
so you are clean, but not all.”
For he knew who would betray him;
for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
So when he had washed their feet
and put his garments back on and reclined at table again,
he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?
You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet,
you ought to wash one another’s feet.
I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”
Many have noted the irony that, on the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, we read from the one Gospel that does not have an account of the Lord’s Supper or the institution of the Eucharist. John chooses not to tell that story again (you’ve heard it four other places in the New Testament already). Instead, he focuses on the foot washing prior to the Supper.
The foot washing has several levels of symbolism. Jesus disrobing, washing the feet, dressing again, and sitting down once more are a parable of (1) the sequence of his incarnation–life–death–ascension, in which he took off the garments of his visible divinity, became humiliated, and then was clothed once more in glory, and also (2) his passion–death–resurrection, in which he takes of the garment of his humanity, descends to death, and takes up his human “garment” once more, now glorified. The account of the foot-washing is theologically analogous to the great hymn of Phil. 2:5-11.
The foot-washing itself was a humble act of service on Jesus part, and almost everyone perceives the basic message of the act: we also should be willing to humble ourselves in concrete acts of service to others. However, there is also a sacramental level of meaning: priests had to wash their feet and hands before entering the sanctuary to offer sacrifice (Ex 30:19,21). The disciples have washed their hands, but not their feet: Jesus completes a figurative “ordination” for them, for he intends them to be the priests of the new covenant who will celebrate the New Passover sacrifice for God’s people.
Jesus and Peter get into a discussion of “having a part in me.” The Greek term for “part” (meris) is full of priestly connotations: the Levitical priesthood had no “part” (meris) of the promised land, because their sole “part” or “portion” was the LORD himself (Num 18:8). Thus, the disciples are to become like the Levitical priesthood of old: their sole “portion” in this life is Lord. Although this principle does not demand celibacy of the new covenant priesthood per se, we can see how the celibate life of the Latin priesthood is a beautiful expression of the truth that the LORD and he alone is the portion and inheritance of those who take Holy Orders.
It is legitimate to see in Jesus’ expression “he who has bathed” a reference to Baptism, and therefore the “washing of feet” still necessary after one has bathed would indicate a post-Baptismal removal of sin, i.e. the Sacrament of Confession. Thus, “wash one anothers' feet” has several layers of meaning: (1) “perform humble acts of service to one another,” (2) “forgive each other’s sin” in a simple sense (3) “forgive each other’s sin sacramentally,” i.e. hear each other’s confessions.
Thus, this great celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper motivates us to appreciate and value three interlinked sacraments of the Church: Eucharist, Holy Orders, and Reconciliation. A blessed Holy Thursday to everyone.
Detail from "Washing of feet" (1308-11) by Duccio di Buoninsegna
Holy Thursday, Footwashing, and the Institution of the Priesthood | Leroy Huizenga | CWR
Interpreting Scripture for its moral import alone, while common and understandable, can cause us to miss the deeper meaning of Christ's actions
In many Catholic parishes on Holy Thursday, a footwashing ritual is incorporated into Mass. Although optional, most parishes choose to do it, for it is a most powerful symbol in the present day, just as it is a powerful symbol at its Scriptural roots in the thirteenth chapter of the Gospel of John, when Jesus himself washes his disciples’ feet.
But a symbol of what? The most obvious answer is that the footwashing ritual is a symbol of humble service, given the extreme indignity involved in washing feet in the ancient world, a task usually reserved for the lowest slave of the house. Indeed, Jesus’ own explicit words seem to present it as such: “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you” (Jn. 13:14-15).
However, some see the footwashing ritual not as a symbol of service but a symbol of exclusion serving to reinforce patriarchy, for when done according to the Church’s rubrics, only the feet of males are to be washed. The question, then, concerns why the rubrics for the ritual command that viri selecti—“chosen males”—have their feet washed, and not women.
Basis for Holy Orders
The answer is that the footwashing scene in the Gospel of John is not only meant to be an example of humble service, but primarily a record of the institution of the Christian priesthood and thus the Scriptural root of the sacrament of holy orders.
Interpreting Scripture for its moral import is the default approach for most novice readers and many professional interpreters of Scripture, as it’s the easiest way to read the Bible and seems to make the Bible relevant.
I know whom I have chosen
Tuesday, 15 April 2014 19:10
Maundy Thursday
Thursdays are special at Silverstream Priory, first of all because every Thursday recalls Maundy Thursday, the feast of the Natalis Calicis, the birthday of the Eucharistic Chalice and of the Priesthood. Moreover, we keep every Thursday as a kind of Corpus Domini, a weekly feast of the adorable Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ, marked by the Office and Mass of the Most Blessed Sacrament whenever permitted by the rubrics.
Maundy Thursday will draw us again into the Cenacle to relive, in some way, the institution of the priesthood and the washing of the feet. It is the day par excellence of reparation and intercession for priests. After Tenebrae (anticipated Matins of Good Friday) we will linger at the Altar of Repose in communion with all the priests of the world and, especially, for those who find themselves alone in a dark night.
Reading Saint John
One expression of our particular charism as Benedictines of Perpetual Adoration is the lectio divina we make every Thursday in the Gospel of Saint John, Chapters XIII through XVII. These are the chapters containing Our Lord’s discourse at the Last Supper in the Cenacle, culminating in His priestly prayer to the Father. I don’t always read all five chapters every week; I make a beginning and, more often than not, find myself compelled to linger over a particular verse. On Maundy Thursday, however, I am compelled to read the entire discourse and to receive it afresh from the lips and from the Heart of Our Lord.
Chosen in Love
Consider, for a moment, John 13:18: “I know whom I have chosen.” Jesus utters these words in the double context of the washing of the feet and the imminent betrayal by Judas. He knows those who are clean in their relationship to Him, those who, although frail and tempted, love Him; and He knows too that among the men He chose there is one whose heart has become unclean, one who has allowed the Evil One to poison him and lure him into the darkness. Jesus’ complete knowledge of each one of the Apostles — of their past, their present, and their future — did not deter Him from choosing them in love.
Lord, Thou Knowest All Things
When Jesus chose Peter, He saw not only the unfolding of Peter’s personal history: his heredity, his conception, birth, childhood, manhood, marriage, friendships, labours, and strengths. He also saw Peter’s intelligence, his emotions, his dreams, his weaknesses, and his most secret desires. He saw his fears, his limitations, and his temptations. He saw even his sins, culminating in the shameful denial on the night before He suffered: “I know not the man” (Matthew 26:71). He saw too Peter’s repentance in tears and, in advance, heard his threefold act of reparation and of love: “Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee; Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee; Lord, thou knowest all things: thou knowest that I love thee” (John 21:15–17). And, knowing all of these things, Christ Jesus chose him. “I know whom I have chosen” (John 13:8).
An Inscrutable Mystery
Even Jesus’ choice of Judas was made in love; at no point did the will of God deprive Judas of the freedom to respond to the love of Jesus for him with love. Even after his betrayal, Judas could have returned to Jesus and found forgiveness and healing close to His Heart. After the death of Jesus, Judas could have gone to Mary and found in her maternal Heart forgiveness and hope. But he chose to go his own way. One comes here up against an inscrutable mystery: the Providence of God and the free will of man.
Psalm 138
Hearing this word of Jesus, “I know whom I have chosen” (John 13:8), causes one to want to open the Psalter and pray Psalm 138. It is a psalm that I recommend to anyone who is engaged in discerning his vocation:
Lord, thou hast proved me, and known me: Thou hast know my sitting down, and my rising up. Thou hast understood my thoughts afar off: my path and my line thou hast searched out. And thou hast foreseen all my ways: for there is no speech in my tongue. Behold, O Lord, thou hast known all things, the last and those of old: thou hast formed me, and hast laid thy hand upon me.
Thy knowledge is become wonderful to me: it is high, and I cannot reach to it. Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy face? If I ascend into heaven, thou art there: if I descend into hell, thou art present. If I take my wings early in the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea: Even there also shall thy hand lead me: and thy right hand shall hold me.
And I said: Perhaps darkness shall cover me: and night shall be my light in my pleasures. But darkness shall not be dark to thee, and night shall be light as day: the darkness thereof, and the light thereof are alike to thee. For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast protected me from my mother’ s womb. I will praise thee, for thou art fearfully magnified: wonderful are thy works, and my soul knoweth right well. My bone is not hidden from thee, which thou hast made in secret: and my substance in the lower parts of the earth. (Psalm 138:1–16)
The Preferences of God
There is immense comfort in the certainty that God chooses a man and offers him a place in His divine plan, knowing him through and through. Nothing of what we have been or done, nothing of what we are or are doing, nothing of what we will be or will do invalidates the choice of God. His election of each soul reveals His infinite wisdom and infinite mercy.
There are, I know, men who think that, because of things they have done or because of things they may be inclined to do, believe that God could never, would never, choose them for a privileged friendship with Himself or for the service of souls. The annals of holiness through the ages testify to something very different: the preferences of God go towards the men who would, by worldly standards, be excluded, or be judged a poor risk, or otherwise be discounted.
For see your vocation, brethren, that there are not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble: But the foolish things of the world hath God chosen, that he may confound the wise; and the weak things of the world hath God chosen, that he may confound the strong. And the base things of the world, and the things that are contemptible, hath God chosen, and things that are not, that he might bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his sight. But of him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and justice, and sanctification, and redemption. (1 Corinthians 1:26–30)
Listening to Blessed John Henry Newman
These are things that I would invite any man considering a monastic vocation to ponder and hold in his heart. If Jesus has chosen you, it is because He already knows you, and knowing you as you have been, as you are, and as you will be, He loves you still and will never go back on His choice. Blessed John Henry Newman knew this and expressed it in a text to which I often return:
I am created to do something or to be something for which no one else is created; I have a place in God’s counsels, in God’s world, which no one else has; whether I be rich or poor, despised or esteemed by man, God knows me and calls me by my name.
God has created me to do Him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission—I never may know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. Somehow I am necessary for His purposes, as necessary in my place as an Archangel in his—if, indeed, I fail, He can raise another, as He could make the stones children of Abraham. Yet I have a part in this great work; I am a link in a chain, a bond of connexion between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good, I shall do His work; I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it, if I do but keep His commandments and serve Him in my calling.
Therefore I will trust Him. Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away. If I am in sickness, my sickness may serve Him; in perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him; if I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. My sickness, or perplexity, or sorrow may be necessary causes of some great end, which is quite beyond us. He does nothing in vain; He may prolong my life, He may shorten it; He knows what He is about. He may take away my friends, He may throw me among strangers, He {302} may make me feel desolate, make my spirits sink, hide the future from me—still He knows what He is about. (John Henry Cardinal Newman, Meditations on Christian Doctrine)
Nothing of what I see escapes the reach of My mercy
Wednesday, 16 April 2014 09:27
In Passage from this World to the Father
Every priest of Mine is in passage from this world to the Father.
Know this and let it direct the course of your life.
Those who are My own, those whom I leave in the world,
those whom I love and to whom I give the uttermost proof of My Love, are My priests.
It is into their hands that I entrust the mysteries of My Body and Blood for the life of the world.
Never doubt of My love for you, My priests.
You hold the proof, the testimony of My love for you in your hands each day:
My very Self given to you, given for you
and given by your hands to My Bride, the Church.
You who hold Me in your hands, how can you doubt of My love for you?
Let Me wash you, and wash you frequently,
that you may live in My companionship and grow in the gift of My Divine Friendship.
Come to Me that I may wash you
in the Blood and in the Water that ever flow from My open Heart.
Come to the inexhaustible torrent that gushes from My Side.
Come, and other souls will follow you there.
I wait to purify My priests, to heal their wounds,
and to wash away every trace of uncleanness from their souls.
He who remains in the torrent that ever flows from My Heart
will be pure as I am pure,
for such is the power of My Precious Blood.
My Precious Blood is offered to My Father
and given to souls for their refreshment and for their life
in the mystery of the Eucharist.
It is applied most efficaciously to souls in all the sacraments,
but in Eucharistic adoration the soul remains plunged, as it were, in My Blood.
The effects of this, though ordinarily invisible,
are lasting and they are deep.
Seek to remain immersed in the inexhaustible torrent of My Blood
when you approach My Open Heart in the Sacrament of My Love.
I know who are the men I have chosen.
Do you think that there are things hidden from My eyes?
Do you think that there are things I do not see?
I know My priests. I know them through and through.
As deep and searching is My knowledge of them, so too is My Merciful Love.
I see all things, and nothing of what I see escapes the reach of My mercy,
save that which is deliberately withdrawn and wilfully hidden from Me.
Even that I see, and in seeing it, I grieve,
because the desire of My Heart
is to extend My mercy to every weakness,
to take away every shame,
to wash clean every soul defiled by sin.
Submit to My all-seeing grace,
and present to My mercy all that I see in you.
‘Believe Me when I tell you this:
the man who welcomes one whom I send
— My priest — welcomes Me;
and the man who welcomes Me, welcomes him who sent Me.’
Let this be your rule: always present yourself as My priest.
Always and everywhere be My priest.
Thus will you carry My presence and that of My Father
and our blessing, that is, the anointing of the Holy Spirit,
the sweet fragrance of our charity, wheresoever you go.
The priest is the sacrament of My presence.
I do not want this sacrament of Mine to be concealed.
Display your priesthood.
Let your first and only identification be with Me —
and I will bless you in all your goings and comings.
The world needs now more than ever the visible presence of My priests.
The world must know that I have not abandoned My little flock,
nor have I forsaken those who trust in My love.
Be My priest in all circumstances
and I will fill your heart to overflowing
with the sweetness of My own Sacred Heart.
It is the fragrance of this sweetness
that will draw souls to Me through you who are but the vessel containing it,
the vessel by means of which I desire to spread it in every place.
My priests do well to honour the poverty and discipline of the ecclesiastical dress.
It is at once a protection for them and a sign of hope given to the world.
Enough vanity. Enough extravagance.
Be instead pure mirrors of My Holy Face in the world.
(From In Sinu Iesu, The Journal of a Priest
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