RBWords

     When families or other groups of people with "shared memories" gather, it is a time for tell the stories of past gatherings or individuals who have been central figures in the celebration.  The story-tellers may differ in what they emphasize because all the possible meanings are hard to gather into one account!  Holy Thursday is one such occasion.  Supposedly the church gathers to commemorate the Last Supper - the final meal that Jesus celebrated with his apostles.  But one story-teller, Exodus, goes back to how this supper was originally started!  Another story-teller, St. Paul, speaks to what Jesus did in regard to creating the Eucharist as a memorial of his presence in our midst.  The third story-teller, the evangelist John, tells the story of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples and doesn't mention the eucharistic establishment.  The "washing of the feet" has been traditionally called the mandatum or "the command."  In 2005, I had the opportunity to go to Seville, Spain, with a student parishioner who was studying in Madrid at the time, for their unique Holy Week celebration.  On Holy Thursday evening, we attended Mass at a church near our hotel.  The music was glorious and the preaching was eloquent and the procession with the Blessed Sacrament at the end was solemn, but there was NO "mandatum."  Liturgical law makes it "optional" but I felt cheated of an important part of the "remembering."  It appears that the "command" has been turned into a "suggestion!"

     Holy Thursday is an opportunity to bring together all the rich meanings of the Eucharist.  We can see ourselves as part of a vast remembrance dating back thousands of years to the "exodus" event.  We can ask the same question that a Jewish child asks at the Seder Meal, "Why is this night different from all others?" We can receive the consecrated bread and wine just as the disciples did at the Last Supper and know of Jesus' continued "real presence" in our midst.  But we must also remember what he "commanded" on this occasion, too - we must follow his example of loving service.  If we leave that part out as an "option," we are missing something very important and our celebration is incomplete.  It would be like one of those family celebrations I just mentioned where someone forgot to bring one of the foods that is crucial to the memory!   History, food and service are part of a great memory/experience of the Holy Thursday celebration.  We can have it all!  AMEN