Maundy Thursday - 2009
Tonight begins the first evening of the Easter “Triduum” - the three days in which all of these events central to our tradition occur: the Passover Meal (what we call the Last Supper), the foot washing, the agony in the Garden, the trial and crucifixion. And in this service, we commemorate the first three of those (four if you include Judas’ betrayal) - the final meal that Jesus had with his disciples; the washing of the feet after the meal; and the agony in the garden - the first and last of which we enact in tonight’s liturgy.
Since we won’t do the foot washing at tonight’s service, I always feel compelled to talk a little bit about the it. The foot washing scene takes place before the Last Supper, and in it, Jesus takes off his outer garment, stoops down, and begins to wash Peter’s feet. Peter rebukes Jesus, and Jesus rebukes him back (we’ve seen that before in John’s Gospel). Then Jesus tells Peter that unless he lets him wash his feet, Peter can’t be a disciple. And, by the same token, he tells everyone that you can’t be a disciple unless you do this for other people, as well.
This is one of those years when the Jewish Passover and the Christian Easter overlap, and since I’ve been hearing so much about the Jewish Passover in the news, I got to thinking about this scene in the context of what Jesus and the disciples were thinking about and celebrating that night. I think it helps us understand not only the disciples’ reaction, but also the significance of the gesture itself.
The Passover, as you well know, is the annual Jewish celebration of Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt. “Passover” refers to the night before they left Egypt, when God passed over the Israelites’ homes and spared their first born (whereas he didn’t pass over the Egyptians homes, and thus killed their first born sons). Then, they gathered up all the could carry and left Egypt early the next morning.
Passover means a lot of things in the Jewish tradition that I wouldn’t presume to know or preach about. But as it related to our story for tonight, it’s a celebration of freedom. Which means the disciples that night would have been giving thanks for not having to live in humiliating servitude to others like their ancestors did. And it’s this story that they were telling and enacting when Jesus stooped down to wash the disciples’ feet like a slave.
There’s a painting of this scene - actually, I put it on your bulletins - where the disciples’ discomfort with this gesture really comes through. Some wear scowls; others are so disgusted that they have to turn away. One disciple just casts his eyes downward, as if in embarrassment for Jesus. Peter, whose feet Jesus is washing, appears to be nervously waving him off as if to say “I really wish you wouldn’t do this.”
On a night when they’re supposed to be celebrating their freedom, Jesus shows them that the only way to be truly free is to serve others - not because you have to, of course, like the Israelites of old, but because you want to, and because you understand that a meaningful life is found in choosing to stoop down to serve others.
There are plenty of people in this world in need of our care. So let’s not turn away from their needs but, following Jesus’ example in this story, kneel down, and serve.
