This evening, we begin our three-day liturgy which marks the holiest days of the liturgical year. The Sacred Paschal Triduum begins at sundown on Holy Thursday with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper and concludes with sundown on Easter Sunday, with its highpoint the celebration of the Easter Vigil on Saturday.
This evening’s Mass is glorious celebration of two great gifts Christ has given to his Church: the the Eucharist and Holy Orders. The priesthood that Christ proclaims is rooted in humble service, commanding us to love others through service. As he approaches his death on the cross, he finds ways to personally stay close to us.
The institution of the Eucharist is recalled in St Paul’s Letter to the Corinthians, as Paul writes about the night Jesus was handed over. At that Last Supper, the simple Passover meal Jesus shares with his disciples is transformed as he establishes a new and everlasting covenant with all people. Christ knew that the hour of his death was near, that he would soon depart the earth in human form, so he instituted the Eucharist so that he would remain in sacramental form with us. Christ command us: “Do this in remembrance of me”.
Christ’s holy Church has never failed to heed this command. We must be ready every day to celebrate the feast of Jesus’ love for us in the Eucharist and, in the strength of the Eucharist, to continue our own pilgrimage journey as servants of the people of God and of the whole world. At the end of the liturgy, the consecrated hosts will be taken out of the tabernacle as we prepare for the liturgy of Good Friday.
While Matthew, Mark, and Luke provide a description of the institution of the Eucharist at the last supper, John’s Gospel describes Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. Jesus uses this act of service to teach his disciples the importance of serving each other in simplicity and humility. As Christ does for us, we are to do for others.
The priest of the Church see out priesthood as rooted in the Last Supper, as we lead the Eucharistic prayer with you each time we celebrate Mass and as we remember this event. I as a priest will enact the washing of the feet. Just as Jesus humbly knelt before his disciples, so I as the priest will kneel before all of you at Mass tonight.
As we start the Triduum of liturgies this evening, we as the people of God participate in the summit of our liturgical year. May we give thanks this evening for the gift of the Eucharist and the gift of these sacred mysteries of our faith.
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