Month: April 2023

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Gospel: John 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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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This was not the first time feet were washed in the Gospels.

Luke tells us that a “sinful woman” washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and dried them with her hair because he forgave her many sins. 

Later, while dining in Lazarus’ home just days before his death, Mary of Magdala pours costly perfume over the feet of Jesus to thank him for raising her brother from the dead.

Jesus wanted his disciples to experience that same type of love. So, he knelt down and washed their feet, giving all of us an example to follow.

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Feet are the movers of the body. They take us where we want to go – and prevent us from going where we don’t.

Tonight, I will wash the feet of several parishioners who, like the women in the Gospels, have been of loving service to the LORD and his Church.

They represent so many of us – those who work in our soup kitchen; those who deliver that food to the hungry in Newark.

Those who bring communion to the sick and the homebound; those who prepare and serve meals for our seniors in the narthex, or receptions after Mass.

Those whose feet will be washed represent all who stand in our choir, singing glory to God; our catechists who teach our young people our Catholic faith.

New and growing ministries like Welcome and Hospitality, ALPHA, SPX Playtime, as well as tried and true ministries like the Knights of Columbus.

They represent all of us who stand, sit, and kneel here week after week; and all who stand in solidarity with the poor, the hungry, the unwanted, and the oppressed.

They are us.

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As their feet are being washed, perhaps we should consider, what type of footprint have we left on others and on this parish?

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Think about the virtual print we leave through phone calls, text messages, prayers, and words of affirmation.

Or the many places our feet have taken us in person. 

Tonight, the LORD kneels down to wash them – to thank us for our service and to renew us in his love.

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There’s also a second, more spiritual dimension to the washing of feet.

On the surface, washing a guest’s feet was a practical thing to do. Their feet would naturally collect mud or dust while journeying from one home to another.

But, on a deeper level, it is also a sign of welcome into a person’s home – and by extension, into a person’s heart. 

By washing Peter’s feet, Jesus welcomes him into the Church, into the priesthood, and into the depths of his heart.

In baptism, we are all welcomed by the LORD into the Church. But Jesus washes our feet again this night to remind us that we are always welcome here in his home, the Church, and we are welcome, as ever, into his heart. 

How do I feel desired – or welcomed – by Jesus? And how do I give or receive his love in this parish?

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Feet are the movers of the body. They take us where we want to go, which is why we’re here this night.

As the LORD kneels down and washes our feet, may we all experience the love, the welcome, and the purity of heart that only Jesus can give.

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Image credits: (1) Soul Spartan (2) Ford Madox Brown, Washing of the Feet (3) iStock

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Gospel: Matthew 26: 14-25

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot,
went to the chief priests and said,
“What are you willing to give me
if I hand him over to you?”
They paid him thirty pieces of silver,
and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
the disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Where do you want us to prepare
for you to eat the Passover?”
He said,
“Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,
‘The teacher says, “My appointed time draws near;
in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.””‘
The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered,
and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening,
he reclined at table with the Twelve.
And while they were eating, he said,
“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
Deeply distressed at this,
they began to say to him one after another,
“Surely it is not I, Lord?”
He said in reply,
“He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me
is the one who will betray me.
The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him,
but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed.
It would be better for that man if he had never been born.”
Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply,
“Surely it is not I, Rabbi?”
He answered, “You have said so.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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I’m fascinated by Christ.

Though he knows all things – he knows that Judas wants to betray him – he doesn’t give up on him. Before Judas abandons the Lord, and the community that he’s been a part of for the last three years, Jesus sends him warning signs.

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The night begins with Jesus on his knees with a towel wrapped around his waist. He leans down and washes his disciples’ feet, bathing them in love, including Judas’ feet. 

Then Jesus subtly warns Judas against carrying out this horrible deed, saying things like, “Not all of you are clean.” And, “One of you will betray me,” as if the Lord is trying to prick his conscience without singling him out in front of the others.

Then he feeds Judas – a sign of hospitality – handing him a morsel of bread, which Catholics also believe was Jesus’ very own Body. 

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Jesus washes Judas’ feet; he warns him; and he feeds him with his very Self. He invites Judas to change his plans, but Jesus will not take away his freedom. 

I can only imagine the heartbreak our Good Shepherd felt as he watched Judas flee into the night.

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How often does the Lord try to lead us away from temptation and sin, into a life of trust, instead?

He pricks our conscience, gives us his Word, feeds us with his very own Body, places holy desires in our heart, and sends us friends along the way.

Do we always listen to his voice?

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“I am the Good Shepherd,” Jesus says. “I know my sheep and they know me. They listen to my voice and follow me.”

What might that look like for us today?

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Image credits: (1) Jesus Campaign, CBN.com (2) Ford Madox Brown, 1856 Public Domain (3) Our Daily Bread

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Gospel: John 13: 21-38

Reclining at table with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified,
“Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
The disciples looked at one another, at a loss as to whom he meant.
One of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved,
was reclining at Jesus’ side.
So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out whom he meant.
He leaned back against Jesus’ chest and said to him,
“Master, who is it?”
Jesus answered,
“It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it.”
So he dipped the morsel and took it and handed it to Judas,
son of Simon the Iscariot.
After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him.
So Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”
Now none of those reclining at table realized why he said this to him.
Some thought that since Judas kept the money bag, Jesus had told him,
“Buy what we need for the feast,”
or to give something to the poor.
So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night.

When he had left, Jesus said,
“Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself,
and he will glorify him at once.
My children, I will be with you only a little while longer.
You will look for me, and as I told the Jews,
‘Where I go you cannot come,’ so now I say it to you.”

Simon Peter said to him, “Master, where are you going?”
Jesus answered him,
“Where I am going, you cannot follow me now,
though you will follow later.”
Peter said to him,
“Master, why can I not follow you now? 
I will lay down my life for you.”
Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me?
Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow
before you deny me three times.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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During Jesus’ final night on earth, he gathers his friends together for a meal, known as the Last Supper.

I often pray before an icon of that moment, reminding myself that I am – and maybe we all are – capable of being like any one of the disciples gathered around Jesus that night. 

It’s a dynamic group. 

There is John, the ever-faithful disciple who leans tenderly on the heart of Christ. Perhaps that describes some of us, or at least periods in our life – consistently devout; our hearts are dedicated entirely to God.

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Then there’s Peter. Peter sways in his devotion like a branch in the wind. One moment he’s ready to die for the Lord, but the next he denies ever knowing him. 

Peter wants to be faithful. But sometimes fear and temptation get the best of him.

Maybe, at times, we’re Peter. We want to be faithful to the Lord. But fear or temptation can get in the way.

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Then there’s Judas, who betrays Jesus, handing him over for 30 lousy pieces of silver. 

We can only speculate as to why Judas did this. Was he disappointed in Jesus? Greedy? Or angry that his own dreams of glory were smashed? 

We don’t know. But we do know that such feelings – greed, anger, and disappointment – can surface in any human heart, certainly when things don’t go our way, or when we pray for something and the answer is, “No.”

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There they are: three men sitting at the same table with Jesus.

One was faithful. Another stumbled. The third gave up. 

Yet, the Lord “loved them to the end,” and died for them all, just as he died for us.

How might we show our gratitude for Jesus, or demonstrate our faith in him, today?

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Image credits: (1) Mystical Supper, Ancient Faith Store (2) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Last Supper (3) The Sacrament of the Last Supper, Salvador Dali