Thursday in Holy Week

There is a lot going on today in this  Maundy Thursday Liturgy.   When you look at the whole scope of what we do tonight- we cover an awful lot of ground.   We begin the liturgy by focusing on the Last Supper, the  readings, the prayers focus our attention on the  upper room- Jesus’ last supper- the disciples have gathered to celebrate the Passover or Pesach together.   

This evening we hear from  Gospel writer John--- now unlike Matthew, Luke and Mark, John focuses his attention not on the bread and the wine that Jesus takes and offers, John doesn’t  focus  on what’s  on the menu but rather John focuses  on this new commandment- that Jesus gives-   to  love one another.  The word Maundy- come from “Mandatam” –   (probably just butchered that)  “Mandatam” Latin for mandate.  Jesus is mandating this type of loving service- -  loving service encapsulated in this moment when Jesus bends over and washes the feet of his disciples,  washes the feet of his students. 

In just a few moments we will have the opportunity to have our feet washed. In this act we turn our hearts and our lives back to God – we open ourselves  up to Christ and respond as Peter does by saying to Christ   wash not just my feet, but my hands and my head also.   Wash the whole of me, take up residence in those dark dirty place, help me to know that you’ve accepted me, that you  have redeemed- me, that you wash me clean. 

But the liturgy doesn’t end there, we don’t end with this mandate to love one another, we don’t end with the foot washing, we don’t even end our liturgy as we experience the risen Christ in the Breaking of the bread. 

No- this day is different— we journey further--after the close of Eucharist- we proceed with the solemn stripping of the altar and sanctuary. 

It is as if we are at a going out of business sale- everything must go—everything is cleared out of the sanctuary,  the books the candles,  the Eucharist vessels,  my  vestments will be stripped off--  the reserve bread and wine is consumed- the sanctuary light signifying the presence of Christ in our midst  is snuffed out, the altar is washed clean. 

Here at St. Mark’s we do this in a very sanitized, in very orderly, proper fashion.  But I guess that’s  not how it happens in other places. 

A colleague of mine recently recounted her experiences of a parish in New York City.   As the time for stripping approached she was sitting quietly praying now  ---when all of a sudden out of the corner of her eye she sees the priest take the gospel book and  fling the Gospel book down the center aisle-  like a Frisbee- she sees the rector  tear off his vestments and quickly begin throwing things  about.  Chaos ensues--  As the altar and sanctuary are stripped . Of course if we did this here I would have to have the defibrillator on hand.  

At the conclusion of the service, being the good seminarian, she asks, what the heck was going on.  The rector reminds  her that the stripping that occurs  is symbolic of the stripping and scourging,  symbolic of the mocking- the mocking  the humiliation that Christ encounter before he was crucified.   He reminded  her that this was not done in a neat, orderly, friendly fashion. 

As I prepared for this sermon to speak about his- I decided to read Matthew’s account of Jesus beating- I found myself moved to tears as I read this particular line—they spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. For some reason when I read this on Monday- I couldn’t distance myself from the situation- I couldn’t imagine these moments as if I were watching them on a screen, as some impartial observer. 

Perhaps they are not meant for that- perhaps we are called linger in the Praetorium as the soldiers strip Christ naked, as he is tied to a post as flesh is ripped from his back each time the whip lands on its target- perhaps we are linger in this moment as the soldiers hit him on head again and again and again. 

Today we linger here- we realize that the story is not all happy -clappy,  that the story is not all love one another as I have loved you- we remember   that humanity’s response to God incarnate was to torture, beat,  spit upon him --to twist a crown of thorns and press it down into his scalp.— we remember that humanity’s response to the kingdom of God, coming near was to squash it out-squash it out like a bug under  the heel of our shoe- without thinking otherwise.   

Today and tomorrow reminds of the great sacrifice that Christ went through to draw all of us to God.  May we linger here, may we not look away and may we even recognize that we are in complicit in killing Christ and tearing down the kingdom.   But may we also remember that even in our complicity --Christ  responds  not with vengeance, but by stooping  to wash our feet.  AMEN