The first recorded words for the consecration at Mass are
the words we heard tonight in the second reading. St Paul’s 1st
letter to the Corinthians was written 10 years before the 1st Gospel
was written. Note that within the text of the reading, St Paul repeats the
words, “do this in remembrance of me.”
If we read the entirety of this passage, we find St Paul
angrily pointing out to the Corinthians that they were not “doing this in
remembrance of me.” The factions that had developed within the community, the
opposition that that had created, the fact that the rich of the community were
neglecting the poor of the community, all of these things within the community
were contrary to the teaching and life of Jesus. Instead of eating and drinking
their salvation when they received Holy Communion, they were instead eating and
drinking their own damnation. St Paul tells them that they are as guilty of
murdering Jesus as were the Romans and Jewish Religious authorities when they
condemned Jesus to death.
In his commentary on these words from 1st
Corinthians, the scripture scholar, Fr
Jerome Murphy-O’Connor once wrote that it was the self-sacrificing love of
Jesus that transformed the bread and the wine at the Last Supper into his body
and blood. It is only by his disciples continuing to give of themselves out of
love to others that the transformative power of the body and blood of Christ
can continue to happen in the world. “It was love that gave substance to the
words of Jesus at the Last Supper, and only love can continue to give substance
to those words.” As disciples of Jesus, we must love as Jesus loved until it is
no longer necessary when Jesus comes the second time in glory.
We symbolically recreate the self-giving love of Jesus by
washing feet on Holy Thursday. However, the washing of feet is not just
something that is reserved just for this special Mass once a year. The washing
of feet must be something occurring within our lives every day and everywhere
if we take the words of Jesus, “Do this in remembrance of me,” seriously. It is
not the ceremonial washing we do on this night that we merely remember, but it
is in living lives of self-giving love to others in which we continue to wash
the feet of those around us. If we as disciples of Jesus do not take Jesus
seriously at his word, then all the words we say and pray are just a bunch of
meaningless mumbo jumbo.
Over my past 38 years in church ministry, I have had the
great honor and privilege to celebrate Mass 3 or 4 times every weekend. At
every Mass, there is a special time called the “epiclesis”, when the priest
holds his hands over the bread and the wine and calls upon the Holy Spirit to
transform the bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus. The priest then
repeats the words of consecration we heard in the 2nd reading
tonight. What do I see during that very special time at Mass, when I assist the
priest at Mass as a deacon? I see the acts of self-giving love I have witnessed
over the years.
I see my grandma feeding a hot meal to the hobos who came to
the back porch of her house in the hills of Pennsylvania.
I see Bob Conlin, my sister Mary’s greatest love, coming to
St. Joseph’s Hospital in the middle of the night, in order to relieve my very
exhausted parents so they could go home and get some rest. Bob would then sit
in vigil next to my sister’s hospital bed throughout the rest of the night. He
did this many times during her 20 years of chronic illness. When Mary died, he
was there with us, and she died in his arms.
I see my mom, substitute teaching for my 3rd
grade teacher, who had to remain in bed during the last 6 months of her
pregnancy. When Msgr Doherty tried to give my mom money for filling in
full-time as a teacher, she refused to take the money because she did it out of
love for the parish and for my 3rd grade teacher. The only difficulty I had with my mom
teaching my class was whether to address her as Mrs. Wagner or mom.
I see Blanche Schutrop, the grandma of “old St. Hubert” in
Chanhassen, tutoring every afternoon those students that many of the teachers
had given up on. At Blanche’s wake, one of those students came to pay her
tribute and told me that she had just graduated with a Doctorate degree from
Princeton University.
I see my son, Andy, in high school, looking after his younger brother Luke,
ready to stuff into a locker anybody that gave Luke a bad time.
I see Joey Nytes coming over to cut the hair of my very
reluctant 5 year old daughter, Meg, and while he was struggling with that task,
my 2 year old daughter Beth falling down a flight of stairs into a crumpled
heap at the bottom. As Ruthie picked up Beth and rushed her to the Emergency
Room, Joey got on his hands and knees alongside me to help clean up the blood.
I don’t know which was more traumatic for Joey, cutting Meg’s hair or cleaning
up Beth’s blood.
I see a homeless man come into St. Stephen’s during the 4 pm
Christmas Eve Mass, sit down in the front pew and weep throughout the Mass. Two
men from the parish moved to sit down next to him. One comforted the man, who
wept on his shoulder, while the other man began to search for a place for the
man to stay that night. The two men canceled their Christmas Eve plans in order
to find the man food and shelter.
I see my wife, Ruthie, who has sacrificed sleep over the
past 30 years by working full-time nights as a nurse. It was the only way one
of us could always be at home for the kids.
We hear Jesus say on this holy night, “This
is my commandment: love one another as I love you.” “No one has greater
love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” “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,” “Do
this in remembrance of me.”
It was love that gave substance to the words of Jesus at the
Last Supper, and only love can continue to give substance to those words.”
No comments:
Post a Comment