Holy Thursday evening Mass
Introduction: On Holy Thursday we celebrate three anniversaries: 1) the
anniversary of the first Holy Mass, 2) the anniversary of the institution of
ministerial priesthood, in order to perpetuate the Holy Mass, to convey God’s
forgiveness to repentant sinners and to preach the Good News of salvation, 3)
the anniversary of Jesus’ promulgation of His new commandment of love: “Love
one another as I have loved you” (Jn 13:34). Today we remember how Jesus
transformed the Jewish Passover into the New Testament Passover. The Jewish
Passover was, in fact, a joint celebration of two ancient thanksgiving
celebrations. The descendants of Abel, who were shepherds, used to lead their
sheep from the winter pastures to the summer pastures after the
sacrificial offering of a lamb to God. They called this celebration the “Pass
over.” On the other hand, the descendants of Cain, who were farmers,
held a harvest festival called the Massoth in which they offered unleavened
bread to God as an act of thanksgiving. The Passover feast of the Israelites
(Exodus 12:26-37) was a harmonious combination of these two ancient feasts of
thanksgiving, commanded by the Lord God and celebrated yearly by all
Israelites, to thank God for the miraculous liberation of their ancestors from Egypt
and their exodus to the Promised Land.
Scripture lessons: In the first reading, God gives the Hebrews two instructions:
prepare for the moment of liberation by a ritual meal and make a symbolic mark
on your homes to exempt yourselves from the coming slaughter. In the second
reading, Paul suggests that the celebration of the Lord’s Supper was an
unbroken tradition from the very beginning of the Church by which Christians
reminded themselves of the death and Resurrection of Jesus. Today’s Gospel
describes how Jesus transformed the Jewish Passover into the Eucharistic
celebration. After washing the feet of his apostles and commanding them to do
humble service for each other, Jesus concluded the ceremony by giving his
apostles his own Body and Blood under the appearances of bread and wine as
spiritual food and drink, in addition to serving the roasted Paschal lamb.
Life Messages: 1) A challenge for humble service. Our celebration of the
Eucharist requires that we wash one another’s feet, i.e., serve one another, and
revere Christ’s presence in other persons. In practical terms, that means we are
to consider their needs to be as important as our own and to serve their needs,
without expecting any reward. 2) A loving invitation for sacrificial sharing and self-
giving love. Let us imitate the self-giving model of Jesus who shares with us His
own Body and Blood and who enriches us with His Real Presence in the Holy
Eucharist. It is by sharing our blessings – our talents, time, health and wealth –
with others that we become true disciples of Christ and obey his new
commandment: “Love one another as I have loved you.” 3) An invitation to
become Christ-bearers and Christ-conveyers: “Go forth, the Mass is ended,”
really means, “Go in peace to love and serve one another.’’ We are to carry
Jesus to our homes and places of work, conveying to others around us the love,
mercy, forgiveness and spirit of humble service of Christ Whom we carry with us.
2
HOLY THURSDAY-(March 24): EVENING MASS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
(Ex 12:1-8, 11-14; 1 Cor 11:23-26; Jn 13:1-15) [Chrism Mass: Is 61:1-3a; 6a, 8b-9; Rv 1:5-8;
Lk 4:16-21]
Anecdote: # 1 The Stole and the Towel is the title of a book, which sums up
the message of the Italian bishop, Tony Bello, who died of cancer at the age of
58. On Maundy Thursday of 1993, while on his deathbed, he dictated a pastoral
letter to the priests of his diocese. He called upon them to be bound by “the stole
and the towel.” The stole symbolizes union with Christ in the Eucharist, and the
towel symbolizes union with humanity by service. The priest is called upon to be
united with the Lord in the Eucharist and with the people as their servant. Today
we celebrate the institution of both the Eucharist and the priesthood: the feast of
“the stole and the towel,” the feast of love and service.
# 2 “Jesus Christ gave a lasting memorial”: One of his Catholic disciples asked
the controversial god-man Osho Rajneesh about the difference between Buddha
the founder of Buddhism and Jesus Christ. He told a story to distinguish
between Buddha and Christ. When Buddha was on his deathbed, his disciple
Anand asked him for a memorial and Buddha gave him a Jasmine flower.
However, as the flower dried up, the memory of Buddha also dwindled. But
Jesus Christ instituted a lasting memorial without anybody’s asking for it by
offering his Body and Blood under the appearances of bread and wine and
commanding his disciples to share his Divinity by repeating the ceremony. So
Jesus continues to live in his followers while Buddha lives only in history books.
On Holy Thursday we are reflecting on the importance of the institution of the
Holy Eucharist and the ministerial priesthood. [Osho Rajneesh claimed himself to
be another incarnation of God who attained “enlightenment” at 29 when he was a
professor of Hindu philosophy in Jabalpur University in India. He had thousands
of followers for his controversial “liberation through sex theology,” based on
Hindu, Buddhist and Christian theology.]