The Gospel passage this morning is a continuation of the passage proclaimed at the Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday: these were the words Jesus spoke immediately after washing his disciples’ feet.
Our Easter Faith calls us to follow the Lord’s own example of humility and service.
“As I have done for you, you should also do” Washing the feet of the dinner guests, Jesus, did the job of a lowly servant, doing the dirtiest job there was at a supper. Imagine a CEO at a corporation going to each of their employee’s offices and emptying the garbage and scrubbing the bathrooms. The kids in the school often giggle when I tell them that we need to wash each other’s feet, just as Jesus did. This means doing the jobs for each other that no one wants to do, we need to go out of our way to humbly serve those in need.
One of the spiritual diseases of our modern day is that attitude of entitlement, acting as if others need to bow down and wash my feet because I’m so great. Rather, the opposite is true, the medicine we need is to consider ourselves the slaves and servants of others.
Every time our egos start to inflate, we do well to remember that the King of Kings and Lord of Lords took the humblest job, the dirtiest job, and so should we.
There is no act of service that any of us is too good for. There is no act of service that is beneath us as Christians because Our God has taken the lowliest position. Just in case any of us his apostles missed this point, Jesus referred to Himself as “I AM” at the Last Supper, as we heard today.’
As we come forward to receive Holy Communion today, we also accept the responsibility it entails, that of becoming humble servants: to be a footwasher today. Through humble service we witness to the power of Christ’s love to transform lives and to make us worthy of the kingdom of heaven, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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We raise our prayers of petition to the throne of heaven:
For a genuine spirit of humble service among Christians.
For an increase in vocations to the priesthood and consecrated religious life.
For the poor, the hungry, the lonely.
For caregivers and all who comfort the sick.
For people in need of healing.
For our dead.
For our own needs, which we remember now in silence…
Heavenly, we praise and thank you for your goodness. Help us in our needs and hear our prayers, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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