Day 38 - Maundy Thursday

I've seen on calendars and heard this day called "Maundy Thursday" but never really knew what "Maundy" was. So, tonight, I looked it up on Wikipedia:

The word Maundy is derived through Middle English, and Old French mandé, from the Latin mandatum, the first word of the phrase "Mandatum novum do vobis ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos" ("A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you"), the statement by Jesus in the Gospel of John (13:34) by which Jesus explained to the Apostles the significance of his action of washing their feet.

Not only does this day mark the washing of the disciples' feet by Jesus, it also marks the Last Supper. Jesus shared one final meal with his closest followers and thus began one of the most sacred of all practices - the Eucharist. This sacrament is central to many faith traditions and has been celebrated by millions of Christ followers through the generations. "Do this in remembrance of me," Jesus said.

And so tonight, I remember that last night spent in community with his friends. I remember his demonstration of servanthood. I remember his command to love each other. I remember his betrayal. I remember his painful cries to his Father from the garden. I remember his arrest. I remember Peter denying him. And I begin to think about the unthinkable - the agonizing pain awaiting him the next day and the unbelievable love awaiting us forever.

Nouwen writes this in today's reading from Show Me the Way:

Jesus calls us to continue his mission of revealing the perfect love of God in this world. He calls us to total self-giving. He does not want us to keep anything for ourselves. Rather, he wants our love to be as full, as radical, and as complete as his own. He wants us to bend ourselves to the ground and touch the places in each other that most need washing. He also wants us to say to each other, "Eat of me and drink of me." By this complete mutual nurturing, he wants us to become one body and one spirit, united by the love of God.

United in one body and one spirit by the love of God...