Maundy is an Old English word derived from the Latin mandatum meaning “commandment.” Jesus commanded his friends to love one another, no matter the circumstances, whether together or apart. Today (or tonight) we commemorate one gathering and two rituals. The first, foot-washing, we will mark by taking time during the service to wash our hands. Next, we remember the Last Supper, and we encourage you to break bread and lift a beverage—juice or wine—as you join this meal. Those joining by Zoom (at 7 pm) will share in the same service as this one. Thanks to Cor, Dave, and Heather!
PRELUDE: “I Love to Tell the Story”
CALL TO WORSHIP:
Saving God,
power of loving service in the world,
we thank you for Jesus,
who on the night he was betrayed,
gave himself to his friends
in humble service, and in bread and wine.
Mysterious God,
tonight we worship in your time,
we do not reenact the Last Supper:
we join the meal, we find our place,
and we gather at Christ’s own table,
by his side, now and ever.
OPENING PRAYER AND SUNG RESPONSE:
Holy God,
we come to worship in the gathering shadows
of Jesus’ suffering and death.
We gather with a cloud of witnesses,
to experience love in action:
service and sacrifice,
commemoration and grace.
Stand with us as we remember,
and encourage us, as mark this day.
Amen.
Christ, let us come with you
to the upper room where the feast is laid,
to the bread and wine where our peace is made:
Christ, let us come with you!
FIRST READING: John 13.1-5, 12-17
It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
2 The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
REFLECTION
A sacrament is a visible sign of invisible grace. And one, according to St. Augustine, that was given to the church by Jesus Christ. Jesus commended baptism, dying and rising with him, and marked as his forever. Jesus presided at table—the first table—and said “do this in remembrance of me.” Every time you bread bread, and every time you lift you cup, I remain with you. We have two sacraments, two outward signs of an inward grace.
And then there is the other. Instituted by Jesus Christ, commended to the church, reenacted year by year on this night, yet foot-washing is not a sacrament. At least not officially. And what might be the reasons for this? For one, it’s an annual ritual, given to one night of our life together. Two, it’s a bit fraught. The one who washes feet has assumed the role of Jesus, something that most of us are reluctant to do. Finally, it’s messy—literally in some cases—and bit uncomfortable.
Yet the sacramental aspect of this ritual is clear: every time we serve others, every time we care for others in Christ’s name, every time we humble ourselves before others—we are making visible God’s invisible grace. Any time you help someone, particularly if it’s messy or uncomfortable, you are sharing a sacrament, and God’s unconditional love. Amen.
MUSIC: “In the Garden”
HANDWASHING
SUNG RESPONSE:
Teach us your serving love:
to become as friends, to become as one
that the world believe what your life has done:
teach us your serving love.
THE LAST SUPPER/GREAT THANKSGIVING
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right that we should praise you,
gracious God, for you created all things.
You formed us in your own image:
male and female you created us.
When we turned away from you in sin,
you did not cease to care for us,
but opened a path of salvation for all people.
You made a covenant with Israel,
and through your servants Abraham and Sarah
gave the promise of a blessing to all nations.
Through Moses you led your people
from bondage into freedom;
through the prophets you renewed
your promise of salvation.
Therefore, with them, and with all your saints
who have served you in every age,
we give you thanks and raise our voices
to proclaim the glory of your name.
Holy, Holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
Holy God, source of life and goodness,
all creation rightly gives you praise.
In the fullness of time,
you sent your child Jesus Christ,
to share our human nature,
to live and die as one of us,
to reconcile us to you,
the Mother and Father of us all.
He healed the sick
and ate and drank with outcasts and sinners;
he opened the eyes of the blind
and proclaimed the Good News of your kingdom
to the poor and to those in need.
In all things he fulfilled your gracious will.
On the night he was betrayed
our Lord Jesus Christ took bread;
and after giving thanks to you,
broke it, and gave it to his disciples.
And said, “Take, eat:
this is my body which is given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.”
After supper he took the cup of wine;
and after giving thanks,
gave it to them, and said,
“Drink this, all of you:
this is my blood of the new covenant,
which is shed for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Whenever you drink it,
do this for the remembrance of me.”
Gracious God,
by the death of your beloved one
you have destroyed the power of death,
and by raising him to life
you have given us life for evermore.
Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.
Recalling his death,
proclaiming his resurrection,
and looking for his coming again in glory,
we offer you, O God, this bread and this cup.
Send your Holy Spirit upon us
and upon these gifts,
that all who eat and drink at this table
may be one body, one holy people,
a living sacrifice in Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Through Christ, with Christ, and in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory is yours, God most holy,
now and forever.
THE LORD’S PRAYER:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us
our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against
us; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from
evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the
glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
SHARING THE BREAD AND WINE
Partake or share the elements.
SUNG RESPONSE:
Christ of the open hands,
you have brought us close to be loved and fed,
you have touched our life, now you walk ahead:
Christ, let us come with you!
SECOND READING: Psalm 116
I love you, God, because you heard my voice
when I made supplication,
because you turned your ear to me,
when I called upon your name.
The cords of death entangled me,
and the pangs of the Grave laid hold on me;
I suffered distress and anguish.
Then I called upon the name of God:
‘O God, I pray, save my life.’
How can I repay you, God,
for all the good things you have done for me?
I will take up the cup of salvation,
and call upon the name of God.
I will pay my vows
in the presence of all God’s people. Amen.
BLESSING
Even as we turn away, Lord,
you cannot turn away.
Even in the face of denial and betrayal,
you never turn away.
Even in death, death on the cross,
you will never turn away.
To you be the glory, Lord,
now and ever, Amen.
