Holy Week: Thursday
“Community Unraveled”
It’s Maundy Thursday. This documented day holds a lot of emotion for those with Jesus. A space for the meal, the upper room was prepared for the Passover feast- imagine a table prepared with foods like lamb, olives, unleavened bread, wine, dates, and bitter herbs. These friends from the past few years have come to gather for this sacred meal. Jesus surprises his friends with an unlikely task- he washes their feet (John 13: 4-17). There is a mixture of shock, embarrassment, and uncertainty about why he would humbly take on this task. Jesus showed the extent of his love for those who sat around and would eventually betray, deny, fall asleep, and scatter away from him when the world decided that Jesus was too much.
He reached out to members of his community to accompany him while he prayed. In great distress and sorrow, he asked his trusted friends to remain by him. They slept. He wept. (Matthew 26: 36-46)
He was approached by a member of his community and a crowd that stared evil in the face with a kiss on the cheek. Judas betrayed. Jesus surrendered. (Matthew 26: 47-54)
As predicted, he was denied by Peter because the pressure of standing by Jesus was too great for him. Peter ran free. Jesus stayed captive. (Matthew 26: 69-75)
It’s not uncommon to feel disappointment from members of our community. Someone lets us down or responds to us in a less than loving way. How do you respond in return?
Jesus knew before he even sat down for a final meal with his community that one would deny, that one would betray. Yet, he loved each one as if they were his brother. As you reflect on this day, consider how you show the extent of your love with grace to those who may be hard to love.
Prayer:
“Catch me in my anxious scurrying, Lord,
and hold me in this Lenten season:
hold my feet to the fire of your grace
and make me attentive to my mortality
that I may begin to die now
to those things that keep me
from living with you
and with my neighbors on this earth.” (Guerrillas of Grace– Ted Loder)
