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Lent: Foot Washing

The occasion for Jesus’s footwashing was most likely the night of what came to be called “The Last Supper.” As the followers of Jesus gathered in the Upper Room to celebrate the Jewish Passover with a seder (a special traditional dinner combining ritual with informality, hilarity with solemnity), no one had as yet performed the perfunctory duty of washing the feet of the guests.  People had traveled across dusty roads in open-sandal shoes.  Their feet were caked with mud.  Someone, some  servant, was supposed to wash them.

 

That critical night no one was willing to play the role of a servant.  No one really wanted to stoop down to any other person there. Who wanted to play the part of a servant that night?  No one.  Who is supposed to be a  servant? Everyone.  Jesus had said: 

"Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave -- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

(Matt.20:26-28 NIV)

Father James Martin writes:

, "Still, Peter protests: 'You will never wash my feet!'---It's similar to watching a friend doing something that seems humiliating. To give it a contemporary spin, imagine going to a wedding and seeing the bride and groom having to clean up an overturned trash can at their wedding reception, because no one else will. We would say, like Peter, 'Don't do that!'"

Fr. James Martin (Jesus: A Pilgrimage; James Martin, SJ; page 348)

The act of footwashing involves humbling oneself, ditching one’s pride, and stooping to someone else.  The episode concludes with these words:

"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. 'You call me "Teacher" and "Lord" and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.' "

(John 13:12-17 NIV)

I once heard another preacher say that a certain couple was leaving his church because, the wife lamented, “We are not being fed.”  The preacher then shared with us his reaction:  “Too many Christians are looking for bibs when they ought to be looking  for towels!”

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Shine Like the Stars

Available for Pre-Order.  Each of us has been given a gift: our life. Someday we must return it to its rightful owner. We are free to use this gift in any way we choose: to glorify God or to glorify ourself. St. Paul used his to glorify God and, in so doing, found the secret of joy. decided to write a devotional commentary on his letter to the fledgling Christian community in Philippi. They too were discovering the secret of genuine joy. I am hoping that the same faith which dazzled them will do the same for you, and that the same joy which filled their hearts will fill yours. Get ready to shine like stars.

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