Homily
Mass of the Last Super Year ABC: Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo
·
Exod
12:1-8, 11-14;
·
Ps
116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18;
·
1
Cor 11:23-26
·
John
13:1-15
A
New Way of Love Offered Us By Christ!
[On
Tuesday evening here in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, the Bishops, clergy,
religious and the entire faithful gathered around the Archbishop at the
Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist to celebrate the Chrism Mass (which is
also celebrated in dioceses all over the world). That evening liturgy was an
expression of our faith in Christ, the High Priest, the unity of the Sacred
Priesthood and appreciation of Christ’s, messianic one redeeming Sacrifice of
Love. Oils of Catechumens, the Sick and of the Chrism were blessed. These
are the Oils that the Holy Father, Pope Francis during his Chrism Mass in Rome
has encouraged every priests to go out and anoint the faithful with, especially
the sick, the poor and the needy!]
Tonight we begin the Sacred Triduum, three solemn days which encompass the Paschal Mystery of Jesus Christ and draw each and every one of us into remembering the passion, death and resurrection of the messiah. You and I know the power of memory, remembrance! Remembering is so powerful. It revitalizes, reactivates and keeps past reality alive in us. Holy Thursday recalls three gifts: the gifts of the Lord’s Super/the Holy Eucharist, the gift of the Sacred Priesthood and the gift of Christ redeeming love. This love is stronger than death, stronger than the fear of the fleeing disciples, stronger than the untruthfulness of the power mongering Pilate and of the few “Jewish elites”; a love stronger than the betrayal of Judas, the denials of Peter, the mockeries of the Roman soldiers and the human selfishness. Christ, the High priest loves his own to the end- all of us, our pastor, our priests, deacons, sisters, mom, dad, our children, friends, grandpa and grandma (Jn 13:1). Where ever you are located here in this Church tonight or standing out there in the narthex, know that Christ loves you! And nothing as St. Paul has said in Romans 8:35 will ever separate us from this love of God.
The
Eucharist of which institution we reenact today is a banquet of love, gratitude
and service. It provides us a particular opportunity to remember not only how
much God loves and would want to “wash our feet” but His ever living presence
in our lives, in our homes, families, religious and worship communities. This
love teaches us to cultivate a sense of gratitude.
I
remember growing up in a family of six children surrounded with many nieces and
nephews. We ate together and served one another from the same plates and drink
from the same cup. In sharing and serving I would feel the deep love, the
friendship, the nourishment, the strength and the support of my family and a
sense of gratitude to my parents. We would laugh, joke and talk with trust
about life events and experiences, and some of them very important.
I
want to believe that when Christ gathered his disciple in that upper room for
that Last Super, a night before his passion he knew the importance of a shared
meal, a meal of love and sacrifice; a meal that nourishes and strengthen us in
our weaknesses. He wanted this sacred meal, this new Passover, and update of
the story we heard in Exodus 12, the first reading, to be remembered. In the Gospels Christ insists “Do this in
memory of me” (Mk14:22ff; Matt 26:26ff, Lk 22:19ff and John 13:1-15),
instituting also the Ministerial Priesthood.
It
is in light of this that Paul vested in Jewish Scriptures, the Exodus Passover story, and in
the teachings of Christ, the Messiah, writes passionately and convincingly in the
second reading, saying to the Corinthians and to us today:
“ I
received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus, on
the night he was handed over, took break, and after he had given thanks, broke
it and said, “this is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
With the cup Christ said, “this is cup is the new Covenant in my blood, do this
as often as you drink it in remembrance of me (1 Cor 11:23-26).”
The Jesus of Paul, who’s Good News he preached to the Jews and Gentiles, will
always remain really and substantially present with us in the Holy Eucharist
despite the events tomorrow’s Good Friday.
After this meal tonight Jesus would walk
across to that garden of Gethsemane (in the daily chapel) from there he would
be arrested, harshly interrogated by Annas, Caiaphas and brought to Pilates’
Praetorium for trial. Jesus as John will testify will be killed on the
cross sacrificially at the same hour the paschal lamb of the Jewish Passover is
slaughtered in today’s first reading, (Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14), making Christ, in
this new dispensation, the new Passover Lamb, the cup of the new Covenant of New Love and of New unwavering service ( Rom 8:1-39).
Unwavering
love. On the Cross his bones will not be broken and his priestly inner -
seamless tunic will not be torn nor shared among soldiers. In this Jesus is
unwaveringly protective of each and every one of us, our Christian marriages
and religious vows, family values, Christian unity (“May they be one” Jn 17),
our priesthood, friendship and faith. He also knew the journey to that cross
would be rough, but his priestly dignity would remain unwaveringly intact, a
challenging and teaching message for priesthood today, in need of prayers to
reach out particularly to the margins, to the peripheries as recommended by
Pope Francis.
Off
course, the Holy Father’s continuous invitation of the Church to reach out to
the forgotten, to the poor, to those in prison, to those with dirty feet, “colorful
skin” on the streets, is not far from the heart of today’s Gospel and ritual of
Jesus washing the feet of his disciples (John 13:1-15).
By washing his disciple’s feet, our Messiah,
Jesus shows the world the depth of his love, a love leading to the cross; a suffering
love! He teaches the hesitant Peter and all of us new way of sacrificial Love,
a new way of service, friendship and forgiveness. Not a new way of “eye service.” He teaches us
a new way of self-transcendence not a new way of self- aggrandizement. He
teaches us a new way to serve not a new way to be served.
By
washing his disciples feet Jesus overcome by love the inequality that existed
by nature between himself and those whom he had chosen as friends. I always
believe that how we treat one another publicly or in private is the true
measure of the condition of our interior life, especially of our life of
prayer. This is the same message, our Holy Father, Pope Francis has
continuously promoted in his ministries!
As
we celebrate this Last Super sharing in the bread and wine of new covenant of
love, gratitude and selfless service, Christ has brought us, and ready to adore
him at that Altar of Repose in that garden, let us know that Christ sees us, in
every nation, state, county, town, dioceses, villages and out-reach stations.
He loves us and recognizes us. He sees the rich, the poor and the
downtrodden. Let us know that having been washed clean, we have been
given the spiritual capacity and blessed with the divine strength of his
examples (John 13:12-15) to joyfully love and gratefully serve one another as
Christ has first loved and served us.
Reflection
Questions:
1.
In the Light of tonight’s
celebration and worship to what extend do we appreciate, or recognize our
vocations, positions, priesthood, marriages religious life etc., as a gift from
a loving and forgiving God?
2.
How do we make use
of this recognition in reaching out to those on the margins, neighborhoods,
offices and altar of life with a bulletproof assurance that God loves them?
3.
In your Christian
pilgrimage, could you think of any service(s) you have recently rendered to
someone (the poor in particular) out of God’s love, without thinking of
personal or material gain?
