Holy Thursday
The Passover described in the first reading, and Jesus’ and the disciples’ celebration of it in the Gospel, together with our liturgy tonight, are all real events in time, connected by our shared ritual. We are gathering to remember who we are, where we have been, and that something is about to happen that changes us. We practise this not only to mark the historical and ongoing dying and rising of Jesus, but also so we can do it in the Holy Thursdays of our ordinary lives. When we hold vigil with a loved one who is dying, we eat last meals, play last games, sing last songs. When someone is moving, we get together for a last visit, make a favourite meal, wash and pack clothes. These rituals of remembering and anticipating are critical to moving through change. Jesus eats with His friends and makes one last grand gesture of service to His people. So sink deeply into this Holy Thursday Mass and the Triduum as practice for the transitions life will ask of you in the coming year. Practise finding meaning for your life here, so you can be a witness to the God who meets us in changes of all kinds in the world.
Prayer of the Faithful: For reverence for the rituals we need, in church and in our lives, we pray to the Lord.
Text: CCCB – National Pastoral Initiative for Life and the Family
“Let us spread before His feet, not garments or soulless olive branches, which delight the eye for a few hours and then wither, but ourselves, clothed in His grace, or rather, clothed completely in Him.” St. Andrew of Crete
St. John’s account of the adulteress woman being brought before Jesus, reminds us of the truth, that an individual cannot remain indifferent when he/she encounters the Lord. A person must make a decision, whether it is to receive His mercy and grace and be renewed, or resist and remain closed off to the new life He offers. Lord, grant me the grace to cooperate with Your grace and mercy.
That story about the prodigal son is so familiar, and so challenging. And it is always told in the past tense. But the story unfolds in time and for years — it was long unfinished, with a son living far away, unheard from and unreconciled. Who is a prodigal in your life right now? Are you not speaking to someone you once loved? Is a daughter or son, colleague or mentor, friend or family member m
Between the burning bush and the fig tree, this week’s readings demonstrate that God’s gardening is a bit different than ours. As you make your way through Lent, working to sacrifice and pray, to grow virtue and meditate on Christ’s suffering, now is God at work doing something with your life that you would find hard to see? In what ways could your life be a burning bush, or a tree struggling to p