Maundy Thursday

On the Night Before... "It was as if a shadow passed across the floor in that upper room. I wanted to scream, to stop him, but my lips were fastened shut as if gripped by invisible fingers; I watched in mute silence, an inexpressible grief gripping my heart as he began washing our feet and wiping them with the towel he was wearing. Simon Peter had protested but relented; I too wanted to refuse him, to hold back my feet... "

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Psalm 78:14-20, 23-25
Exodus 12:1-14a
I Corinthians 11:23-32
John 13:1-15

On the Night Before… “It was as if a shadow passed across the floor in that upper room. I wanted to scream, to stop him, but my lips were fastened shut as if gripped by invisible fingers; I watched in mute silence, an inexpressible grief gripping my heart as he began washing our feet and wiping them with the towel he was wearing. Simon Peter had protested but relented; I too wanted to refuse him, to hold back my feet, thinking that if somehow I could stop him then all that he had foretold might be prevented; if I could cause one dot to remain absent from this script then I could change it. But when he came to me and looked up into my eyes, how could I refuse him? I could only weep; tears rolled down my cheeks. He looked lovingly into my eyes and met my tears with compassion, addressing us all saying, ‘I have given you an example so that you may copy what I have done…. You must love one another just as I have loved you…. I will not leave you orphans.’

“Now we are frightened, and he is alone. I wish I could rest my head upon his bosom once more, once more listen to his sacred heart.”

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Parish News: March 29

In her message this week, the rector connects Palm Sunday’s ancient story to present-day witness, planning to join Saturday’s No Kings March calling for democracy, justice, and peace. She explores how Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was itself a public protest: a humble prophet on a borrowed donkey contrasting sharply with Pilate’s simultaneous imperial procession through another part of town. The tension between these two visions of power and authority plays out throughout Holy Week and history, asking where we will put our bodies, feet, and hearts as we follow Jesus’ way of vulnerable, self-giving love.

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