Meditation on Holy Thursday
By Fr. Dinh G. Votran, A.A.
Today Jesus, the Master, knelt down to wash his disciples’ feet. As a teacher, Jesus taught his disciples by serving them. The servant disciple is the model which Jesus wants to establish for all his followers. He genuinely bows down to serve his followers with all his love. He is always at their feet to show his idea of loving. He is always lower than his followers every day and every way to show his way of living. He is the master, but his ego completely disappears in order to be in communion with others.
Today Jesus, the Master, instituted the Sacrament of the Eucharist and the Priesthood. The Eucharist is a fraternal banquet, gathering many people from all around to celebrate the the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. The Death and Resurrection is also the Master who always “breaks bread of himself by saying: This is my Body, take and eat.” From now on, every time believers gather around the Table of the Lord in the Eucharistic celebration, they are truly meeting the Master, being absorbed into His Death and Resurrection. Even when believers are quietly near the Eucharist outside of Mass, believers still believe they are in the stream of boundless Love and are bathed in the Divine Energy of Death and Resurrection. The Eucharist is the Sacrament of Resurrection. There, people are gathered, people are loved, people know how to love each other, people are united with each other, and “break bread” of their lives for each other.
Today, Jesus the Master, established the priestly office. The priest, the special minister of the Eucharist, also takes the bread every day, gives thanks, breaks it and says exactly the same words Jesus said: “this is my Body, this is my Blood.” The priest is called by Jesus himself and allowed to be the Master in the celebration of God’s people. The Master and the priest no longer have any distance. Both are one no matter how unworthy and sinful the priest is. All of Jesus’ followers form the Priestly Nation. Therefore, the real disciple of Jesus is the one who lives a true priestly life. It means constantly breaking the bread of one’s life to share with his fellow disciples and everyone. They constantly break the bread of God’s words to share with others. Priestly people continue breaking the Bread of their Master’s Body in order to build and to extend the relationship with God and others until the Master returns. A priest is the person who tries to build a new heaven and a new earth by presiding the Death and Resurrection of the Master.
These three events today: institution of the Sacrament of the Eucharist, establishing the Sacrament of Priesthood, and kneeling down to wash feet, all three indicate one spirit, one intention. All three are to dissolve oneself, to love and serve, in the Light of Resurrection. Today is the priest’s birthday. They celebrate their birthday normally by gathering around their bishop. During this Chrism Mass, the priests once again, raising their hands, recited their promises on the day they received priestly ministry. The promise of obedience, the promise to speak(preach) the Word of God and celebrate the Eucharist faithfully. The priestly ministry is called “holy order”, but it is not a position or power. The priest is the one who always dies, always be in the Light of the Resurrection, always full of the Holy Spirit in order to gather everyone into the New Word of their Master, Jesus.
