This is my first time being in the role of priest for Holy Week. And serving a congregation 80 miles from home has meant that I needed to stay in Valdosta. I chose to write all my sermons before Maundy Thursday. I didn't want to chance not getting them done.
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Text: John 13:1-17; 31b-35
Loving God, as we seek to know and follow you more faithfully, we
pray you will open and fill our hearts with love and knowledge of your Son
Jesus. May we see ever more clearly what it is you are calling us to, and may
we respond with joy and justice. Amen.
You know, feet must be some of the most mysterious parts of the
human body.
They’re pretty essential parts, too, particularly for anyone
working jobs that don’t involve sitting at a desk all day long.
As a licensed massage therapist, I have had countless numbers of
clients tell me that they don’t want me to touch their feet (thankfully, I have
some who are more than happy to have me work on them). Most of the time, it’s
that folks are embarrassed about their feet…especially if they haven’t had time
to go home and shower before their appointment. I always gently assure them
that I am not offended by their feet…and remind them how our feet must hold us
up all day, sometimes in socks and cramped shoes…so they could use some
tenderness and care.
And…if the person seems really worried about having dirty feet…I’ll
offer to wash them.
The times when I have done this in my practice have been beautiful.
The anxiety, the fear, the self-consciousness about having stinky feet
literally seems to flow out of their soles and into the water bath. The creases
on their foreheads relax. They’re refreshed and renewed. And I haven’t even
laid my hands on their aching back, or tired neck.
Jesus’ act of washing the disciples’ feet is part of his last
instructions to them and to us about what it means to love one another. There
were no closed-toe shoes back in First Century Palestine, so their feet were
likely pretty rough and caked with all kinds of mud and dirt. In the same way
that John’s Baptism was meant to purify people from sin, Jesus is washing away
the impurities collected on the feet and giving them a fresh feeling that
relaxes the whole body.
Now…Simon Peter…sweet loveable Peter…he doesn’t understand what
Jesus is doing and actually is offended that Jesus wants to wash his and the
others’ feet.
“Oh, no, no, no…Lord. This is beneath you, good Teacher, venerable
Rabbi, most excellent Messiah…”
And then he starts insisting that Jesus must wash all of him!
Honestly, if washing his feet was “too much”…Peter wants Jesus to wash his
whole body?
Jesus is like, “Didn’t you take a shower today?”
See: from Jesus’ perspective…this foot washing is exactly what he’s
supposed to be doing.
He’s not royalty.
Just because they call him “Master” that doesn’t excuse him from
serving…especially to those who will soon find out that he’ll need them more
than ever to serve his good work in the world. This foot washing is to make the
point: love one another. Treat everybody right. This is how we’ll change the
world as we know it.
Tonight…we engage in this same opportunity to give and receive, to
allow another to show us love…that same agape-type love…that we had with our
meal before the service. For those who are so used to being the ones who
help…the doers…some might call y’all the Marthas of the church…allowing your
fellow follower of Jesus to wash your feet may make you a little bit nervous.
That’s OK. I know better than to tell you “Don’t be nervous.” I will remind you
that one of the most oft-repeated phrases in the Bible is “Do not be afraid.”
Taking part in this ritual brings us all closer to the One who taught us this
action as a sign of Love.
It is also a good preparation for what is to come for these next
days of the Triduum….that fancy word for “The Three Days.”
Letting go of control…and the need to know what’s going to happen
next…acknowledging that some events are put into motion and we must go into
places which challenge us. That’s all part of what begins tonight with the
stripping of the altar. On this night…when Jesus says he knows his hour has
come…he is releasing himself completely to God’s will and mission. The
symbolism of taking away the artifacts and the beautiful altar frontal and
leaving the table bare is the reminder that…in the end…Jesus laid himself bare
as his final act of love…trusting in God’s mercy and deliverance. Just like the
sharing of a meal…and the washing of feet…the emptiness of the altar serves as
a visual reminder to us that love makes us vulnerable.
All the more reason for us wash each other’s feet, and give each
other that comfort that we are not alone on this journey.
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