Maunday Thursday

Maunday Thursday 2010
I am among you as one who serves

When Jesus gathered his twelve apostles together on the eve of his arrest he chose to bring them together at a meal.

The meal may have been a Passover Seder. It may also have been a traditional meal that a teacher offered his students in preparation for the Seder. Either way, it would have normally been a time of good food, good wine, good fellowship as well as a time of prayer and praise.
Such is the image of the Kingdom of God. Such is the image Jesus left his apostles and his apostles bequeathed to us in the celebration of Holy Communion.

The Kingdom of God is a celebration. It is a time set apart from time when the students of the teacher gather to enjoy his companionship and each other’s fellowship.
The Kingdom of heaven is about friendship. Jesus, the teacher, the master, the king, uses this occasion to set forth a new commandment. Love one another.

The Kingdom of God is the extravagant hospitality that the King, Jesus, offers to his people, to all of us. Jesus invites us to come to enjoy his real presence. At the Last Supper Jesus prepared the means by which he would continue to be present to all of us, to each of us. That means is the blessed sacrament of his body and blood.

At the institution of Holy Communion, Jesus set the context for all future generations to understand what happened and why. In the Last Supper Jesus reminds his followers that the Plan of Salvation is all about love.

The Plan of salvation is all about love because the creation is all about love. The Creation is all about love because the Creator is love. The love Jesus preaches, teaches, embodies and then shares in the sacrament is the steadfast holy unconditional eternal love of God.

At the very moment of consecration the timeless touches time.

That moment is an eternal moment. And because it is an eternal moment we are present with Jesus and the apostles at the last supper when we come to the altar.

We share the moment when Jesus was pouring out his heart to his friends. We share the moment when Judas restlessly kept one eye on the clock and one eye on the money, heedless and clueless of the eternal moment. We are there as the apostles still wait for the announcement about which of them would be chosen to be lord over the rest of them. We are there as Peter seeks to analyze the moment and fix it in time. We are there when the youngest of the apostles simply rests close to Jesus and alone of the twelve shares a moment so transcendent that he acquires a unique title amongst the twelve.

This night is different from every other night. This night, our Heavenly Father sends the Holy Spirit to invite us to share with Jesus the eternal moment. The eternal moment is the Real Presence of the co-eternal Son, the Beloved.

Jesus said: I have come to serve not to command. Jesus offers himself to all people everywhere in this sacrament. He waits patiently for us to stand expectantly before him, heedless of time, immersed in the timeless moment of eternal love. It is there and only there that the Blessing of eternal life manifests in our souls. It is there and only there that grace transforms fear, self will and pride into the glory of the Kingdom of God.