Unity with God and One Another: A Maundy Thursday Sermon, by Deacon Victoria Mason

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Let us accept Christ’s commission to humble ourselves to fulfill the mission of unity with God and one another.

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Maundy Thursday – what is it? The answer can be very detailed. For the moment, I’ll focus on the question that I am often asked. What does Maundy mean? Maundy is a short way of saying Maundatum – which is a Latin word for commandment. On the night of the Last Supper, Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.”

Last week my husband, a friend of ours and I went to the Summit on Race in America at the LBJ Library. We heard from people who commit their lives to fulfilling this commandment to love one another.

The conference was extremely inspiring and informative. During the conference, I heard the stories, reflections and exhortations of elder statesman of the Civil Rights movement of the 60’s and 70’s. I heard the young movement leaders and activists of today sharing their worries and their desires and hopes for a more just society. I was inspired beyond measure by the work being done on behalf of the marginalized members of our society.

As I listened and learned, I was struck by the realization that I was hearing the Gospel Message. The Gospel message of sacrifice and hope, death and resurrection. The Gospel call “to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.”Here were people who heard the call and chose to pick up their crosses, to make the necessary sacrifices, with the hope that their contribution will lead to truth and reconciliation of all people.

Tonight, we are also called -- to not only be with Jesus as he moved toward the ultimate sacrifice, but to also pick up the cross of our distressing times of division and disparity.

Every Maundy Thursday we remember two other elements of Jesus’ last night with his disciples -- the Last Supper and Jesus washing the disciples’ feet.

According to Dr. Lindsey Trozzo, a faculty member of Princeton Seminary: The act of foot washing in the ancient world symbolized not only humility but also hospitality.4 In a culture where friends reclined at the table to eat, usually after long and dusty walks, foot washing was an essential step in inviting others to the community feast. The job was a dirty one usually reserved for lowly servants, but it was extremely important. To wash someone’s feet was to recognize them as a welcome guest, to remove any barriers that might keep them from the table.

But there’s more to the act of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. Let’s pay attention to some of the details that are easy to miss. John makes a point of saying,“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, got up from the table...” Jesus’ action was embedded in hisknowledge of who he was, that he was empowered by God and was soon returning to God.

Jesus explained that the disciples must also be prepared to humble themselvesand serve one another. “For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.”

This is a call to follow Jesus in his ministry – To do as I have done to you. To Love one another as I have loved you. To join Jesus in fulfilling his mission.

The Gospel of John focuses on the relationship of Jesus with God. This Gospel proposes that Jesus’ overall mission is to open up [this] unity with God [so that it would] be shared with the world at large.

Through the act of washing the disciples’ feet, Jesus is inviting them to share in this unity with God. Remember what he said to Peter, when Peter objected to havinghis feet washed. He said, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me."

Dr. Trozzo writes, that “The Prologue of John’s Gospel (John 1:1-18) revealed that Jesus’ work in the world was to lead the way to God, to show the world the God they had not been able to see, and to reconcile the world back to its original unity with God.

Jesus was uniquely equipped for this mission because of his complex and mystical unity with God (1:1, 18).6 The story of the Foot Washing continues the trajectory [toward the cross], inviting the disciples into this unity and empowering them to fulfill God’s mission for the world after Jesus’ death.

The disciples are called and commissioned to fulfill God’s mission. This call did not end with the disciples. This call continues through us, the people of the church.

Our catechism in the Book of Common Prayer explains quite plainly that our mission, as members of the Church, “is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.” We are commissioned through our Baptism.
“How does the Church pursue its mission? The Church pursues its mission as it prays and worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice, peace, and love.

When we come forward for the ceremonial foot washing, we are choosing to share in the mission of Jesus Christ. We are accepting the commission to be Christ’s messenger. We are choosing to live into the Gospel message.

If you come forward to participate in the ceremonial foot washing, imagine that Jesus is pouring water over your feet and wiping them dry. Imagine yourself becoming united with Christ in that moment. United in the mission to love one another.

As I mentioned earlier, we live in a time when division, derision, exclusion, and dishonor appear to be acceptable behaviors. Let us choose to oppose this norm by joining Christ in the mission of reconciliation and love. To be of “the same mind ... that was in Christ Jesus, 6 who, ... humbled himself and became obedient” to God’s will.
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Let us accept Christ’s commission to humble ourselves and be obedient to our Baptismal Covenant: “to proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ, to seek and serve Christ in all persons. To strive for justice and peace. To respect the dignity of every human being."

- Deacon Vic

Maundy Thursday – Year C
Thursday, April 18, 2019
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Austin, Texas