Great and Holy Thursday – Byzantine Rite – 17 April 2025
Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ,
Tonight, we stand at the threshold of the Passion. The solemn mystery of this night draws us in like the hush before a storm, the deep silence before the cry that will echo from Golgotha. Today, the Church leads us to the Upper Room, where eternity bends low to wash the feet of dust.
On this night, the Lord who formed the stars stoops with a towel about His waist. The Creator washes the feet of His creatures. The Master becomes the servant. The Uncontainable One bends down in humility to teach us what true greatness is: “If I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.”
We commemorate today three profound mysteries: the institution of the Holy Eucharist, the institution of the priesthood, and the Lord’s example of divine humility.
The Eucharist: The Banquet of Love
The Lord, on this night, took bread into His holy, spotless hands. He gave thanks, He blessed it, broke it, and gave it to His disciples, saying, “Take, eat, this is My Body.” And likewise the chalice: “Drink of this, all of you, this is My Blood.”
O ineffable love! He gives not merely bread, but His very self. He does not leave us with teachings only, but with His very Body and Blood, the pledge of the Resurrection, the medicine of immortality, and the food of eternal life.
Let us approach this Mystical Supper with fear and faith. Let no Judas draw near tonight, only a Peter who weeps, only a John who rests on His breast, only a thief who says, “Remember me, O Lord, when You come into Your Kingdom.”
The Priesthood: A Ministry of Broken Bread
On this holy night, the Lord called His apostles into a mystery that would echo until the ages to come. He ordained them to serve at the altar, to proclaim the Gospel, and to shepherd His people. Through their successors, the bishops and priests, the Eucharist continues to be offered, Christ continues to be present.
Let us pray for our priests, who stand at the altar of the Most High. Let us ask the Lord to make them faithful icons of His love, humble shepherds after His own heart.
The Humility of God
And behold, before He goes to His Passion, the Lord girds Himself and washes the feet of His disciples. O mystery beyond words: the hands that shaped the heavens now wash the feet of sinners. The King bows before His servants.
And what does He say? “Do you understand what I have done for you?” He teaches us the Gospel not just in words but in water and towel, in broken bread and outpoured wine, in cross and in tomb.
Let us take this to heart, beloved: there is no crown without the cross, no glory without humility, no resurrection without death to self.
Final Exhortation
On this most holy night, as we follow the Lord from supper to garden, from garden to trial, from trial to Golgotha, let us not fall asleep like the disciples. Let us stay awake. Let us watch and pray. Let us keep vigil with the Lord who suffers out of love for us.
Let us lay aside all pride, all judgment, all hardness of heart. Let us be broken with the Bread, poured out with the Wine, washed clean by the Water that flows from His side.
And so, with trembling joy and contrite hearts, let us draw near to the Upper Room and say:
“I will not speak of Thy Mysteries to Thine enemies. Neither like Judas will I give Thee a kiss. But like the thief will I confess Thee: Remember me, O Lord, in Thy Kingdom.”
Amen.
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