Homily: Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper – Cycle C
We all know that a person’s last words
are important. This is particularly true
when someone we love dies. Whether a
person’s death happens suddenly or after an extended illness, once the person
has died most people instinctively think about their last conversation with
that person and what was said. “Just be
for she drifted off, mom looked around and said that she loved us all.” “As I sat there with him, dad looked over at
me and said, ‘Take care of your mother for me, okay?’” These last words from someone we care about
have the power to shape our lives in the weeks, months, and years following our
loved one’s death.
Sometimes, however, there aren’t any
words. Perhaps the death came so suddenly
that no one talked to the person before he or she died. In this case, those left behind often look
back to the things that were happening in their loved one’s life in the days
and weeks leading up to his or her death.
“I thought it was weird that dad was doing all of that, but now it makes
sense. He must have been getting ready
to die.” “We thought mom was crazy,
going through all of her old stuff and either giving it to us or getting rid of
it. She must have known that this was
coming.” Sometimes the last actions of
our loved ones can be just as powerful as their last words.
Certainly this applies to the
disciples of Jesus. One of the many
traditions of Good Friday is the Tre Ore
service, which includes reflections on the “seven last words” of Jesus from the
Cross. Knowing the anguish that he was
suffering—and, thus, how difficult it was for him to speak—means that these
words hold extra weight for us, his followers.
But Jesus’ last actions are also significant for us; and it is these
that we remember tonight.
In this Mass of the Lord’s Supper we
celebrate and remember both the institution of the priesthood and the
institution of the Eucharist; and the Scriptures we read tonight teach us
something of what Jesus was telling us by performing these last actions. By bending down and washing the feet of his
disciples—the twelve apostles, his first priests—Jesus is teaching us both
about the Eucharist, in which he lowers himself to become fully present to us
in the form of bread and wine, and about the priesthood: that it is a ministry
of service to one and to all. In doing
so, Jesus both invites us to his table and gives us an example we must
follow. Saint Augustine spoke eloquently
of this and his words are worth quoting at length:
This
is surely what we read in [the book of Proverbs]: “If you sit down to eat at
the table of a ruler, observe carefully what is set before you; then stretch
out your hand, knowing that you must provide the same kind of meal
yourself.” What is this ruler’s table if
not the one at which we receive the body and blood of him who laid down his
life for us? What does it mean to sit at
this table if not to approach it with humility?
What does it mean to observe carefully what is set before you if not to
meditate devoutly on so great a gift?
What does it mean to stretch out one’s hand, knowing that one must
provide the same kind of meal oneself, if not what I have just said: as Christ
laid down his life for us, so we in our turn ought to lay down our lives for
our brothers? This is what the apostle
Paul said: “Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we might follow
in his footsteps.”
This
is what is meant by providing “the same kind of meal.” This is what the blessed martyrs did with
such burning love. If we are to give
true meaning to our celebration of their memorials, to our approaching the
Lord’s table in the very banquet at which they were fed, we must, like them,
provide “the same kind of meal.”
Todos
sabemos que las últimas palabras de una persona son importantes. Esto es
particularmente cierto cuando un ser querido se muere. Si la muerte de una
persona pasa repentinamente o después de una enfermedad prolongada, cuando la
persona ha muerto la mayoría de la gente instintivamente piensan en su última
conversación con esa persona y lo que se dijo. Estas últimas palabras de un ser
querido tienen el poder de dar forma a nuestras vidas en las semanas, meses y
años después de la muerte de nuestro ser querido.
A
veces, sin embargo, no hay palabras. Tal vez la muerte vino tan repentinamente
que nadie hablaba con la persona antes de que él o ella se murió. En este caso,
los que se quedan a menudo mirar hacia atrás a las cosas que estaban ocurriendo
en la vida de sus seres queridos en los días y semanas previas a su muerte. A
veces, las últimas acciones de nuestros seres queridos pueden ser tan poderoso
como sus últimas palabras.
Ciertamente
esto se aplica a los discípulos de Jesús. Una de las numerosas tradiciones de
Viernes Santo es el servicio Tre Ore,
que incluye reflexiones sobre las "siete últimas palabras" de Jesús
de la Cruz. Conociendo la angustia que sufría—y, por lo tanto, lo difícil que
era hablar para él—significa que estas palabras tienen un peso extra para
nosotros, sus seguidores. Pero las últimas acciones de Jesús son importantes
para nosotros también; y son éstas las que recordamos esta noche.
En
esta misa de la Cena del Señor celebramos y recordamos tanto la institución del
sacerdocio y la institución de la Eucaristía; y las Escrituras que leemos esta
noche nos enseñan algo de lo que Jesús nos estaba diciendo mediante la
realización de estas últimas acciones. Al doblarse abajo y lavar los pies de
sus discípulos (los doce apóstoles, sus primeros sacerdotes) Jesús nos está
enseñando tanto acerca de la Eucaristía, en la que se rebaja a ser plenamente
presente para nosotros en la forma de pan y vino, y sobre el sacerdocio: que es
un ministerio de servicio a uno y a todos. De este modo, Jesús tanto nos invita
a su mesa y nos da un ejemplo que debemos seguir.
Esta
noche, Mis hermanos y hermanas, reconocemos tanto lo que hemos recibido y lo
que estamos llamados a dar. Por sus acciones, nuestro Señor nos ha mostrado lo
que tenemos que ofrecer a los demás y la forma en que se le proporcione. Que
estos tres días nos llene de la gracia de entregarnos al máximo y por lo tanto
ser brillante testigos de la gloria y la misericordia de Dios tanto a nuestra
comunidad y a nuestro mundo.
Tonight,
my brothers and sisters, we acknowledge both what we’ve received and what we’re
called to give. By his actions, our Lord
has shown us “the kind of meal” that we must provide to others and how we are
to provide it. May these three days fill
us with the grace to give ourselves to the fullest and thus to be shining
witnesses of God’s glory and mercy both to our community and to our world.
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