Awakenings

by Father Thomas Keating

Celebrations of Jesus' Presence

Chapter 27

Holy Thursday

Then [Jesus] poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and dry them with the towel around his waist.
(John 13:5)

    The texts read in the liturgy during Lent provide us with the means to understand the sacred mysteries of Holy Week. We think of the penitent woman who washed our Lord's feet with her tears and of Mary of Bethany who anointed his feet with the perfumed oil. It was the custom of the time to wash the feet of a guest, to offer him a kiss of welcome, and to anoint his head with ointment. It was not the custom, however, to kiss those feet or to wash them with one's tears; nor to place precious ointment of great price on the guest's feet rather than upon his head. Why such extremes on the part of these two devoted women?

    They evidently wished to show that he was no ordinary guest. Surely the divine goodness, which praised the extravagance of these two women, would not do less than offer you and me the ordinary courtesies, if he invites us to his banquet table.

    With this background in mind, we can understand why Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. They were to be his guests at the first eucharistic supper, just as we are his guests at the commemoration of it. This sharing in the body and blood of the god-Man is the pledge of a still greater banquet: the eating and drinking of immortal life and love at the eternal banquet of heaven, where our nourishment will be the divine essence itself.

    But as guests at the banquet table of the Lord in this world, and as recipients of the divine hospitality, the disciples had to receive at least the ordinary marks of courtesy; that is, the washing of the feet, the kiss of welcome, and the anointing with oil. These three acts form an organic whole. Omitting any one of them would have been to fail in courtesy, something the Father would never do to guests invited to his supper. These three marks of courtesy correspond to the three stages of Christian initiation.

    First comes the washing of the feet, symbol of baptism, which must precede the Eucharist. The Eucharist represents the kiss of welcome, the intimacy of union, and the mutual sharing of deep love. The anointing of the head with perfumed oil suggests the grace of the sacrament of confirmation. Jesus did not anoint the heads of his disciples on this occasion because the Spirit had not yet been poured out. After his passion and resurrection, however, this crowning courtesy was bestowed.

    In our case, however, it is being bestowed in each reception of the Eucharist, especially in the yearly renewal of the Paschal mystery We have seen John resting in Jesus' bosom at the Last Supper, a symbol foreshadowing and anticipating this grace. The anointing of Jesus by Mary of Bethany pointed to the outpouring of the Spirit upon him and upon all his members, especially those taking part in the supper. But John was given the reality beyond the symbol. Resting in Jesus' bosom, John received the grace of which the anointing of the head with ointment is the external sign.

    These reminders of the divine hospitality, of the inconceivable courtesy that God has extended to us, make us approach the Paschal mystery with humble and grateful hearts. How can we thank the Lord for his invitation, for the incredible depth of his sharing?

    Having purified our hearts by stirring up the grace of our baptism and looking forward to the fullness of the Spirit that we hope to receive, we consume the flesh of Christ which, like a live coal, bears within itself the eternal flame of the Spirit. As we receive Jesus into our hearts, our inmost being is set afire, and we are turned in the direction of the deepest reality of human life, the presence of the Trinity in the depths of our spirit.

This chapter is taken from the book Awakenings by Fr. Thomas Keating. You can obtain a copy from the Bookstore.  See Awakenings