Maundy Thursday: A Service of Communion & Footwashing

Thursday, April 18, 2019
7:00 PM in the Church

Maundy Thursday, coming from the Latin word "mandatum" meaning commandment, is the first service of the "Triduum" or "three days." During the service we will remember Christ's new commands to us: to love our neighbor and follow his commandments.During the service, we will remember that call to loving-service through the practice of foot washing. We will also remember the final meal Jesus shared with the disciples of his body and blood (communion). As the service ends, we will being to move from the first day into the second with the stripping of the altar.Everyone is invited to this powerful service of remembrance and love. Following the service, the chapel will be made available for private prayer and vigil.

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What is Maundy Thursday (From the Episcopal Church Website)The Thursday in Holy Week. It is part of the Triduum, or three holy days before Easter. It comes from the Latin mandatum novum, "new commandment," from Jn 13:34. The ceremony of washing feet was also referred to as "the Maundy." Maundy Thursday celebrations also commemorate the institution of the eucharist by Jesus "on the night he was betrayed." Egeria, a fourth-century pilgrim to Jerusalem, describes elaborate celebrations and observances in that city on Maundy Thursday. Special celebration of the institution of the eucharist on Maundy Thursday is attested by the Council of Hippo in 381. The Prayer Book liturgy for Maundy Thursday provides for celebration of the eucharist and a ceremony of the washing of feet which follows the gospel and homily. There is also provision for the consecration of the bread and wine for administering Holy Communion from the reserved sacrament on Good Friday. Following this, the altar is stripped and all decorative furnishings are removed from the church. See Eucharist; see Foot Washing.