Many centuries ago, about 3500 years, some families gathered together one evening. They were about to start a journey. They had only the vaguest idea where they were going. They were poor and oppressed where they lived, but at least they knew where that was. It had the familiarity of routine, even if it was a tough one. And they had just lived through a time of great difficulty with plague and disaster across the land, affecting all alike.
They must have been in a state of considerable confusion, doubt and fear.
They started their journey anyway. It didn’t go very well. There was a lot of grumbling and worse. The Lord God got so frustrated with them that instead of taking a few months it ended up taking them 40 years to get it together and arrive at their destination. Life after that had its ups and downs, maybe more downs than ups. Somehow they held on to the idea that they were God’s chosen people, that He had something special for them to do.
Jesus took the setting of that journey as the starting point for His final journey. That also started with a meal, in fact the same meal. A Passover meal with His closest friends, people He would consider family. They also were not a perfect bunch. One would outright betray him, another would declare his total support only to fold under the least pressure, and the whole lot ran away when things turned really dangerous.
So how did Jesus use this final meal with his family? As well as creating a perfect solidarity with and for his disciples, which continues to this day in the Eucharist, he continued to teach them. He was teaching right until the point at which he left this earth. On this occasion, His last meal before He died, his teaching was about as direct as it could be. He didn’t use words, he demonstrated.
I don’t know the details of Jewish ritual washing but I suspect that washing people’s feet was not considered a high class activity. Not one that kings, prime ministers, or presidents would be likely to do for their guests. It was probably sufficiently bizarre that Jesus had to check that His disciples had the slightest clue as to what He was doing and why: “Do you understand what I have done?”
Jesus’ whole life was a demonstration of service. Not just helping out the best you can, but service to the point of death. As Paul points out, dying for someone is as tough as it gets. Dying for just anyone and everyone is crazy impossible. Only one person can do that, and He did do it.
In a time of global pandemic many will die for others as they play out their role of service. That challenge will not be given to all of us. But the challenge to serve in whatever way we can, and not to question whether the recipient is worthy of the service, that is a challenge we all face. Let us face this challenge with confidence. Let us walk through the valley of death with our God. He has conquered death. We don’t have anything to fear.
Let us pray for those who are closest to the suffering and the dying at this time. Let us be with them in spirit as they struggle with fear and exhaustion. Let us be compassionate to all, especially to those where we find it hardest to feel compassion. Let us ask our loving Lord who went before us on this path to stay with us. We know he will – let us feel His presence.