Maundy Thursday - 2025
Sermon for Maundy Thursday
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
The Rev. Andrew McLarty
"The Mandate"
We gather in the glow of candlelight, at the threshold of the Triduum—the three holiest days of the Christian year. Tonight is Maundy Thursday, a name derived from the Latin mandatum, meaning "commandment." And what is this new mandate? "Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another".
Sacrament of Daily Life
Our Gospel tonight presents a stunning scene: the King of Kings kneels before his disciples, washing their feet like a lowly servant. Peter is scandalized — "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" But Jesus insists: "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me."
Scholars like Raymond Brown remind us that this act isn’t just about humility; it’s sacramental. Just as baptism cleanses us, Jesus’ action signifies something deep — a call to radical love. Augustine called it "the sacrament of daily life," a model for how we are to serve one another.
Anamnesis
And this can be a tall order in our everyday lives, so how do we embody a love so vast? He gives us the means to get perspective and reorientation: the Holy Eucharist. In the breaking of the bread, we encounter something even more profound: anamnesis.
In Greek, anamnesis means more than just remembering—it means making the past present. When Jesus says, "Do this in remembrance of me," he isn’t asking for nostalgia—he’s inviting us into a sacred participation. As theologian Dom Gregory Dix famously wrote, the Eucharist is "the deed whereby God remembers us."
When we celebrate the Eucharist, we are not merely recalling an event from long ago. We are stepping into the eternal reality of Christ’s sacrifice and feast. The early church understood this—when St. Paul writes, "As often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes," he is speaking of a living proclamation.
By Your Love
So tonight, as we strip the altar and enter the silence of Gethsemane, let’s not leave in sorrow—but in joy. Because the servanthood, the Eucharist, the new commandment—they’re all gifts! Jesus trusts us to love as he loves.
So go, dear friends. Break bread. Forgive enemies. Love recklessly. And remember: "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
Amen.
