St. Charles' Episcopal Church – St. Charles, IL

Maundy Thursday – Thursday April 5, 2007 

Exodus 12:1-14a -- Psalm 78:14-20, 23-25 -- I Corinthians 11:23-26 (27-32) -- John 13:1-15

Rev. William R. Nesbit, Jr.

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen.

I guess you can blame Carl Sagan. It all started during an episode of the Cosmos series. It was then that I discovered that I was made of star stuff. Ever since I was a little boy I have been fascinated with space. As a youngster I watched all the Gemini and Apollo rocket shots. I was lucky enough to actually see the giant Saturn V rocket that would send the astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins to the moon. So to find out that I was actually made from matter that was once part of a star was a pretty neat idea. I had always wanted to go into space, I still do actually, now it appeared that I had already been there. It is something the scientists call the conservation of matter and energy. The carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen and all the other elements that make up the body standing before you were actually generated from hydrogen in the core of a star that blew up a very long time ago. That matter then floated through space until gravity somehow collected enough of it together to form the earth. And on that Earth God saw fit to breathe life into this matter. Science is still trying to figure out exactly how life got started, and they have some promising theories, but in reality the how is not all that important, at least here in church.

You see, it really is a wonder simply that life is. As most of you know I started my professional life out as a pharmacist. If you take all the wonder away from a living organism (not easy I know) it is essentially a very complex chemical reaction. We circulate air in and out of our lungs, changing its composition a bit in the process. We take in food and water and get rid of the waste. We generate heat and think thoughts and we move ourselves and our things around. Throughout all of this there continues to be a conservation of matter and energy as the food we eat is converted into energy and parts of our body, replacing cells that are worn out. We truly are what we eat. Is it no wonder that the importance of meals is not missed on those tuned in to the Almighty.

In our opening lesson from Exodus we hear the story of the first Passover. In this story we see the salvation of Israel anchored to a meal, a special meal. The sign of the Passover could have been given in any of a host of other ways, I suppose -- but it is not. Each of the parts of the meal are symbolic of how this salvation occurred, as is the way it is to be consumed. This day and this meal of Passover are established as a remembrance of Israel's deliverance from slavery. At a special Passover meal in the upper room Jesus Christ gave us a new covenant, a new Passover for the new Israel. This new covenant is first spoken of in Paul's letter to the Corinthians, a letter actually written before any of the Gospels. Again salvation, this time from the slavery of sin, is anchored to a meal. But this time the food is not symbolic. This is my body. This is my blood. Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us. The text is clear. In no way does the bread or wine represent anything. They are not symbols. Christ is truly present for us in this meal. And so in this Holy Communion, what we take into ourselves, and knit into our very being is nothing less than the divinity of Christ. God is with us – intimately – again and again as we eat every Sunday. This is the mystery and wonder of Holy Eucharist and incarnation. And in the face of this mystery and supreme blessing how do the disciples respond? Pretty much as you might expect. They miss the point and argue about who is the greatest. You gotta say this for the disciples – They are consistent. But are we really any better? And so Jesus reminds them, and us, of our part in this new covenant. We come to serve. The new law of love is to be expressed in servant hood.

Tonight we will symbolize this servanthood in the act of washing another’s feet, but the reality goes far beyond. In this present time, where "me first" has become a way of life and we tend to help others, if at all, out of a sense of generosity, we have lost our way. A servant acts not out of generosity, but obligation. The love of Christ compels us to act in love to those around us. Or it should. There is no "me" in servanthood. And so if we are truly doing it right, Christians should really stick out like a sore thumb from those around them. Do the people that you live and work with know you are a Christian? Is it obvious? It should be.

Today as we wash each others feet here in these comfortable symbolic surroundings, think about what it would be like to really wash the feet of the people you work with, or the feet of those unfortunate souls Who have no place to sleep tonight. Imagine what it would be like to wash the feet of the patrons of Hesed house or Lazarus House, not out of generosity, but out of obligation. We are their servants. Or should be. If we do not serve them who will. Today when you come to this table you will receive the body and blood of Christ. You will take it into yourself and it will become part of you. Let the blessing of God in this sacrament fill you with the love of Christ. Let it break you open to the will of God. And then go and give of yourself to those around you. There is surely no shortage of work to be done. If this Eucharist is to be real it must happen not only in the church, but over and over again in the countless acts of servant-hood that will bring to light the kingdom of God.

Do you not hear the voice of Christ, speaking to you from the upper room? Do this in remembrance of me. Amen.