Holy Thursday

"Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.  Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day." ( John 6:53-54)

 

"There can be no Eucharist without the priesthood, just as there can be no priesthood without the Eucharist."  (Pope St. John Paul II)

Holy Thursday is the commemoration of the Last Supper of Jesus Christ, when he established the sacrament of Holy Communion prior to his arrest and crucifixion. It also commemorates His institution of the Priesthood. The Holy Day falls on the Thursday before Easter and is part of Holy Week.  Jesus celebrated the dinner as a Passover feast.  Christ would fulfill His role as the Christian victim of the Passover for all to be saved by His final sacrifice.

 

The Last Supper was the final meal Jesus shared with his Disciples in Jerusalem and during this Passover meal:

 

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples said, “Take and eat; this is my body. Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, from now on I shall not drink this fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it with you new in the kingdom of my Father.”    (Matthew 26:26-29)

 

Christ also establishes the special Priesthood for his disciples, which is distinct from the "priesthood of all believers."  Christ washed the feet of his Disciples, who So when he had washed their feet [and] put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?

 

“You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”  (John 13:12-15)                                                                                                                             

We need our Priests!!  We need the Sacraments. As we commemorate the Last Supper on Holy Thursday and the Institution of the Eucharist and Priesthood, let us remember to pray for our Priests and to thank them for their yes.

https://ourladyofhopegrafton.org/holy-thursday

(Reflection by Mary Jo Kriz)