Commemorating Maundy Thursday

Maundy Thursday begins the sacred journey of the Easter Triduum (pronounced tree-do-um), the “Three Days” that span from sundown on Maundy Thursday to sundown on Easter Sunday. These are the holiest and most solemn days of the Christian year, drawing us into the heart of our faith.

On this night, we remember the Last Supper, the washing of the disciples’ feet, the institution of the Holy Eucharist, and Christ’s lonely vigil in the Garden of Gethsemane. It is a night filled with holy mystery, a quiet, reverent threshold into the power and sorrow of His Passion.

Knowing his hour had come, Jesus spent his final evening in intimate fellowship with his disciples, breaking bread, bending low to serve, and pouring out his love in word, action, and prayer.

The Scripture Story of Maundy Thursday

On Maundy Thursday, the Church remembers the night Christ observed the Passover with his disciples right before his betrayal and arrest. The Passover Supper was pivotal in the lives of the Jewish people because it commemorated their deliverance from slavery in Egypt when God acted mightily on their behalf. It was on this night that God established the Old Covenant, choosing Israel as His people and sealing that covenant with the blood of a spotless lamb.

“The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you.”—Exodus 12:13

On the night of the Passover, the Israelites were told to take a spotless lamb and prepare it for a meal. They were then to take the blood of the lamb and cover their lintel and doorposts. This was a sign for the angel of death to 'pass over' their homes during the tenth plague, sparing their firstborn from death. 

Jesus, Our Sacrificial Lamb

The New Testament draws direct parallels between the sacrificial lamb of Passover and Jesus' sacrifice. In the Gospel of John, John the Baptist, upon seeing Jesus walk up, refers to him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Jesus acknowledges this connection at the Last Supper when he takes bread and wine and says:

“This is my body... this is my blood... Do this in remembrance of me.”

He introduces the elements as his body and blood, foreshadowing his impending sacrifice and revealing that this Last Supper is the fulfillment of the Passover ritual. In that moment, time seemed to bend—reaching back to the blood of lambs smeared on ancient doorposts and forward to the blood that would soon stain a Roman cross. Just as the blood of the lamb in Exodus marked salvation for the Israelites, so the blood of Jesus, shed on the cross, became the means of salvation for all who place their trust in him.

With these words, Jesus instituted the celebration of Holy Communion or Holy Eucharist, transforming the Passover meal into the New Covenant, sealed by his own blood. As the lamb’s blood once saved the Israelites, the blood of Christ would bring salvation to the whole world.

“This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”—1 Corinthians 11:25

The Washing of Feet and the Mandatum

After the meal, Jesus rose, removed his outer garments, and assumed the role of a servant. This is the great inversion - the Lord becomes the servant, the Master stoops. He washes the dust and filth from the feet of men who scarcely understood Him. One would betray, one would deny, all would abandon, and still He knelt. He poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel wrapped around him. He said to them, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this, all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) This new command, from the Latin mandatum, is where Maundy Thursday takes its name.

The Maundy Thursday Service

The Church lives out this moment each year in the Maundy Thursday liturgy. Following Christ’s example, many churches include a foot-washing ceremony during the service. In some traditions, the priest washes the feet of several parishioners; in others, the congregation takes turns washing one another’s feet, reenacting that tender and surprising moment of Christ’s servanthood.

After the foot washing, the liturgy moves to the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, just as Jesus shared bread and wine with his disciples at the Last Supper. This moment, so solemn and sacred, is the heart of the Maundy Thursday service, when we remember that Christ will give himself fully for our redemption.

Following Communion, the Blessed Sacrament is set apart and reverently processed to a small side altar, called the Altar of Repose. This represents Christ going to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he asked his disciples to “watch and pray.”

The Stripping of the Altar

Then, one of the most somber moments occurs, the Stripping of the Altar. At the end of the service, all candles are removed, the altar is stripped bare, crosses and other reminders of Jesus are put away, and the Church is left empty and dark. After a short reading about the arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, the congregation leaves the Church in total silence in preparation for the solemnity of the crucifixion of Jesus on Good Friday.

The church doors are left open so that people may come and sit before the Altar of Repose. At the Altar of Repose, we remember Christ’s anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane, how he asked his disciples to watch and pray with him, and how they all fell asleep, leaving him to pray alone.  We remember his betrayal by Judas, his desertion by the disciples, his trial, and his denial by Peter.  And lastly, we remember how he was mocked and beaten and how He loved us to the end.

Ways to Celebrate:

• Attend the Maundy Thursday service at your church. 

• Sign up for a time to bring your family to the Altar of Repose. This is such a touching thing to do with your family!  We don’t want Christ to be alone on this night, so we go to the altar and “watch and pray” with him just as he asked his disciples that night.

• If going to the Altar of Repose would be too much to expect from your children, hold a vigil in your home upon returning from the Maundy Thursday service. Light a candle, sit quietly in a darkened room for a few minutes, and then Read Matthew 26:17-29 or Luke 22:7-38 with your family. 

• Have a foot-washing ceremony with your family. 

• Eat a meal reminiscent of the meal Jesus and his disciples ate. Remind your children that this meal is different from the Jewish Passover Meal because we are not awaiting the Messiah, Jesus already died and saved us. Because of this, Christians are not obligated to celebrate the Passover meal. Jesus has given us a new obligation, to celebrate the Eucharist in remembrance of Him. We are merely remembering, through food, what it must have been like for Jesus and his disciples.

Suggested foods:

• Bitter Herbs: Dip a bunch of parsley in salt water and taste it.

• Haroset: Applesauce with cinnamon.

• Unleavened bread: Crackers, store-bought matzo or pita bread will all work.

• Wine: red wine or grape juice for the children.

• Lamb: You could make a dish made with lamb or a roast.