UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

"He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end."

It was raining. A little boy was in the rain. He was in a muddy field. This child was completely covered with mud. His mother called out to him to come home for dinner. He showed up for dinner completely covered with mud. Should his mother allow him to cone to the table like that? What should the mother do? And why?

Maybe your answer is she should bathe this child first. The apostles have been walking without shoes in the desert. Their entire feet are covered with dust.

Jesus was washing their feet. A job that is not meant for him or even for the apostles. In this ceremony Jesus is executing the task of a slave but tomorrow, good Friday, he will die like a slave. Why?

Because “he loved his own in the world” Jn 13:1 He loves us with our unworthy feet. Jesus is never shocked at our weaknesses. He is never astonished because he has already paid. He just wants to accompany us; he wants to take us by the hand so that life won’t be so harsh for us. The mother bathed her son who was covered with mud because she loved her son. God loves us, not for what we have done (good or bad), but for who we are -children of God.

The Love of Jesus is different. In the Airplane, in case of emergency, you are instructed to put on your emergency jacket first before putting on the one for your child. Reverse is the case when it comes to Jesus. Christ put His friends first. Let us think about this. It would have been easy if the apostles wash each other’s feet. Jesus choose a different line of action. He had previously taught them, “If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all” (Mark 9:35). “The one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is greatest” (Luke 9:48). “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11). If they had simply given mind and heart to His teaching, one of the twelve would have washed the others’ feet. Or they might have mutually shared the task. It could have been a beautiful expression of brotherhood and kindness. Besides, it would have been no indignity at all, but an inestimable privilege, for any of those men to wash the feet of their Lord. The idea does not seem to have occurred to them. These are their options. Why is it that they did not choose any of these options?

It is because they were preoccupied with the issue of personal rank within their circle of fellowship. As they reclined around the table, according to Luke, “And there arose also a dispute among them as to which of them was regarded to be greatest” (Luke 22:24). It was an interesting situation.

Jesus sees life differently. Despite the apostles’ self-preoccupation, Jesus’ main concern that night was to demonstrate His unconditional love to the twelve. He washed the feet of those who will betray him. John 13:1 says, “having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.” That is the innate nature of Christ’s love, and He showed it repeatedly—even in His death. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

This is what we are celebrating in the next three days beginning with this evening's ceremony. Our Triduum begins this evening. Let us open our hearts, take a break from our busy schedule, and attend all our Triduum ceremonies. Below is the schedule.

God bless you.

Fr. Mike Ume