It is Tuesday and time to write a 'Slice of Life."
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Today is Maundy Thursday on the Christian calendar, a very solemn day of the Easter week, as it commemorates the day Jesus celebrated his final Passover. It is said that Jesus humbly washed the feet of his disciples after dinner that evening, and offered his greatest command
Love one another, as I have loved you
Our church has a beautiful Tenebrae service, a service of shadows. The church is lit with candles and there are a series of readings about Jesus’ suffering:
The Shadow of Betrayal | Matthew 26:20-25 The Shadow of Unfaithfulness | Mark 14:32-41 The Shadow of Desertion | Matthew 26:47-50, 55-56 The Shadow of Accusation | Matthew 26:59-67 The Shadow of Mockery | Mark 15:12-20 The Shadow of the Cross | Luke 23:33-46 Love is Stronger Than Death | John 13:34-35 The Word was God | John 1:14, 10, 12, 3:19
I am a participant in the readings, and after I read, I blow out a candle. A moment of silence follows. The church becomes progressively darker, with each reading.
This service of shadows fills me with deep reflection about pain and suffering in our world, what has always been, what is now, and must it always be? My mind sifts through the hurt, with a heightened awareness . . .
- The horrific pain and shock, just this week, of a local and essential bridge, the Key Bridge in Baltimore, which was destroyed in approximately 40 seconds by a container ship carrying hazardous materials
- The death of six construction workers in this tragedy; how immigrants do anonymous, difficult, and essential work, and endure such endless prejudice and hardship
- The continued horrors of war and rampage in Gaza, Ukraine, Haiti, Myanmar, Yemen, in so many places throughout the world, leading to the death, suffering, and starvation of so many innocents
- The endless hate and discrimination towards others, often in the name of religion, so antithetical to a loving God, I think
- The growing, horrific appeal of christian nationalism, white supremacy, far-right, autocratic beliefs
- The assault on truth and freedom throughout the world; the barrage of corrosive headlines that greet me each morning; the explosion of fake news
- The personal hurts and traumas within our communities, heavy and invisible loads which we bear alone
- How we fail at love
The final reading is offered by our minister, and when that candle is extinguished, there is total darkness in the church. We recess from the church and go our separate ways, in darkness and silence.
How can one not be moved?
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