Here are five verses to enter into this mystery. To be read slowly. To let resonate. So that the gentle light of Maundy Thursday may descend upon us.
"He loved them to the end." John 13:1
This verse opens the account of the washing of the feet. It is not just a transition. It is a summary of everything Jesus is about to do. He loves to the extreme. To the cross. To the point of forgiving those who hurt him. Even to the silence of solitude. This is not a conditional love. It is not a fragile love. It's a love that goes all the way, without holding back.
This verse is a mirror. How far am I capable of loving? Where do I stop? Jesus, on the other hand, doesn't back down. He gives, without expecting anything in return. And in this offering, he saves.
"If then I, the Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you also must wash one another's feet." John 13:14
After washing his disciples' feet, Jesus does not comment at length. He gives a simple but deeply moving instruction. He, the Lord, became a servant.
This verse does not ask us to make a symbolic gesture once a year. It invites us to make service a way of being. Not to serve in order to be admired. But to serve because to love is to bend down. To love is to care. To love is to humble oneself without humiliation, with the dignity of those who live according to the Gospel.
"This is my body, given up for you." Luke 22:19
That evening, Jesus takes the bread, breaks it, and gives it away. This gesture, which has become central to all Christians, is a total gift. He keeps nothing. He becomes bread. He makes himself present. He gives himself up.
This verse touches us because it speaks of God's vulnerability. A God who chooses to go through poor, accessible, everyday signs. A God who gives himself in a piece of bread. And who continues to give himself up in this way, every day, so that we may have life.
"Father, not my will but yours be done." Luke 22:42
In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prays. He knows what awaits him. He is free. He could have fled. But he stays. He offers up his fear, his sadness, his anguish. And in prayer, he chooses the Father's will.
This verse is a model of trust. It does not deny the pain. It does not play to strength. He goes through the night, surrendering himself. This phrase can become a prayer for us too. In moments of choice, of solitude, of suffering. Lord, not what I want, but what you want. Because I believe your will is good. Even when it is beyond me.
"Watch and pray, that you may not enter into temptation." Matthew 26:41
Jesus asks his disciples to stay awake with him. Just for a moment. Just a moment of watchfulness, of presence. But they fall asleep. They can't hold on. This verse speaks to us in our own spiritual fatigue. In our good intentions that don't hold. But it is also an appeal. A reminder that prayer is a support, a strength. That watching is not about feats of strength. It's simply staying there, in the presence. Offering to God what we are. And opening ourselves to his peace.
Conclusion
These five verses, like five lights in the night, allow us to enter Maundy Thursday with a simpler, truer heart. This is not a day for understanding. It's a day to let ourselves be touched. To watch Jesus loving, serving, giving himself up, praying, keeping watch. And to gently say to him: I want to walk with you. Teach me to love like you. To serve like you. To give myself like you.
