It was wonderful to see all the children shouting
“Hosanna!”on Palm Sunday, which for some churches was also Children’s Sunday.
It marked the beginning of Holy Week or Passion Week for the Christian
community. It is a time of reconnection with the key historical events of the
Christian faith and is for many Christians a way of merging a lived faith with
a living history of God’s salvation.
This week takes us from that triumphal entry and towards a
glorious resurrection and appearances of the Risen Lord, first to Mary
Magdalene and then to others. On the way Christians encounter the themes of
love, rejection, betrayal, denial, pain, humiliation and death.
Many are familiar with the film the “The Passion of the
Christ” in which we see manifested humankind's worst attributes. Last week I
watched the Fiji premier of the film, Son of God” at the VMAX Cinema. Although
not as intense as “The Passion” it is a reminder of the precious gift of God’s
grace for all. As we are reminded of how low we can go, how greed for wealth,
lust for power and the fear that causes us to brutalise those different from
us, we a given glimpses of the strength of love. In the face of tyranny, we are
shown humility. At the moment of injustice, we receive forgiveness. And
surrounded by conflict we experience reconciliation.
Archbishop Emeritus, Desmond Tutu reflected on the Son of
God:
‘Son of God’ is a powerful and beautiful movie which I hope
and pray will be humbly watched by Christians and non-Christians across the
world as a bridge for respectful dialogue. Most religions share a core Golden
Rule: 'Do unto others as you would have others do unto you'. We are all sons
and daughters of God, called to be vessels of healing balm to a wounded world
tired of theological and dogmatic dogfights that too often lead to despicable
carnage in the name of our respective and limited understanding of God. We are
all, irrespective of the nametag we wear, called to be people of compassion,
humility, justice and gentleness. These are the fruits of love and, in the end,
they are all that matter. Why? Because God is LOVE.”
The compassion, humility, justice and gentleness of Christ
during Holy Week is reflected in his washing of his disciples' feet.
To wash feet is a back bending task. One particular Maundy
Thursday, when I invited the congregation to participate, I ended up washing
everyone’s feet. I was grateful that it was only as small congregation of 30 or
so. Yet it was a liberating task also. To have members who in our cultural
contexts often place religious and spiritual leaders on a high status, allow me
to wash their feet, meant to me that they were also allowing me to serve them
and the community – as one of them. I noticed an old man was visibly moved as
he watched me wash his wife’s feet. She was a woman who faithfully served in
the church with little recognition.
At the end of the feet washing I was humbled when a senior
deaconess in the church asked me to sit down and with gentleness and love
proceeded to wash my feet. I was reduced to tears.
The washing of feet, when done out of love, is an amazing
act of reconciliation and empowerment for both the person who washes and the
person being washed. It is an intimate moment of non-verbally communicating
love, respect and humility.
This is why the Methodist Church in Fiji has chosen the act
of washing of the feet as part of its reconciliation process in its Golden
Jubilee celebrations.
Christ performs a lowly task generally done by the lowliest
servant in the household. We find in the pages of the gospels descriptions of
how Jesus approached His relationship with God the Father. He was always
submissive to the Father in everything. Beyond this, God the Father is the
greatest servant in the universe. In our behalf, He sustains everything we
depend on for our very lives.
In John 13:14, Christ says, "If I then, your Lord
and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's
feet."
The common explanation for this is that it teaches us to
learn humility by doing good for others, by doing acts of service or kindness
for our brothers and sisters, our neighbours and the stranger.
The lesson is one of humble servant-leadership.
I am reminded of the saying: “Humility is a low door. To go
through it, one must bend down enough to smell the ground. Dirt wears the scent
of past lives and reminds us that death captures all in the end. This is what
makes humility necessary.”
As we prepare to make important decisions on leadership this
year, perhaps this is a message Jesus has for His people in Fiji.
You are welcome to come and have your feet washed and wash
the feet of others at the Maundy Thursday service tomorrow (Thursday) at Dudley
Church at 7pm. You are also invited to join in the Fiji Council of Churches’ Easter
Sunday Resurrection and Reconciliation Concert at Ratu Sukuna Park from 2pm.
Let us remember that the message of Easter is the loving
grace of God and the humble service and sacrifice of God’s dearly beloved Son,
for the whole world.
“Simplicity, Serenity, Spontaneity”
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