Holy Thursday

On this day, almost 2,000 years ago, Christ shared His last supper with His disciples and when He broke the bread and shared it with them He said six words which became the foundation of the daily Catholic Mass ‘Do This In Memory Of Me’ (Luke 22: 19).
The Eucharist (Christian sacrament commemorating the Last Supper) in its various forms of Holy Communion is celebrated daily, and often several times a day, in all Catholic churches and so every day this request is carried out, but today the anniversary becomes more poignant as we focus on the events that followed this meal.

My local Catholic Church, the Friary, reopened this evening after six months of much-needed refurbishments and but for it being Holy Thursday, commemorating the Lord’s Last Supper, one feels laudatory speeches would not have been out of place.
The building, recesses, wall icons, lighting and acoustics are all magnificent and to have all these elements coming together at the beginning of the always emotive Easter Vigil, with a congregation of hundreds, made for a very special evening.

I know some folk will think that it is obscene to spend huge sums of money on church decoration but isn’t it our duty to make the best possible use of our resources on earth and surely the spiritual home of our Lord should be the first charge on our income.
Remember that rare occasion when Jesus showed temper in the Jewish temple in Jerusalem when He witnessed it being used as a market-place (John 2:14-15).
Remember too when Mary, sister of Lazarus anointed the feet of Jesus with a pound of luxurious spikenard and Judas Iscariot, the keeper of the money-bag no less, asked why the ointment wasn't sold for three hundred denarii instead (about a years wages) and given to the poor. Jesus answered this accusation with ‘The poor you will always have but me you will not always have’. (John 12:3-8)

Doesn’t this give us an insight into how the Lord is a God of truth. Doesn’t this give us an insight into the Lord’s perfect reasoning skills and also how this God of love implies that we should budget responsibly, make honest assessments, not be judgmental of each other and above all –have a relationship with Him. Doesn’t this also tell us the way He would like us to feel about our blessed and holy places designed for His worship. For this is what a church is, make no mistake – a place of worship.

So although I believe the most modest of churches is of equal importance to the greatest of cathedrals in God’s eyes (as any church is only as good as the Christianity of its congregation) it is the Christian’s duty to strive to maintain or improve that household.

The Friary was crumbling, paintwork was peeling, and the PA system intermittently failing to the detriment of the service. All this created an air of despondency and uncertainty within the congregation as it became difficult to pay homage to the Lord with feedback ringing in one’s ears.

Yes, we are in a global recession and there is much wrong with the world, but we need to change the minds of man, not make false economies.

Praise the Lord for our churches – those hallowed havens of hope for all Christians