The Watch

The Maundy Thursday Eucharist and watch is always a wonderful experience. I think like many priestly activities it is difficult to understand the impact that they have upon the priest. From the outside of the sacrament many people assume that the hearing of confessions must be either a depressing or a prurient experience. Nothing is further from the truth, it is always for me an experience of grace for the one ministering the sacrament as well as for the recipient. All the clergy I have spoken to about this have a similar experience. I would imagine that the same is true of the foot washing. One member of the parish told me that she couldn't possible imagine me washing her feet, it would seem far too intimate! From the outside again one can imagine how it might look that way. However for me the experience is simple and moving. As usual there was a spread of people and feet - from that of a child to that of an older person. What moves one is not the foot - whether it is attractive or less so - but the fact that this is a gesture of love, like a mother caring for a child, or a child caring for a parent in later life. To kneel before another person and perform this simple act of service reminds one of the nature of the priestly ministry - to be an icon of Christ. We are all poor copies of course, but in the sacramental ministry we are to step aside and allow his grace and love to shine through 'the unworthy minister' as I sing during the Exultet at the Vigil. Pray for me, and all clergy, that we may be better witnesses to the Lord than we often are in our frailty. The sign of the foot washing of course is also a sign to us that we need to receive ministry. Like Peter, some of us are not always good at receiving ministry, but if we don't then we are only a step away from Pelagianism, of assuming that we need nobody's help, not even the Lord's..... The body of Christ needs all its members! After the Eucharist I am always humbled by the prayerful devotion with which the Watch is kept. Apart from a brief break to eat I am there for most of the watch, and I usually spend some time in prayer and meditation, and some time in spiritual reading. We don't do enough of this, simply spending time with the Lord. I am convinced that there is great spiritual benefit from doing this (if you believe that the Lord is truly present with us, veiled by the form of bread and wine how can you not), and hope that some of you may be encouraged by your participation in the watch to spend some more time doing this on other occasions.