Questions for going deeper with the Scriptures for Thursday, April 21st

Questions for Maundy Thursday | Mark 14:12-72

Exodus 12:1-14 | 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 | John 13:1-17, 31b-35

Today is known as “Holy Thursday” and also liturgically as “Maundy Thursday”.  The Maundy isn’t a misspelled Monday, but rather a derivative of the old French mandé and the Latin mandatum , both of which mean “commandment”.  In this last night together, Jesus gathers with his friends to celebrate the Passover: the high holiday in which the Jews remembered the story of the Israelites slavery in Egypt [Mitzrayim  in Hebrew] through a liturgical sharing of a meal.  It’s together around a table that they re-enact their deliverance of the Israelites from the hand of Pharaoh.  In doing so they don’t just remember, but they appropriate the story for today’s context, reflecting upon the meaning of freedom in terms of the mitzrayims that enslaves, distract and blind us today.

Questions for going deeper with the Scriptures for Wednesday, April 20th

The Wednesday of Holy Week | Mark 14:1-11

After the confrontations and clashes in the courts of the temple, Jesus retreats to be with his closest friends.  He removes himself from the public eye, quite possibly to give his friends perspective that they still lack.  The gospel writer tells us that the plot to kill Jesus is now in full swing.  The authorities realized that there is no way to shut Jesus down or up.  They have to remove the threat to their power and their way of life.  Only one option remains.