Reading and meditation on the Word of God on Holy Thursday, April 2nd, 2026

Delivered by Martinus Ifan Fernanto from Our Lady of Sorrow Parish in the Diocese of Bandung, Indonesia. Exodus 12: 1-8.11-14; Rs psalm 116: 12-13.15-16bc.17-18; 1 Corinthians 11: 23-26; John 13: 1-15.A MEANINGFUL HOLY THURSDAY  Our meditation today has the theme: A Meaningful HolyThursday. This day in the Holy Week is called Holy Thursday and white is itsdominant liturgical color. Vestments for the ministers and servers, and thedecoration are all in white or golden appearance. This color symbolizes joy andglory. Today's celebration, meaning the Last Supper celebration tonight,centers on Jesus Christ's actions that give us meanings of glory, joy, powerand feast. In this celebration there is a ceremony of Jesuswashing the feet of His apostles. This action of Jesus teaches us to serve oneanother in humility. This is the sign of a great joy. The atmosphere of joy andthe triumph of love that we share together as a community of People of God canbe manifested through our mutual services. For this, Jesus says that we mustlove one another as He first loves us. He teaches us His greatest law writtenin the Scriptures, namely to love our neighbors. The celebration tonight reminds us of the Eucharist,the great sacrifice of the Holy Mass instituted by Jesus Christ, who sacrificedHimself, for that was the will of His Father. His words and deeds of love areactually, the sources of our joy and they are the signs of the presence of God'sglory. The Eucharist itself is our joy, as the incarnated Word of God presentin His Body and becomes the spiritual food we share together as one Church.Along with the Eucharist, Jesus established the Sacrament of the Priesthood.This is an important joy for the entire Church because this Priesthood aims toperform the Eucharist for the whole members of the Church. The priesthoodexercises the power of the Lord who leads the People of God and guides them inthe light and truth of the Lord. In this celebration we also remember the criticalmoments of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, where beads of blood sweatflowing and dripping to bring Him to the glory of the cross which was justclose at hand. The situation of Gethsemane was full of trials and death threatthat made everything so frightening and dangerous. But like the Lord himself,we must have courage and faith in order to able to pass through. Between Gethsemane and Golgotha there ​​is a crucialmoment when one experiences how the suffering and death are already awaiting toan actual happening. Usually the temptation always comes to bring him or heraway from that terrifying reality. Jesus himself even says: O Father, let thiscup pass from me. But we must follow our Master Jesus Christ, who with allwillingness and encouragement went on to overcome the temptation, and be ableto drink the cup of sufferings. This is the real Christian joy. Even though we are all sinners who often oppose God andothers, we have not lost faith in God and we as the one Church still enjoy the fruitfulnessof the Eucharist and the Priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ who sanctifies usand opens the way for us to salvation. Let'spray. In the name of the Father ... Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen our faith tocontinue to believe and be faithful to the Eucharist as a means of oursalvation. Our Father who art in heaven... In the name of the Father ...