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Holy Thursday (A)

April 02, 2026

Fr. John Colacino C.PP.S.

Introit

Collect

O God, who have called us to participate
in this most sacred Supper,
in which your Only Begotten Son,
when about to hand himself over to death,
entrusted to the Church a sacrifice new for all eternity,
the banquet of his love,
grant, we pray,
that we may draw from so great a mystery,
the fullness of charity and of life.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

First Reading Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: 2 This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. 4 If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbour in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. 7 They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 8 They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 11 This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the Passover of the Lord. 12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. 13 The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 This day shall be a day of remembrance for you. You shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.

Responsorial Psalm

Second Reading 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Beloved: 23 I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Verse before the Gospel

Gospel John 13:1-15

Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray him. And during supper 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4 got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered, “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus said to him, “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, “Not all of you are clean.” 12 After he had washed their feet, put on his robe, and returned to the table, Jesus said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord— and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.”

Catena Nova (see separate entry)

Homily

Why is this night different from all other nights? If you've ever been to a Passover seder you'll hear that question asked four times in Hebrew by the youngest member of the family. The answers in turn are:

Firstly, "On all other nights we eat leavened products and matzah, and on this night only matzah." (And so the Western Church continues to insist the bread of the Eucharist be unleavened).

Secondly, "On all other nights we eat all vegetables, and on this night only bitter herbs." (And so we begin the Paschal Triduum by joining Jesus in his bitter passion beginning with his agony in the Garden of Olives).

Thirdly, "On all other nights, we don’t dip our food even once, and on this night we dip twice." (Mindful that Jesus signaled his betrayer as "the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish;” Jn 13:26).

Lastly, "On all other nights we eat sitting or reclining, and on this night we only recline." (Jesus and his disciples no doubt reclined at table — unlike Da Vinci's portrait — a Greco-Roman custom taken over by the Jews as a sign of freedom since slaves were the ones who ate in an upright position).

In Jesus' time, however, when the Temple was still standing, this last question differed. It asked why lamb was on the table — lamb sacrificed by the temple priests; after the Temple was destroyed, the question was changed. John tells us the Passover lambs were slaughtered on the morrow as Jesus, the Lamb of God, was crucified. (I leave the discrepancy between him and the Synoptic gospels and Paul for another day!)

Now in addition to the four questions, the meal also included four cups of wine. They represented God's various promises of deliverance: for leaving Egypt, for freedom from slavery, for redemption, and for election as God's people. It was over the third cup after the main meal was finished that Jesus said, This cup is the new covenant in my blood. (II)

This year Passover falls from April 1-9. The seder meal takes place on the first two nights of Passover (but in Israel the first night only). So in the heavily Jewish neighborhood where I live the second seder happily coincides with tonight's observance of Holy Thursday.

Now whatever its exact circumstance, we Christians have been doing this ever since the night when Jesus was betrayed (cf. II) with the same unleavened bread and the same cup of wine. We are obeying, in our own way, the command, This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations you shall observe it as an ordinance for ever. (I). But we do it, not just once a year, but as often as we eat this bread and drink the cup in remembrance of Jesus. (Cf. II). It should really be called the First Supper.

But we Christians should never forget how the first Passover was about freedom. The unleavened Bread we eat and the Fruit of the vine we drink, by which we proclaim the Lord's death (I)) commits us to be Exodus people as well. We cannot eat the Christian Passover with integrity as long as anyone remains in bondage. Nor can we eat this meal in good conscience if we are not actively resisting latter-day Pharaohs who refuse to let God's people go free. Neither can we seek refuge in the safety of pious devotions unmindful that the Blood we drink was foreshadowed by an Avenging Angel who wrought judgment on Egypt. If we expect this Blood to protect us, we cannot leave anyone behind in the Egypts of this world.

And although Pope Leo has chosen to celebrate the Mass of the Lord's Supper once again in his cathedral church of St. John Lateran — which is his prerogative as Bishop of Rome — who can forget the Holy Thursdays of Pope Francis when he went out to those in prison washing the feet of prisoners — men and women, young and old, Catholics and those of other or no religion? There we saw in unforgettable scenes the mandatum ritual in its clearest form: as Jesus performed an action only slaves would do — washing feet. And many were scandalized by Francis, as Peter was when the Teacher and Lord bent down.

As if to say by that gesture, "Remember when you too were enslaved, who on this night were brought forth into freedom. You also must do as I have done, as long as any are unfree: the deported, the detained, the addicted, the terrorized, those shackled by hate and grievance. So don't just eat the Supper in remembrance of me, but do this too, so you can have part in me. (G) They must go together. One without the other makes your Passover incomplete, your coming together a fading memory. So do both and my Real Presence will be with you always." Who lives and reigns, forever and ever. Amen.

Intercessions (Joe Milner; The Sunday Website)

For the Church: that we may live like Jesus and spend our lives in loving service, washing the feet, carrying the burdens, and comforting the brokenness of one another.

For the grace of unity: that divisions may be healed, unity restored, and that we may support one another in bringing forth the reign of God.

For those who cannot eat at the table of the Lord: that our love, friendship and service may offer them an experience of God’s love, a sense of community and support for life’s journey.

For our brothers who are priests: that they may be strengthened and renewed by God’s love, and following the example of Jesus, the great High Priest, faithfully lead us in worship and service.

For those who have nothing to eat or who feel abandoned this night: that God will fill their emptiness, renew their spirit, and grant them peace of mind and heart.

For a transformation of society: that God will touch the hearts of many and guide them in bringing the truth of the Gospel into their families, their workplaces, and their civic communities.

For all who have been betrayed, abused or tortured: that God will heal their pain, give them hope and help them to trust again.

For all who serve our daily needs, those who care for the sick, those who supply food for our tables or who respond to emergencies: that God will renew their strength and fill them with peace.

For the sick, for those approaching death, and for those with mental illness: that God will send an angel to comfort and strengthen them.

For the gift of peace: that God will bring an end to war, violence, and terrorism so that all may live in safety and free from fear.

O God, in the fullness of time you revealed your love in Jesus the Lord. On the eve of his death, as a sign of your covenant, he washed the feet of his disciples and gave himself as food and drink. Give us life at this sacred banquet and joy in humble service, that, bound to Christ in all things, we may pass over from this world to your kingdom, where he lives with you now and always in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen. (ICEL; 1998)

Offertory Antiphon

Communion Antiphon

Transfer of the Blessed Sacrament

Of the glorious Body telling, O my tongue, its mysteries sing, And the Blood, all price excelling, Which the world’s eternal King, In a spotless womb once dwelling, Shed for this world’s ransoming.

Given for us, for us descending, Of a Virgin to proceed, Man with man in converse blending, Scattered he the Gospel seed, Till his sojourn drew to ending, Which he closed in wondrous deed.

At the last great Supper lying, Circled by his chosen band, Meekly with the law complying, First he finished its command, Then, immortal Food supplying, Gave himself by his own hand.

Word made Flesh, by word he maketh Very bread his Flesh to be; Man in wine Christ’s blood partaketh: And if senses fail to see, Faith alone the true heart waketh To behold the mystery.

Therefore we, before him bending, This great Sacrament revere; Types and shadows have their ending, For the newer rite is here; Faith, our outward sense befriending, Makes the outward vision clear.

Glory let us give, and blessing To the Father and the Son; Honour, might and praise addressing, While eternal ages run; Ever too his love confessing, Who, from both, with both is one. Amen.

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