Amidst the gambit of liturgical services in our yearly roster, Maundy Thursday stands out as one of my favourites. The solemnity of the night, ending with the stark discomfort of stripping away all signs of life and vitality, has always been profoundly moving for me. This year was no exception, albeit for completely different reasons.
It was during the first reading that ‘the spinner’ entered the church. You may have encountered this individual as you travel down 19th street.. He is gentile and polite and seems to be the self appointed guard of the park across the street from the church. It’s just that he spins . . constantly. At first he simply spun at the back of the church, listening and watching as the service unfolded. Gradually, he made his way forward to the front, all the while spinning in circles. It’s hardto pay attention to a reading from Exodus when you have a man spinning in the front of the church.
Sometime during the psalm, the spinner left. He left with as little fuss as he did when he entered. The service was set to continue as normal , progressing through to the middle of the gospel reading, when a member of our choir fainted. In fact he fainted twice. As the Gospel was read, the sermon was preached, and feet were washed, care was extended to him – although it became soon clear that paramedics were needed. It’s difficult to enter into the drama of the foot washing when you are waiting for an ambulance to arrive.
We stopped the service after the foot washing to say a prayer for our choir member. We then resumed the service and entered into a time of Eucharist – which is precisely when the paramedics arrived! It’s near impossible to pay attention to the offering of Christ to us when there are paramedics taking someone’s vital signs right in front of the altar.
All of this lead me to an interesting realization. I need a Lord who can handle the craziness of life. When, despite my best plans and efforts, life rears its ugly head and causes things to go haywire, I need a Lord who does not stand removed or far away, who does not call me out of the chaos, but rather who possess the power and love to dwell in the midst of it. I need a Lord who is able to act for me when I don’t know how to act; one who can speak for me when I don’t know what to say; one whom I can lean on when I am feel completely ill-equipped to handle that which is around me. I need a saviour who not only calls me to give all of myself to him, but who gives all of himself to me.
Thanks be to Jesus Christ, who is in the midst of the chaos of life, speaks words of assurance and comfort: “This is my body which is given for you.”