Daily Readings - Thu Apr 14 2022

¹The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt²"This month will be for you the beginning of the months. It will be first in the months of the year³Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them: On the tenth day of this month, let everyone take a lamb, by their families and houses⁴But if the number is less than may suffice to be able to consume the lamb, he shall accept his neighbor, who has been joined with his house according to the number of souls that may suffice to be able to eat the lamb⁵And it shall be a lamb without blemish, a one year old male. According to this rite, you shall also take a young goat⁶And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month. And the entire multitude of the sons of Israel shall immolate it toward evening⁷And they shall take from its blood, and place it on both the door posts and the upper threshold of the houses, in which they will consume it⁸And that night they shall eat the flesh, roasted by fire, and unleavened bread with wild lettuce¹¹Now you shall consume it in this way: You shall gird your waist, and you shall have shoes on your feet, holding staves in your hands, and you shall consume it in haste. For it is the Passover (that is, the Crossing) of the Lord¹²And I will cross through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man, even to cattle. And I will bring judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord¹³But the blood will be for you as a sign in the buildings where you will be. And I will see the blood, and I will pass over you. And the plague will not be with you to destroy, when I strike the land of Egypt¹⁴Then you shall have this day as a memorial, and you shall celebrate it as a solemnity to the Lord, in your generations, as an everlasting devotion

1 Corinthians

Chapter 11

²³For I have received from the Lord what I have also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the same night that he was handed over, took bread²⁴and giving thanks, he broke it, and said: "Take and eat. This is my body, which shall be given up for you. Do this in remembrance of me.²⁵Similarly also, the cup, after he had eaten supper, saying: "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.²⁶For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord, until he returns

John

Chapter 13

¹Before the feast day of the Passover, Jesus knew that the hour was approaching when he would pass from this world to the Father. And since he had always loved his own who were in the world, he loved them unto the end²And when the meal had taken place, when the devil had now put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray him³knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands and that he came from God and was going to God⁴he rose up from the meal, and he set aside his vestments, and when he had received a towel, he wrapped it around himself⁵Next he put water into a shallow bowl, and he began to wash the feet of the disciples and to wipe them with the towel with which he was wrapped⁶And then he came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to him, "Lord, would you wash my feet?⁷Jesus responded and said to him: "What I am doing, you do not now understand. But you shall understand it afterward.⁸Peter said to him, "You shall never wash my feet!" Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you will have no place with me.⁹Simon Peter said to him, "Then Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head!¹⁰Jesus said to him: "He who is washed need only wash his feet, and then he will be entirely clean. And you are clean, but not all.¹¹For he knew which one would betray him. For this reason, he said, "You are not all clean.¹²And so, after he washed their feet and received his vestments, when he had sat down at table again, he said to them: "Do you know what I have done for you¹³You call me Teacher and Lord, and you speak well: for so I am¹⁴Therefore, if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash the feet of one another¹⁵For I have given you an example, so that just as I have done for you, so also should you do

Sermon

The readings today take us on a journey through the heart of God’s love and the call to humility and service. In the first reading from Exodus, we hear the story of the Passover, where the Israelites are instructed to mark their homes with the blood of a lamb so that the angel of death will "pass over" their firstborn sons. This act of faith and obedience is a powerful reminder of God’s deliverance and the sacrifices He makes for His people. The context of this reading is deeply rooted in the history of the Israelites, marking the night before their liberation from slavery in Egypt. It is a story of salvation, trust, and the establishment of a sacred ritual that would forever shape the identity of God’s people. In the second reading from 1 Corinthians, we fast-forward to the Last Supper, where Jesus institutes the Eucharist. Paul recounts how Jesus, on the night of His betrayal, took bread and wine, offering them as His body and blood, and commanded His disciples to "do this in remembrance of me." This reading connects directly to the Passover story, as Jesus becomes the new Lamb of God, whose sacrifice frees humanity from the slavery of sin. The Eucharist is not just a meal; it is a profound act of love and remembrance that unites us with Christ and with one another. The Gospel from John deepens this theme of love and service. Jesus, knowing His time on earth is coming to an end, humbles Himself to wash the feet of His disciples. This act of humility is a shocking reversal of power and privilege, as the Master becomes the servant. Jesus then commands His disciples to follow His example, saying, "If I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash the feet of one another." This is not just a symbolic gesture; it is a call to live out the love and humility of Christ in our daily lives. These readings remind us that our faith is rooted in God’s sacrificial love and calls us to live out that love in service to others. Just as the Israelites were saved by the blood of the lamb, we are saved by the blood of Christ, who became the ultimate Passover sacrifice. The Eucharist invites us to remember this sacrifice and to be transformed by it. And in washing the feet of His disciples, Jesus shows us that true greatness is found in serving others. As we reflect on these readings, let us ask ourselves: How am I living out the love and humility of Christ? Am I willing to serve others, even in the simplest and most humble ways? May we allow the power of the Eucharist to transform our hearts and may we follow Jesus’ example by loving and serving one another.