THROUGH
MOUNTAIN MISTS
Early Settlers of
Their
Descendants...Their Stories...Their Achievements
Lifting the
Mists of History on Their Way of Life
By: Ethelene Dyer Jones
I do not pretend to be an
authority on
theology, doctrine, or holy days. But having spent 56 years married to
a
minister, I've had occasion to observe almost every day the Christian
Church
holds significant.
Today is Maundy Thursday in Holy
Week. What
does it mean? How can we as Christians best observe it?
Webster's dictionary is a great
help in
defining words. I was delighted to see that this prestigious reference
work
entered the term in capital letters, MAUNDY THURSDAY, indicating its
significance. I found that it stems from Middle English, 'maunde'-
the ceremony of washing the feet of the poor on this day
before Easter, an early church practice. The Old French word for it was
mande, from the Latin mandatum, which
means command.
All of this stems back to Jesus'
last night
with his disciples before his trial, crucifixion and resurrection. In
an upper
room in
He also instituted the Lord's
Supper. He
gave His disciples a mandatum, we would say, a mandate, to do the
Supper in
remembrance of Him. As he washed the disciples' feet, He said, "Ye
ought
also to wash each other's feet." (John 13: 14)
John 13:34-35 gave another mandate from
Jesus: "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another as
I
have loved you; that ye also love one another.
By this shall all men know that
ye are my
disciples, if ye have love one for another."
These mandates from Jesus on
that long ago
Thursday (whether they called the day Thursday then or not) were acts
of
humility and obedience. And as we in our churches observe Holy Week,
Maundy
Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, we are drawing from the teachings
and
commandments of Jesus to examine what it means to be His disciple and
what true
servanthood is all about.
I read recently these words:
"Without
Christmas we could not have Easter. But without Easter, Christmas would
be of
little significance."
In the church's holy calendar,
we observe
many traditions. The traditions were set up by our Lord and our
spiritual
forebears for reasons of remembrance. Even Christ Himself knew that we
needed
dates and ceremonies to bring to mind the dynamic, even revolutionary,
teachings He left for His disciples of any age to follow.
Most of us in this mountain
region can look
back upon our "raising" and be grateful. Our parents and
grandparents, even our great grandparents felt that a part of a
steadfast life
was a strong faith. Most of us were "brought up" in the church. How
well do I remember how joyous Easter was in my country church,
Choestoe. I cannot
recall our observing Maundy Thursday when I was a child, but certainly
Easter
was one of the high holy days.
I remember how cold it was the
first
sunrise service I attended on a hill in a neighbor's pasture. We stood
there
hearing the words of our pastor as he read the accounts of those who
came early
to the tomb to find it empty. "From darkness to light, from death to
resurrection!" It was a climactic moment as the sun rose gloriously
over
the eastern hills, dispelling the darkness of that early morning. It
was not
hard at all for a young child to imagine being at the Garden Tomb in
Later on, at the morning worship
service on
those long ago Easter Sundays we enjoyed joyous occasions of happy
music and
wonderful encouragement. Death was but a passageway to eternal life. It
was a
concept wrapped up in Easter and new life all about us as Spring in its
glory
reflected a truth almost too deep to understand.
Leading up to Easter is Maundy
Thursday,
with its remembrances of foot washing and the Lord's Supper, helping to
keep us
attuned to holy promises, holy mandates. The Lord Christ willingly did
what He
came to earth to do. What He commanded His disciples is still taking
place
around the world, awaiting the one promise He has yet to fulfill: "I
will
return."
I like to consider the act of
washing the
disciples' feet on that long ago Maundy Thursday as being the humble
service
Christ assigns us to do. This washing can take the form of clothing the
poor,
feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, comforting the dying-and, yes,
washing
the feet of those who need this balm.
In a letter recently from
missionary
friends who work as doctors in
Maundy Thursday is a day for
soul-searching
and good deeds. We have a mandate to live out, an example to follow. I
invite
you to "think on these things," and have a meaningful Maundy
Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter.
c2006 by
Ethelene Dyer
Jones; published Apr. 13, 2006 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville,
GA.
Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
[Ethelene Dyer
Jones is a retired educator,
freelance writer, poet, and historian. She may be reached at
e-mail edj0513@windstream.net;
phone 478-453-8751; or mail 1708 Cedarwood Road, Milledgeville, GA
31061-2411.]
Updated August 4,
2009
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