Maundy Thursday

"What is Maundy Thursday?"

Maundy Thursday, also known as “Holy Thursday” is the Thursday of Passion Week, one day before Good Friday (the Thursday before Easter). Maundy Thursday is the name given to the day on which Jesus celebrated the Passover (known as The Last Supper) with His disciples. The Church especially the Catholic Church focuses on two important events of Maundy Thursday.

First, Jesus celebrating the Passover (The Last Supper) with His disciples, thereby instituting the Holy Communion (Luke 22:19-20). The Catholic Church also celebrates this day as the institutionalisation of Priesthood.

Second, Jesus washing the feet of His disciples as an act of humility and service, thereby setting an example that we should love and serve one another in humility (John 13:3-17). Majority of the Christian churches observe a foot-washing ceremony on Maundy Thursday to commemorate Jesus’ washing the feet of the disciples.

Derivation of the name "Maundy"

There is an agreement with most scholars that the English word Maundy in that name for the day is derived through Middle English, and Old French mandé, from the Latin mandatum, the first word of the phrase "Mandatum novum do vobis ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos" ("A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. " , the statement by Jesus in the Gospel of John (13:34) by which Jesus explained to the Apostles the significance of his action of washing their feet. The phrase is used as the antiphon sung during the "Mandatum" ceremony of the washing of the feet, which may be held during Mass or at another time as a separate event, during which a priest or bishop (representing Christ) ceremonially washes the feet of others, typically 12 persons chosen as a cross-section of the community.

There are others who theorize that the English name "Maundy Thursday" arose from "maundsor" baskets, in which on that day the king of England distributed alms to certain poor at Whitehall: "maund" is connected with the Latin mendicare, and French mendier, to beg. A source from the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod likewise states that, if the name was derived from the Latin mandatum, we would call the day Mandy Thursday, or Mandate Thursday, or even Mandatum Thursday; and that the term "Maundy" comes in fact from the Latin mendicare, Old French mendier, and English maund, which as a verb means to beg and as a noun refers to a small basket held out by maunders as they maunded. The name Maundy Thursday thus might arise from a medieval custom whereby the English royalty handed out "maundy purses" of alms to the poor before attending Mass on this day.

Maundy Thursday Calendar:

2011 = April 21

2012 = April 5

2013 = March 28

2014 = April 17

2015 = April 2