Evening Mass on Maundy Thursday evokes the Last Supper, which established the Eucharist. “We cannot live without the Eucharist. We cannot fail to fulfill Jesus’ call: ‘do this in memory of me’. It is the call that Jesus continues to make”, highlighted the bishop of Vila Real at the celebration he presided over at the city’s Cathedral, to remind Christians of the duty to go to Mass. Not everyone does it, but there is hope, said D. António Augusto Azevedo.
“In this regard, there are ambivalent signs: There are some Christians who forget the Eucharist, who do not regularly participate in Sunday Mass. But there is also a growing number of Christians, especially young people, who are rediscovering the essential value of the Eucharistic celebration.”, and also “promising signs, of communities that strive to prepare more dignified celebrations and of lay people who prepare for the various services”, he indicated.
Whoever welcomes “the bread broken and given in the Eucharist is more prepared to serve his brothers”, considered the bishop, for whom it is necessary to reflect and remember the gestures of Christ, such as washing the feet of the apostles, which was anything but an attitude of power.
“Learning this lesson from the One who came to serve and not to be served, implies giving up so many pretensions, greatness and superiorities.. Even in more egalitarian societies, in which everyone’s rights are recognized, expressions of unfair inequalities, domination and oppression still persist”, highlighted D. António Augusto Azevedo, adding that “In society, and much less in the Church, there cannot be masters and servants. In fact, the only master, Jesus Christ, made himself the servant of all. He set an example and continues to challenge us ‘do it too’”.
In this celebration, which was broadcast by Renaissance, D. António Augusto Azevedo washed the feet of 12 people chosen from the community and presented by the Irmandade da Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Vila Real.
