WORSHIP@HOME
Preparation
- We recommend glancing through the whole service before you start. Adapt the service for your family however you would like, especially so it will be age-appropriate.
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Gather these items in advance. Get the whole family involved in the preparations.
- A large bowl with warm, soapy water (or if you have it, add a good-smelling essential oil to warm water).
- A pitcher or smaller container to be used for pouring.
- A large towel to put under the bowl of water, and several others for drying hands and feet.
- Lotion or oil for foot massage.
- Place your family Bible on the table, if you have one, opened up to the Gospel reading of the day (John 13:1-15).
- The script has leader and various reader parts. Anyone old enough to read well can perform these roles.
- An iPad/tablet computer or large phone could work well for reading the script. It would would be helpful to have two devices so you can display the gospel slide show and/or for multiple people to read the parts of the Gospel reading.
- Don't worry, you don't have to do this perfectly. Have some fun with it. Let's pray!
Just Before You Begin
- Silence and set aside all phones or other devices that may interrupt you.
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Opening Song
Greeting
Leader:
┼ In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
All: Amen.
Leader:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father
and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be God forever.
The response is: Blessed be God forever.
All: Blessed be God forever.
Leader:
We gather together as a family to remember how Jesus taught us to serve others.
Let us now listen to God's Word
and join in prayer.
Opening Prayer
Leader: Let us pray.
Leader:
Lord God,
the night before your Son died
he showed us how to gather together for a special meal
and how to make sacrifices for others, big and small.
Help us to love others
as Jesus taught us to love.
Grant this through Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.
LITURGY OF THE WORD
Gospel
Reader 1:
We now do this action prayer together:
May the Lord be on my mind, ┼
on my lips, ┼
and in my heart ┼
as we hear the Gospel today.
A reading from the holy Gospel of John.
If you'd like to read the Gospel as a group, click on the "Parts" tab. Or read out of your own Bible (John 13:1-15).
Reader 1:
It was before Passover, and Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and to return to the Father.
He had always loved his followers in this world, and he loved them to the very end.
Even before the evening meal started, the devil had made Judas,
the son of Simon Iscariot, decide to betray Jesus.
Jesus knew that he had come from God and would go back to God.
He also knew that the Father had given him complete power.
So during the meal Jesus got up, removed his outer garment, and wrapped a towel around his waist.
He put some water into a large bowl.
Then he began washing his disciples' feet and drying them with the towel he was wearing.
But when he came to Simon Peter, that disciple asked,
“Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus answered, “You don’t really know what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
“You will never wash my feet!” Peter replied.
“If I don’t wash you,” Jesus told him, “you don’t really belong to me.”
Peter said, “Lord, don’t wash just my feet. Wash my hands and my head.”
Jesus answered, “People who have bathed and are clean all over need to wash just their feet.
And you, my disciples, are clean, except for one of you.”
Jesus knew who would betray him. That is why he said, “except for one of you.”
After Jesus had washed his disciples' feet and had put his outer garment back on, he sat down again. Then he said:
Do you understand what I have done?
You call me your teacher and Lord, and you should, because that is who I am.
And if your Lord and teacher has washed your feet, you should do the same for each other.
I have set the example, and you should do for each other exactly what I have done for you.
Reader 1:
Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come
to pass from this world to the Father.
He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.
The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.
So, during supper,
fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power
and that he had come from God and was returning to God,
he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.
He took a towel and tied it around his waist.
Then he poured water into a basin
and began to wash the disciples’ feet
and dry them with the towel around his waist.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him,
“Master, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“What I am doing, you do not understand now,
but you will understand later.”
Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered him,
“Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”
Simon Peter said to him,
“Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.”
Jesus said to him,
“Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,
for he is clean all over;
so you are clean, but not all.”
For he knew who would betray him;
for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
So when he had washed their feet
and put his garments back on and reclined at table again,
he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?
You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet,
you ought to wash one another’s feet.
I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”
Reader 1: The Gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel Slideshow
) to enlarge.
Or access full slideshow online
Gospel Illustration
) to enlarge.
Gospel Reflection
Reader 2:
Pope Francis has changed the tradition of washing people's feet on Holy Thursday.
Previous popes have washed the feet of twelve priests every year.
But Pope Francis has washed the feet of:
• Inmates in a prison
• Muslim migrants
• Disabled people
• Women, men, and even children
Washing of Feet
Reader 2:
In Jesus’ time, people had to walk everywhere
unless they were one of the few people who had a horse or a donkey.
Most people wore sandals or went barefoot if they couldn’t afford sandals.
It was dry and dusty in Jesus’ part of the world,
and after walking many miles each day their feet would be dirty!
When someone entered a house, the host would provide for the guest
to have his or her feet washed, usually by a servant.
So when Jesus washed the feet of his disciples,
they were shocked because he was acting like a servant, not like a master or a teacher.
He was trying to teach them that we should all be servants to one another.
No one should be a master over someone else and we should all take turns serving and being served.
Now let’s do what Jesus told us to do—let’s wash one another’s feet.
Have everyone (kids and parents included) take off socks and shoes. One at a time, an adult should wash a child’s feet. After drying them off, you can give a brief massage, rubbing in some lotion or oil. Aim for gentle, not ticklish! After all the children’s feet are washed, let each child take a turn washing the adults’ feet.
(Although adults may be more self-conscious about having their feet washed, please allow the children this privilege! They will feel honored to do this for someone else who usually serves them.)
- What did it feel like to get your feet washed? Was it uncomfortable to allow someone else serve you? Did any of you feel a little bit like Peter did?
- This action is an expression of love and service, just like when Jesus did this for his friends. What kinds of actions do you think Jesus was trying to teach us that we should do for others? How can we keep their eyes open for ways we can serve others?
- Why do you think Pope Francis has changed the tradition of popes washing feet on this day? Why is he doing this differently?
- What are some ways that we can serve others during this current crisis?
General Intercessions
Leader: Now let’s pray together to God for what we need.
Reader 3:
For all those who are seriously ill at this time,
that they may feel God's love and receive healing,
let us pray to the Lord.
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
Reader 3:
For medical workers, police, government leaders,
and all those working hard to help others at this time,
may God give them strength and wisdom,
let us pray to the Lord.
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
Reader 3:
That those who are lonely, scared, and confused at this time,
that they can feel God’s love for them,
let us pray to the Lord.
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
Reader 3: For what else and for who else shall we pray?
Lord's Prayer
Leader: Jesus taught us to call God our Father, and so we have the courage to say:
All:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Sign of Peace
Leader: Let us now offer each other a sign of peace.
A Litany for Spiritual Communion
Leader: The response is: Lord, bring us closer to you!
All: Lord, bring us closer to you!
Leader:
Lord our God,
we wish we could gather today with our parish community,
but we gather here out of love and concern for others.
You teach us that when two or three are gathered in your name,
you are there.
Together, we pray:
All: Lord, bring us closer to you!
Leader:
Christ Jesus, you are present in a special way
when bread and wine are turned into your Body and Blood.
Since we cannot receive you in this way today,
We ask that you enter our hearts
so that we may receive you spiritually.
Together, we pray:
All: Lord, bring us closer to you!
Leader:
Lord our God,
watch over your family
and keep us safe in your care,
for all our hope is in you.
All: Lord, bring us closer to you!
Concluding Rite
Blessing & Dismissal
Leader:
May the Lord bless us
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
All: Amen.
Leader: Go in the peace of Christ.
All: Thanks be to God.
Closing Song
After the Service
Share Your Experience
Take a picture of your family in your worship area and share it on social media (tag it with #WorshipAtHome).
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Portions excerpted from or adapted from Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest: Leader's Guide © 1993 United States Catholic Conference (USCC), 3211 Fourth Street, NE, Washington, DC 20017-1194 USA. All rights reserved.
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