Holy Thursday
Thursday of the Lord's Supper
- Feast Day
- April 2
Holy Thursday, the Thursday of the Lord's Supper, opens the Sacred Paschal Triduum with the Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper. The Roman Missal directs that this Mass commemorate the institution of the Eucharist and of the ministerial priesthood by Christ at the Last Supper, and the commandment of fraternal love expressed in the washing of the feet (John 13:1-15).
In the morning, the Bishop ordinarily celebrates the Chrism Mass at the cathedral with the priests of his diocese. He blesses the Oil of the Sick and the Oil of Catechumens and consecrates the Sacred Chrism. The priests renew their priestly promises. The blessed oils are then taken to parishes for use throughout the coming year.
At the Evening Mass, the Gloria is sung and the bells are rung, after which they remain silent until the Easter Vigil. The washing of the feet, an optional rite, follows the homily. After Communion, the Blessed Sacrament is transferred in solemn procession to the altar of repose, where the faithful keep watch in adoration. The altar is then stripped, and Mass is not celebrated again in the Latin Church until the Easter Vigil.
The norms governing this day are set out in the Roman Missal, in the Ceremonial of Bishops, and in the Congregation for Divine Worship's circular letter Paschalis Sollemnitatis (1988).
Holy Thursday is the day on which the Eucharist begins. In Ecclesia de Eucharistia, Pope Saint John Paul II called the Eucharist instituted on this night the source and summit of the Christian life. The washing of the feet inseparably links the priesthood and the Eucharist to humble service, while the procession to the altar of repose initiates the Church's vigil with Christ in Gethsemane through the night that leads to Good Friday.
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