Though the word, "remember", appears frequently in the Old Testament, we only hear Jesus use the word during the Last Supper.
It is not his miracles or his parables that Jesus tells his disciples to remember. Rather, it is the gift of his Body and Blood in the Eucharist that he wishes to leave as an everlasting legacy to his followers.
As a good Jew, when Jesus says to his disciples, "Do this in remembrance of me", he is not asking them to reenact the Last Supper the way we might reenact a play. Instead, he wants his Body and Blood to be given to believers to sustain them throughout the centuries.
What we celebrate is not just a commemoration of what Jesus did. It is the real thing. Whenever we celebrate Mass, we are at the foot of the cross where Jesus' body is offered and his blood spilled for us.
It is what Saint Paul describes so clearly for us in this evening's second reading: "For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes" (1 Cor 11:26 RSV).
One of the most powerful and moving Negro spirituals is "Were You There." In beautiful simplicity, the song asks us if we were there when they crucified our Lord and invites us to tremble at the thought of our Savior's death.
We were not there. We were not in the upper room at the Last Supper to share a meal with Jesus and have our feet washed by him. We were not in the garden when Jesus was undergoing his agony. We were not at the foot of the cross when he suffered and died. Nor were we at the tomb when the women discovered that it was empty and that Jesus was alive. Yet at every Mass we are brought there through the power of memory and the mystery of faith.
Jesus comes to us in the form of bread and wine just as surely as he was present to the apostles. It is the same flesh crucified to the cross and the same blood which was spilled which we receive. Our sins are truly forgiven and we are empowered to live a new life in the Spirit.
With this evening's liturgy, Lent officially comes to an end and the great feast we call the "Holy Triduum" begins.
During these three days- Holy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil- we relive the events of Jesus' life which won for us the forgiveness of sins and the promise of everlasting life. These days mark our Passover from the slavery of sin and death to the freedom of the children of God.
Through our commemoration of these saving events, we are brought "there"- to Jerusalem, to the upper room, to Golgotha- so that we may bring Jesus and his saving power "here"- "here" to our homes, "here" to our schools, "here" to our places of business, and "here" to our hearts.
The thought of it should cause us to tremble
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