On the night before He suffered, Jesus took bread into His hands. He gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to His disciples. And with the words “This is My Body” and “This is My Blood,” the mystery of the Eucharist was born.
Holy Thursday is more than a moment in history—it is the foundation of our redemption.
In the Upper Room, Christ didn’t just share a meal with His closest friends. He instituted the Eucharist, the Sacrament in which His sacrifice becomes present for us at every Mass, across every generation. This is the night He gave us the gift of Himself—fully, truly, and without reservation. “This is My Body.”
But He didn’t stop with giving us the most precious gift.
He gave more.
By telling His Apostles “Do this in memory of Me,” Jesus established the priesthood. That sacred command entrusted them—and every validly ordained priest after them—with the power to make His Body and Blood present on our altars. In giving us the Eucharist, Christ also gave us the hands that would bring it to us.
Every Holy Thursday, the Church invites us to enter this mystery. We kneel at the altar of repose, we listen to the Gospel of the Last Supper, and we watch as the priest, in persona Christi, washes feet and offers the Mass of the Lord’s Supper. It’s a night that should stop us in our tracks.
In a world filled with noise and distraction, Holy Thursday reminds us: Christ is truly here. And He’s never stopped giving Himself to us.
Let this evening be an invitation to stillness. To thanksgiving. To awe.
Sit with the mystery. Gaze upon the Eucharist. Pray for our priests. And if you have the chance, attend the Mass of the Lord’s Supper—it is the doorway into the Triduum and the very heart of Holy Week.
This night changed everything.
As you reflect tonight, consider offering a small token of gratitude to your parish priest during the Easter season—a quiet thank-you for his “yes” to God and his tireless service to Christ’s Church.
