"After the morning celebration of the Chrism Mass, in this evening Mass of the Lord's Supper, our focus is on the gift of the Eucharist and Jesus teaching us, through washing his disciples' feet, the mystery of his self-emptying in the Incarnation, the value of humble service, and the need for ongoing purification throughout the journey of life.

We enter more deeply into this mystery if we think of Jesus washing the feet of his Bride, the Church, instead of the individual apostles, for this community will be reborn through the mystery of the water and blood which flowed out from his pierced side on the Cross, revealing to us that the Church is born of Baptism and nourished by the Eucharist.

This evening, there is much to reflect on. As St John asserts [Jn 3:16], God loved the world in this particular way that he gave us the gift of his own Son. Jesus gave us the gift of the Eucharist and of the Church.

When we are tempted to suggest or even demand that the Church should accommodate itself to the modern world, we should remember humbly that it is a gift and we are not always worthy recipients of that gift.