Maundy Thursday “is the day of service, of love.” It marks the beginning of the Easter Triduum, the most sacred days in the Church’s liturgical year, leading to Easter.

On this day, the Church celebrates the Last Supper of the Lord and the institution of the Eucharist. The celebration is marked by the rite of the washing of the feet—the gesture of love par excellence, the same gesture Jesus offered to his disciples on the night of the Last Supper.

Bishop Paolo Martinelli presided over the solemn Mass at St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Abu Dhabi.

In his homily, Bishop Paolo focused on the living presence of Jesus in our lives, close to us: “Before facing the mystery of the Cross for our salvation, Christ instituted the sacrament of his presence. Today, we do not simply celebrate an event that occurred many years ago; in the Eucharist, the gift that Jesus made of himself for our salvation repeats among us today. It is happening here and now.”

As the parish catechesis this year is centered on the Eucharist, the twelve persons chosen for the washing of the feet were drawn from among extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, lectors, and altar servers—ministries all closely connected to the Eucharist.

In washing the feet of the disciples, the Bishop explained, Jesus showed what it means to be his disciples: “people who allow themselves to be loved by the Lord, who allow themselves to be forgiven and reconciled, people who place themselves at the service of God's love.”

In the face of the difficulties of this time, marked by war, Bishop Paolo invited the faithful to remain rooted in the Eucharist: “Let us root ourselves ever more deeply in the Eucharist. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Nothing and no one will ever be able to separate us from his love.”

At the end of the Mass, the Bishop carried the Blessed Sacrament to the Altar of Repose set up in St. Therese Church, on the side of the Cathedral, where it remained until midnight for the adoration of the faithful.