What happened to Tuesday & Wednesday?

You have to understand my context.  I grew up in a community that did not have churches with a strong liturgical presence.  Then, I went to college and started going to a United Methodist Church, which celebrates many of the holy days in the Christian year.  However, the church I attended in college was largely contemporary and laid back with and felt a lot more like the Southern Baptist Church I grew up in, only with drums and an acoustic guitar.  So, when I served my United Methodist Church, fresh out of college and barely in seminary, I looked at them like they'd lost their mind when they asked me what we were doing for Advent.  Advent?  Is that when we celebrate people like Thomas Edison?  And when I first heard about Maundy Thursday, I thought, "What happened to Tuesday and Wednesday?"

I had a lot of learning to do.  The background for the term "Maundy Thursday" is even a little sketchy.  Experts can't even really agree on where the term Maundy came from.  You can read the Wikipedia page about it here.  My guess is even a lot of people going to services on Holy Thursday (which makes a lot more sense to say to me) don't know what Maundy means and maybe even the significance of the events of the day we are celebrating.

The story of Jesus' last meal with His disciples is rich with meaning for us, but the one that has stuck in my head has been that of how Jesus handed betrayal.  I recently read a book by Rev. Heidi Neumark about her 20 years as pastor of Transfiguration Lutheran Church in the South Bronx.  In it she tells a story of a grafitti memorial to one of the prominent gang members who was killed in the community.  He was killed in a gunfight that ensued because of his retaliation for being betrayed by a fellow gang member.  For years, people lit candles, left stuffed animals, and brought fast food to leave at the makeshift altar.  But that is not the only way to respond to betrayal.

Jesus was betrayed as well on the Thursday before Easter, and he chose sacrifice.  Judas was the first betrayer, but not the last.  All of His disciples (even mighty Peter) would desert him that night, yet Jesus still chose the cross.  The burgers and fries left at the altar of the slain gang member represent the choice to act in revenge to those that betray us; the bread and cup at the altar of Christ represent the choice to act in sacrifice to betrayal.  We have a choice when we are betrayed (and you will be).  We can retaliate with revenge, and perhaps it'll feel good in the short term.  Or, we can choose the way of Jesus and retaliate with love, forgiveness and sacrifice.  Holy Thursday is a reminder that Jesus chooses to love us and sacrifice for us even though we all betray him by our own sin, but it is also a reminder that we have the choice to respond as Jesus when we are betrayed.  The revenge of the world leaves us with sad memorials; sacrifice in the way of Jesus leads to resurrection.