One of the notable
Holy Week activities in which the new pope participated was the footwashing
ceremony, where the international prelate removes his robes, takes a basin,
washes and kisses the feet of prisoners. Pope Francis requested that this time
women convicts be included. “This could be an indication that this pope favorably
considers the ordination of women”, said a news commentator.
Washing the feet of people who are seen
as marginal and undeserving has nothing to do with women’s ordination to the
priesthood. With some preface comments, John tells the story of Jesus washing
the feet of his disciples: 1) Jesus knew that the time had come for him to
leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the
world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. 2) The Passover Seder
was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of
Simon, to betray Jesus. 3) Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under
his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; SO... he got
up from the meal, wrapped a towel around his waist, poured water into a basin
and began to wash his disciples' feet...” John 13.1-16. The story touches our
hearts with the humility of the King of Kings hours before he suffered under
Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried. The dialogue between Peter and
Jesus was so down to earth: “You’ll
never wash my feet!” “If I don’t, you have no part with me”. “Then wash me from
hear to toe!” It shows how disciples, even today, misunderstand the meaning of
servanthood. Instead of all-or-nothing in giving of ourselves in service to the
Lord and His children, we more often envision all-or nothing as “I want all the
blessings God has for me and none of the discomforts of being faithful to His
calling!” In case (for sincerity or show) we actually participate in a
footwashing ceremony, we certify that those whose feet will be washed previously
had their baths and will be ever grateful for our goodness! Peter was going to
deny Christ hours later, and Jesus knew it. Judas had already betrayed Jesus,
and the Lord pointed out “The one who dips his bread with me” without negating
his participation in the Last Supper.
Once a lady we knew bragged, “My
spiritual gift is humility”. I recounted to myself the fruit of the Spirit
(love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and
self-control), noting that humility is not a fruit but an order: “Humble
yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” explained a few verses
before: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble" (James
4.10, 6).
Last Saturday, while we were talking on the verandah with our adult children,
Adriana brought out a box of shoeshining equipment and a couple of pairs of
boots which she sturdily put on and our eldest son began to polish boots, hers
and his. I joking ly said, “Wow, I
haven’t had my boots shined sine Lau bought them for me five years ago!”, and
Davi insisted I bring them to him to be shined. I sat watching that brilliant,
talented man of God dirtying his hands as he applied black polish, taking a brush and then a soft, clean rag to the leather and working an almost mirror-like shine into those boots.
Often when he and his father talk about deep spiritual and intellectual issues,
one of us does some menial, repetitive task as the conversation goes on, but at
that moment that shoeshining reminded me of Jesus washing the dusty feet of the
disciples.
Years ago, when Davi was very little and
we were in Garanhuns, in the Northeastern region of Brazil, where Lau was
preaching at a youth camp, a boy came to the porch asking
if we had shoes to shine. Davi got together all the shoes in our family and
gave them to be shined (and paid for by us), meanwhile talking about Jesus and sharing a Gospel of John with
the older boy. That boy ended up accepting Christ as his Savior and later went
to school and ended up becoming a pastor. The story was published in Evangelizing Today’s Child, the
periodical for Child Evangelism Fellowship, in the late Eighties. Davi was only
five, but had a penchant for shining shoes and sharing the Gospel.
My mind reaches out to Ephesians 6.15:
“with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace”
which describes the way Davi and other of God’s servants develop their walk,
ready to stand their ground, and after having done everything, stand firm in
full armor. Serving God means preparing, which starts with divesting ones’ self
of fancy clothes and sophisticated apparatus,
getting out a towel and basin, or boot polish, brush and rags, and
getting to work. Once a teacher at our seminary commented: “If your feet are
well-shod and your hands are clean and beautiful, you will be elegant, no
matter how simple your clothes”. May I continue to learn the lessons of
beautiful feet that bring glad tidings! (À
propos, Davi got his blackened hands cleaned with kerosene remover before
getting a long bath. Next morning he was ready, serving our church, sitting on
the floor with the little kids and then preaching with power to God-hungry
grownups. I wore my freshly-shined black boots).
.Elizabeth
Gomes
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