Slaves and Masters
The Lord’s Supper is an iconic event within our faith — one that’s re-presented at each Mass and full of Christ’s rich teachings.
Even during the Last Supper, only hours before He’s betrayed and led off to suffer and die, Christ continues to teach His apostles (and us, consequently).
He says to His apostles: “Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him” John 13:16
Many times, Jesus’ words flip our prior notions on their heads, but these words don’t seem that groundbreaking. In this case, common sense tells us that a slave is (in fact) not greater than his master...he’s a slave.
But, the issue here is that this quote needs to be put in context — because it is obvious, and that’s exactly Jesus’ point.
Christ says these words after washing the apostles’ feet — an act that’s ‘beneath’ Him. At first, Peter even refuses to let Christ wash his feet. But through this action, we can start to see what Christ meant.
Jesus is basically asking his apostles, are you too good to serve one another? Do you think serving is beneath you?
Because if you do, then you’re saying that you are greater than your master and teacher, Jesus, who came to serve.
So, let’s ask ourselves — do we think that serving one another is beneath us? Is a slave greater than his master?