Thanks, I’ll be here all week.

“~Unlike~ most sacred events, we can actually track Christ’s footsteps, day-by-day, from the time that ~he~ arrived . . .

Glad you had such a sacred experience last night.

Elder Maxwell was fond of saying that our message to fellow Christians was “bring all of the truth that you have, and we will give you even more.”

Well, one of the truths that other Christians “have” is the focus on Holy Week, and we should live true to our word to embrace all that is good and virtuous. I am not sure that we need to embrace the entire rituals surrounding lent in order to pay special heed to the remarkable events of the last week of Christ’s life. Unlikely most sacred events, we can actually track Christ’s foosteps, day-by-day, from the time that her arrived triumphantly to Jerusalem; his last supper; his harrowing hours in Gesthemane; his arrest, crucifixtion, “Saturday silence”, where the Living Lord was, for a moment, but a lifeless corpose in a tomb, and the explosion of life and hope that took place on Easter morning. Ring out, wild bells!

There is absolutely no reason why Latter-Day Saints can’t as a people focus on these seminal events in the life of their Saviour. It seems almost sinful to avoid what is otherwise taking place all around us in the lives of our fellow non-LDS believers in Christ.

Of course, the fact that as recently as 10 years ago there were wards that did not even recognize Easter shows that even the Lord’s Church still has very far to go . . .

Still, I confess to very much wishing for the presence of more of my co-religionist friends during the washing of feet last night; my heart is often torn between the music and rituals that speak so forcefully to me and the community that is and always will be my soul’s home. But this, too, seems like an especially Mormon predicament–think of Joseph adapting the Masonic ritual that spoke to him in some way, fitting it into Mormon theological understandings…

Someday we’ll all celebrate Holy Week (and probably Passover) together and get it right, Antonio; I think we should be patient with ourselves and each other until then!

(An aside–I was moved to not just tears, but big, hiccupping, runny-nosed sobbing by the washing of feet and the Eucharist last night at Christ Church. I thought it was as perfect and beautiful a ritual as I have ever seen. Afterwards. though, I overheard a spirited debate between an English Anglican and a lifelong American Episcopalian about whether the ceremony had been unduly long because people had been washing *both* feet, instead of just one, which is apparently common in England, which led to a discussion of various ways in which the ritual could have been made more efficient–bigger basins, more laypeople volunteering to help move things along, more footwashing stations. The true worship is always far off, no matter where your starting-point is!!)

Kristine – thanks for this series – it’s been great.