Thoughts in the Great Tredecim [1987]

Jesus gave His life. Clothing bespeaks the person. Mary Magdalene was so important to the Resurrection because she was so intimate to the dying. The Washing of the Feet Jesus was playing out the role of His servants “giving of life.” The dying of Jesus was simply the culmination of giving His life. “The Son so loved us that He gave His life for our salvation.” Herein lies the two-fold thrust of the exchange with Peter. 1) Peter must receive salvation from the Lord (the sign of which is Baptism) and 2) Peter must become like Christ in becoming a servant life giver. The passing over from death to life consists in this – that the death is the giving away of self freely in the course of goodness, truth and love. New life is the result of that giving. Jesus gave the life He shared with us and so the Father raised Him up and gave Him a new life, “It is in giving that we received.”