For the Roman Church, Maundy Thursday, until the 7th century, marks the end of Lent and the penitential fast, and the beginning, with Good Friday, of the infra paschal fast in the immediate expectation of the resurrection. On Maundy Thursday morning, the Roman Church only knows the reconciliation of penitents until the 7th century. No trace is found of any commemoration of the Lord’s Supper. Only on the night of the Easter Vigil is the Eucharistic liturgy, the Easter Eucharist of the risen Christ, celebrated as its culmination. The reconciled penitents are led to the table of the Eucharist to which they will again be admitted on Easter night. [1]
In Capua, in the mid-6th century, two masses were celebrated on this day: one in the morning and the other in the evening. But, in Rome, we find no trace of such a practice.
The Council of Carthage in 397 tells us that the Eucharist is celebrated on Maundy Thursday[2] . From a letter of St Augustine to Gennaro, we know that even then there were two possible celebrations of mass: one, in the morning, for those who could not endure fasting until evening; the other, the same evening[3] . In Egeria’s travel diary we find a similar usage .[4]
From the 7th century onwards, it is possible to follow the evolution of the Roman liturgy of Maundy Thursday. Three masses were celebrated in Rome: one in the morning, one at noon during which the Holy Oils were consecrated, and another in the evening. The Mass of the consecration of the Oils, like the evening Mass, did not involve any liturgy of the word, but began immediately with the offering.
As for the rite of foot-washing, it is already found in Jerusalem in the mid-fifth century.
In the 10th century, all that remained in the Germanic Roman Pontifical was the morning Chrism Mass and the evening Mass.
But the Holy Thursday liturgy will undergo two more additions. The first would consist in the solemn translation of what remained of the sacred species into a temporary tabernacle, where they would be adored before being taken for communion the next day. This rite will take hold between the 13th and 15th centuries.
In the Roman liturgy, what remained of the consecrated bread was kept in a casket and the whole was placed in the sacristy, without any particular sign of honour. During the following Mass, at the beginning of the celebration, the casket was presented to the pontiff, after his entrance, and he venerated the sacred species for a few moments, which were then taken to the presbytery to be placed in the chalice of consecrated wine at the moment of the fraction[5] . When devotion to the Blessed Sacrament developed, the holy reservation received special honours. This development occurred especially from the second half of the 13th century, precisely when Pope Urban IV extended the celebration of the feast of Corpus Christi (11 August 1264) to the whole Church. The provisional tabernacle on Maundy Thursday then became the occasion to manifest devotion to the Eucharist. But when the Maundy Thursday celebration adopted in its liturgy certain signs of sad abolition of the sounding of the organ, bells, etc.), the provisional tabernacle was strangely considered by many of the faithful – and insistently so – as Christ’s tomb, even though the Church had not yet celebrated his death. In certain churches, such as in Gaul, celebrations of Christ’s burial appeared, thus imitating the liturgy of the Byzantine Church.
The stripping of the altar became a symbol of the stripping of Christ on the cross: it was customary to remove the altar cloth. According to certain customs, two acolytes each placed on either side of the altar would pull the tablecloth ad modum furentis to simulate the parting of Christ’s tunic.[6]
The Piana reform of 1955 had already reinstated the celebration of the Eucharist in the evening, in any case after 4pm, to commemorate its institution. But the readings had remained identical and, at that time, there was still no concelebration, except on the occasion of an episcopal or presbyteral ordination. The liturgical reform of Vatican II introduced deeper reforms.
First of all, the Collect was replaced, which better indicated the meaning of the celebration. With the same criterion, the first and second readings were replaced.
After the homily, the rite of washing remained without any other gestures or prayers that had been added. During the procession of the offerings, Ubi caritas was sung. The same criterion with which the orations were replaced was applied to the Prayer over the offerings and the preface.
The priests concelebrate even if they have to binary. The Post communio has also been modified.
Vespers are not celebrated. The rest is accomplished without solemnity.
By Fr. Giorgio Bontempi C.M.
[1] On reconciliation on Maundy Thursday, cf. A. NOCENT, Il sacramento della penitenza e della riconciliazione in AA.VV., Anamnesis, 3/1, Genoa, 1986, 169 ff; ID. Celebrating Jesus Christ, III, Assisi 1977, 285-302.
[2] GIROLAMO, Epist., 77: ed.J. Labourt, t.. IV., Paris 1954, 43. Quoted in P. JOUNEL, Le Jeudi-Saint. La tradition de L’Eglise, LMD, nr. 68 (1961) , 15.
[3] AGOSTINO D’IPPONA, Epist., 54, 5: PL 33, 202.
[4] EGERIA, op. cit, 35, 93-94.
[5] M. ANDRIEU, Les Ordines romani du haut moyen ȃge, II, Louvain 1948, 82.
[6] Anàmnesi 6, The Liturgical Year, op. cit, 112-113.
