Koonung Heights Uniting Church
Service of Worship at Home
Maundy Thursday – 2 April, 2026 – 7pm or whenever possible
You may like to light a candle during your time of worship.
Feel free to text the Peace to other members of the congregation.
Lighting the Christ Candle:
In lighting the Christ candle this evening
we remember that Christ came to be the light of the world,
and that no matter how hard the darkness tries,
it is never able to extinguish the light.
Acknowledgement of Country:
As we gather in God’s presence tonight,
let us remember that this land is God’s land
and that God’s Spirit dwells here.
I also acknowledge the Wurundjeri WoiWurrung People
of the Kulin nations, traditional custodians of this land under God.
I pay my respects to their elders past and present,
and to the leaders and generations to come.
Call to Worship:
As we prepare our hearts for worship
let us hold the silence of this night.
For tonight we gather in a garden,
around a table,
and at a meal.
The story is part of who we are
and we are bound together in the telling.
May we sit in the moments of silence,
knowing that we are not alone.
May we leave the moments of silence
unfilled.
Welcome:
Welcome to this place and to this community.
Here we are reminded again that the love of God awaits each of us,
and that we are the expression of God’s love to one another.
We come to church not to forget this love, but to remind ourselves.
That is the good news we have: the love of God, always!
When we feel we have nothing else, we can lean on the love of God.
So as we reflect tonight, we are called to listen to the new commandment by Jesus:
‘I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.
Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another.’
(John 13:34-35)
To love is to listen – to listen to each other and to listen to the signs of life everywhere.
It is also to listen to the silence within us.
Throughout this service we will have moments where we sit in silence and listen.
You are invited to listen to your breath, to listen to your heart, to listen to God’s voice,
and to listen to each other.
Let us listen to God’s love through the voices of others.
We Sing: As the deer pants – (TiS 703)
As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs after you.
You alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship you.
You alone are my strength, my shield, to you alone may my spirit yield.
You alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship you.
Call to Confession:
We come to worship feeling the burdens of life that only God knows.
But we also come feeling weary, tired, sad, frustrated, angry, exhausted, spent,
not knowing what to do, how to live our lives fully, or how to fix things.
Our world is so confusing right now, and we are feeling lost.
It is time to confess to God the things we carry and don’t tell anybody,
the things that we feel we can’t speak, and the things we don’t know how to speak.
Let us join in a responsive prayer.
Prayer of Confession:
Loving God,
we come to you feeling a thousand feelings.
There is too much going on, and we don’t know how to handle it all.
We don’t even know how to put words to all that we are going through.
God of love hear our prayers.
Loving God,
we come to you wanting total control over our lives,
the stories we live, the people around us, and our own desires.
God of love hear our prayers.
Loving God,
we also come to you feeling numb.
God of love hear our prayers.
Loving God,
we come to you in silence.
God of love hear our prayers.
Loving God,
we come to you because you are the source of life.
God of love hear our prayers.
Words of Assurance:
Hear this good news: the God of love listens to you attentively.
‘As an eagle stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, as it spreads its wings,
takes them up, and bears them aloft on its pinions’. (Deuteronomy 32:11)
We are all listened to. We are all forgiven.
Let us spend a moment sitting in silence.
Perhaps you might contemplate the joy of being free.
We remember – The betrayal and arrest of Jesus
Today is Maundy Thursday, the beginning of three days that tell the story of the final days of Jesus’ life. Tonight we honour Jesus’ last meal with his disciples and prepare for the three days ahead. Today, we will share Communion and wash each other’s feet (or hands). On Good Friday, we remember Jesus’ death. On Holy Saturday, we wait in the silence between death and resurrection. On Sunday, we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.
Let us now turn to scripture, revisiting the events leading up to Jesus’ final hours.
Bible Reading – Luke 22:47-53
– The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
47 While he was still speaking, suddenly a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, 48 but Jesus said to him, “Judas, is it with a kiss that you are betraying the Son of Man?” 49 When those who were around him saw what was coming, they asked, “Lord, should we strike with the sword?”
50 Then one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. 51 But Jesus said, “No more of this!” And he touched his ear and healed him. 52 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple police, and the elders who had come for him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs as though I were a rebel? 53 When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour and the power of darkness!”
Reflection:
This text shows a very difficult moment when Jesus is betrayed and taken away. A time when shadows take over the life of Jesus and his disciples. We are living in a time when shadows have descended upon us. The whole world is in disarray. There are wars and genocides going on. Minorities are suffering the oppression of those in power. Immigrants are being demonized. Democracy is being dismantled right in front of our eyes.
The natural world is being consumed, and climate change is growing exponentially. We see injustices everywhere – even close to home. We are living in such a moment of violence and destruction that we want somebody, even Jesus, to tell us: ‘No more of this!’ But we can’t wait for that; Jesus has already shown us the way. We have to learn how to stay present and stay strong! We need to lean on each other, sustain our communities, and keep going together! For such a time as this, we need beautiful things to heal our souls.
Let us spend a moment in silence, praying for God to heal our wounds.
We Remember – Jesus washing the disciples’ feet
Once again let us turn to scripture, hearing the story of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet.
Bible Reading – John 13:1-11, 21-35
– Jesus Washes the Disciples Feet
1 Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 The devil had already decided that Judas son of Simon Iscariot would betray Jesus. And during supper 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4 got up from supper, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered, “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!”
10 Jesus said to him, “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
Jesus Foretells His Betrayal
21 After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit and declared, “Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me.” 22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. 23 One of his disciples – the one whom Jesus loved – was reclining close to his heart; 24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking.
25 So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. 27 After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him.
Jesus said to him, “Do quickly what you are going to do.” 28 Now no one knew why he said this to him. 29 Some thought that, because Judas had the common purse, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival,” or that he should give something to the poor.
30 So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.
The New Commandment
31 When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. 32 If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. 33 Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ 34 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Reflection:
That night is very important because Jesus gave the disciples a very important symbol for the kin-dom of God: the towel! The towel is a revolutionary symbol of the Christian faith. It symbolizes service, care, and deep listening. Jesus took the place of a slave, washing the feet of the disciples. He said to them: ‘I give you a new commandment , that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.’ Therefore, the towel is like a sacramental object: it holds the grace of God.
Knowing what would come next, I often wonder what it must have been like for the disciples to watch Jesus wash Judas’ feet.
None of us is too great or small to receive grace. Even the water – with dust and surrender – becomes a witness to transformation. Let us, embody Jesus’ new commandment.
You are invited now, should you wish, to come forward and wash the hands of another person. As you do, you might wish to look at them and say ‘I see the image of God in you.’
As we do, you are invited to quietly sing.
We Sing: A new commandment – (TiS 699)
A new commandment, I give unto you that you love one another as I have loved you,
that you love one another as I have loved you.
By this will others know that you are my disciples if you have love one for another;
by this will others know that you are my disciples if you have love one for another.
We Share – Holy Communion
The Peace
The Lord be with you and also with you.
Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give God thanks and praise.
Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
God of love, you have listened to your people throughout history.
You have given them light and shelter, warmth and nourishment.
In Jesus, you have shown us how to love and care for each other,
especially the most vulnerable.
Today we want to listen to you as we listen to each other.
Your glory shines everywhere and we are grateful! We say ‘Glory!’
Your ears are on the ground for those who have nobody! We say, ‘Thank you!’
Your presence is never away from us, but moves within our breathing!
The night before Jesus was arrested by the police of the empire,
he washed the feet of his disciples and taught them
to embody the symbol of the towel everywhere they went:
offering care and love, being of service.
As Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, he listened to their words, sounds, and breathing.
God of silence and thunder, we praise you for your steadfast love and your companionship.
The world is so hard right now, but we have all we need!
We have the towel, we have food, we have each other, we have your Spirit.
Because of your steadfast love, we have enough for everyone!
And now we will join in this meal together.
In the name of the God of sustenance, there is enough bread for everyone here to eat.
Look friends, God has food for you and for me.
As a sign of love, Jesus says ‘remember me’ so no one goes hungry!
Now look at the bread, and for a moment, contemplate all the ways we can work
to make sure no one in this community will go hungry or unassisted.
Look friends, God has given us this cup to quench our thirst and find joy!
As a sign of love, Jesus says, ‘remember me’, so no-one goes without joy in their lives!
Now look at the cup, and for a moment, contemplate all the ways we will strive
to live God’s joy by spreading joy and laughter in this congregation!
We Sing: “Eat this bread” – (TiS 714)
Eat this bread, drink this cup, come to him and never be hungry.
Eat this bread, drink this cup, trust in him and you will not thirst.
Invitation to the Table
Friends, the food is before us.
We have listened to God and to each other.
Now we will share together.
The world is difficult, but the good news is: we are here for each other
to share the love of a God who will never stop loving us.
We pray that God uses the gifts of this food to nourish our bodies, hearts, and souls.
Bless this bread, bless this wine, bless these towels, bless our people, bless our community,
bless the world. Amen.
Distribution
This bread is God’s restoration for you.
This cup is God’s joy for you.
All is prepared so please come.
Prayer:
God of gatherings,
life is much less frightening when we are together,
when we care for each other, and when we are able to listen to each other.
Then we can find joy even in the most difficult days of our lives.
We are grateful, for it is your love that brings us here,
and we honour you and one another for this unending love.
Take us back home, now prepared for the days ahead.
For in you we can go through the darkest night of the soul and rise again in your love!
Amen.
Blessing and Sending:
Today we have received a difficult commandment from Jesus Christ:
to go and wash another’s feet,
to care for the vulnerable,
and to offer our presence to our community.
This is not easy, and alone we fail.
But together, we continue to serve and find strength.
Together we will share the love of God.
May we walk forward together, unwavering,
knowing that the love of God,
the compassion of Jesus,
and the power of the Holy Spirit,
are with us now and always.
Amen.
Thanks to all those who have assisted in preparation for this liturgy with encouragement, prayers and conversation. I have also utilised the following resources: Sanctified Art (Tell me something good).