Pedilavium: After the Event

tonight, at the church that i have the privilege of serving, we had a church picnic and followed that up with the observance of the washing of the saints' feet. i want to begin by saying that it was truly a great time. having the opportunity to see the body of christ in fellowship together is absolutely beautiful. families were gathered together. kids (and some dads) were throwing a football. some of the kids were sword fighting (see manly birthday party). that alone would make for a great time. then our pastor stood and spoke for a very few minutes about jesus washing the feet of the apostles and what that meant for them and what it means for us. he then gave some brief instructions. the youth pastor then washed my feet. i was moved, as i always am when observing feet washing, by his humility and grace. this also served as an example to our congregation, many of whom had never participated in anything like this. it was a great opportunity for us, as leaders, to model for the the type of humility christ modeled for his apostles, and ultimately, us. i will acknowledge that i had mixed feelings going into tonight. i had concerns regarding the appropriateness of men and women washing the feet of someone of the opposite sex, other than a spouse or relative. i must point out that i do not see this as a matter of right or wrong, it is a matter of conviction and opinion. i am happy to say it was pretty much a non-issue. there were very few instances of a man washing the feet of an unrelated woman. the exercise quickly developed into families gathering to let the father wash the feet of the others. there were husbands and wives modeling an attitude of humility and sacrifice for one another. there were men approaching other men and women approaching other women asking for the honor of washing each others feet. it was spectacular. this was the first time i had observed feet washing in this context. it was very different, but effective. i look forward to the next time we practice this symbol of humility. i especially look forward to seeing our church body model this attitude of humility and servitude in their interaction with each other and with the world around them.