After a long pause during the communist period, the foot-washing ceremony was resumed at Putna Monastery starting with 1992, during the stewardship of abbot Iachint Unciuleac.
The ceremony cannot be held everywhere since at least twelve persons are needed Archimandrite Melchisedec explained after washing the feet of his fellow priests at Putna Monastery on April 16.
‘They must include the monastery’s gatekeeper and administrator (oikonomos),’ Putna’s abbot said noting that the ceremony reflects a state of humility and repentance.
‘This day, we must learn more than ever that we have to serve,’ he stressed.
Serving in silence and love
‘Our ministry must be done in silence and love. Do not let your left or right hand know what you are doing. It must be done in deep silence, deep secret and love for our neighbours, keeping ourselves pure.’
‘We must look carefully and responsibly at our brothers wishing and constantly working so that they can become cleaner and cleaner.’
We must each serve, strive to help our neighbour, said the abbot.
“We will never be able to wash anyone only with our words, but only with our hands, that is with prayer, with our effort, with our love.”
“It is not difficult for the one who is truly clean to wash anyone. This one is Christ, the incarnate purity.”
Wipe off the dust of sin!
“Beloved, with the towel of love and the tear of repentance, cleaning us, let us wipe off the dust of sin,” said the Archimandrite, quoting the prayer from Washing of the Feet.
The abbot told the monks and the online listeners that if we make room for the Saviour in our hearts “we will see better the dust placed on our conscience, the stains, the traces of our sins, and we will wipe them, but He Who will completely wipe them off is Christ,” concluded the abbot.
Photography courtesy of Putna Monastery
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