Here’s a prayer litany for Holy (or Maundy) Thursday worship. It was written by Nolan Williams, Jr., and posted on The African American Lectionary website.
Prayer Litany for Maundy Thursday
(John 13: 1-20)
You knew your hour had come.
You knew your betrayer.
You knew your enemies.
You knew that the straw vote would not be in your favor.
But you loved unto the end.
Thank you for loving us, even unto death.
Teach us to love like you love.
Teach us to love each other, to love even our enemies,
like you loved us.
You took on the form of a servant,
washing the feet of those whom you discipled.
You defined humility and servanthood.
You are he who was surely sent from God.
Thank you for serving for us.
Teach us to be servants without fail;
to make humility our constant companion
and to seek no glory for ourselves.
Remind us when we forget.
On that solemn evening,
you surrounded yourself with friends and enemies,
persons of faith and persons of ill-will.
Help us to be able to always emulate you
when we are surrounded by our friends
and especially when we are surrounded by our enemies.
You have established a “new commandment;”
help us to live it out in every moment,
in every aspect of our lives,
in our families, in our churches, in our communities,
and throughout the world.
On this Holy Day, we gather to remember again
the miracle that you performed in our lives.
You have brought us into the marvelous light.
At great cost to you,
you have given us new life and life eternal. Amen.
— written by Nolan Williams, Jr., and posted on The African American Lectionary website.
For more worship resources for Maundy Thursday, click on Maundy Thursday in the list of “Labels” at the lower right side of the page.
