Maundy Thursday

Want it or not, Easter has arrived in town. If you happen to be in Spain, you will probably have crossed paths with countless processions to honour the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, as I explained in my last year's post about Easter (including videos and exercises related to Easter), Easter is not only a Spanish tradition. 

In this entry I will talk about one important tradition in the United Kingdom : Maundy Thursday. This day is the day before Good Friday, today it is ! On Maundy Thursday, two important events in the Christian religion took place. 

Firstly, it was the Last Supper where Jesus Christ commanded his disciples to love one another. "Maundy" comes from Latin "mandatum" (that is, order or command). That day was the first day of religious communion, so there are special services in churches to commemorate this day.  

Secondly, on this day, Jesus Christ washed the feet of his disciples himself to prove and pass on his humility. This is why still today some bishops and priests organize foot-washing rituals, washing the feet of the poor and some monarchs in the past devoted this day to washing the feet of the poor. Interesting tradition, don't you think ?

However, the tradition of monarchs washing the feet of their poor was lost and it has been replaced by money, indeed !  Nowadays, the Queen of England offers some coins (Maundy money) to men and women (precisely, a number of men and women equal to the age of the current age of the monarch). 

From : http://british-coin-price-guide.homelinux.com/British-Maundy-Money-Coin-Set-Price-Guide_files/Page2019.htm

Last year, 90 people received Maunday money. 

Here you have a video summarizing the traditions of Maunday Thursday : 

And here you have last year's Maunday Thursday ceremony. You can see the Queen handing over the Maundy money to some 90 men and women ! 

Well, As you can see, Easter has its quirky traditions outside Spain. I hope you have liked this post. I'm going to finish with a fast fact about Maundy Thursday (or Holy Thursday) : Unlike Good Friday, Maundy Thursday is not a public holiday in the United Kingdom.
Enjoy the rest of the Easter holidays and do not eat too many Easter eggs !