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Foot washing—it’s probably not something you think about
Today is Passover. For Christians around the world, it represents the day when Jesus took his closest followers into an upper room for
Jesus knew that it was the last day he would be with his friends. The next day, he would surrender his life and give it up for the world—the ultimate act of love. He knew his time was drawing to an end.
That night, Jesus served his friends the symbolic bread and wine, representing his body that would be sacrificed for the world. But, he did something else that was unusual.
Jesus washed the feet of his closest followers.
He took a basin of water and a cloth and washed the yuck, filth, and slime off his friends’ stinky feet.
“He got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.” (John 13:4-5)
The Bible
Jesus did this as an act of humility and service to his friends, expressing his amazing love for them.
A Cultural View
Today, on Passover, in addition to thinking about foot washing from my faith perspective, I also thought about it from a cultural perspective.
It reminded me of our days living in Morocco. We all wore sandals there. Everyone wore sandals because of the heat. It was nice to let your sweaty feet breathe, rather than suffocating them in closed shoes.
Because we wore sandals all day and walked on the unpaved, dirt roads, our feet got dirty—very dirty.
Before going to bed at night, our family had a foot washing ceremony. In each of our bathrooms, we had a French bidet. If you don’t know what a bidet is, they are used by Europeans to wash themselves after going to the restroom. It’s a great alternative to toilet paper when you run out during quarantine!
Our French family didn’t use the bidets in place of toilet paper. I guess we were too American for that! On the other hand, we loved our bidets for
It was one of our boys’ favorite rituals in Morocco. They would get on their pajamas, brush their teeth, and wash their feet. They would then crawl into their clean sheets with clean feet for a bedtime story and prayers.
Other than during our days in Morocco, I have rarely had to clean my feet after wearing sandals all day and before going to bed.
It’s All About Context
It’s not the same context. We don’t have primarily unpaved, dirt roads in Europe and North America. We also don’t walk nearly as much as we did while living in North Africa. We walked everywhere there.
So did Jesus and his followers. They most likely wore
Although washing feet seems unusual and strange to us in some parts of the world. It wasn’t strange to Jesus. It wasn’t strange to his followers. This was a normal part of their cultural context. It was a natural part of hospitality in their world.
“The root of this practice appears to be found in the hospitality customs of ancient civilizations, especially where sandals were the chief footwear. A host would provide water for guests to wash their feet, provide a servant to wash the feet of the guests or even serve the guests by washing their feet. This is mentioned in several places in the Old Testament of the Bible (Genesis 18:4, 19:2, 24:32, 43:24, 1 Samual 25:41), as well as other religious and historical documents. A typical Eastern host might bow, greet, and kiss his guest, then offer water to allow the guest to wash his feet or have servants do it. Though the wearing of sandals might necessitate washing the feet, the water was also offered as a courtesy even when shoes were worn.”
Wikipedia
How Beautiful is That?
How beautiful is that? How would you like to be greeted by your host and then offered a foot washing?
It’s humbling for the guest who is exposing his stinky, filthy feet to the servant. It’s a beautiful act of service for the servant who touches and cleans a person’s dirty feet.
That’s what Jesus did.
Try it today. It’s Passover. Wash your own feet and see what that’s like. Wash the feet of someone else (your friend, your spouse, your parent, your child) as an act of love and sacrifice.
Notice how it feels for you. Ask how it feels for them.
Love, Sacrifice, Service, Humility . . .
That’s what Jesus did.
Ponder it from a cultural perspective. More importantly, ponder it from a faith perspective.
—THE CULTURAL STORY-WEAVER
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LET’S WEAVE CULTURES!
What do you think about foot washing? Have you ever washed your feet or washed the feet of someone else—other than in a bath or shower? Try it today. It’s Passover.
We invite you to tell us your own cultural stories and global adventures . . . as you engage with the world, breaking down barriers, building bridges, and “weaving cultures”! Write about them in the comment box below.
