Last Supper questions

In the Vicar's Bible Study on Thursdays, we've been studying the Last Supper. Not the painting by Leonardo da Vinci, but the story in the Gospel!

One of the questions we've asked is, "Did Jesus mean to institute the Eucharist at the Last Supper?"

We've looked at the story of the Last Supper in Matthew, Mark, and Luke to compare what each said about the Last Supper, and we also compared them to what Paul said about the sacred meal in 1 Corinthians 11. We concluded that when Jesus said, "Do this in remembrance of me", he was surely telling the disciples to remember him in a regular dinner of some kind. Whether it was the Eucharist or not is another question.

We also compared the Last Supper of Matthew, Mark, and Luke with the account in John. In John, there's no mention of bread or wine, only the story of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples. Did John not have any idea of a sacred meal? We looked at John 6, where Jesus says, "I am the bread of life", and we concluded that even in John there is the making of a sacramental meal.

It's been helpful to immerse ourselves in the story of the Last Supper and imagine what it was like that critical evening so long ago.
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