NAN-F-43
Alms
London, April 13, 2017 (dpa/NAN) Queen Elizabeth II gave alms to 182 elderly people to mark Maundy Thursday in a traditional service at Leicester Cathedral in the English Midlands.
The queen, who turns 91 in May, handed commemorative coins in special purses to 91 men and 91 women, reflecting her age in an annual Royal Maundy service.
“The 182 recipients of Maundy Money were all at least 70 years old and have “given long Christian service to church or community,” the cathedral said.
Leicester was chosen for this year’s service because it was the only one of England’s 44 Anglican cathedrals where she had not previously attended a Maundy service during her 65-year reign.
“Her Majesty the Queen visited us at the start of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations [in 2012] and we are proud to welcome her back.
“This will be a great celebration of faithful service to the community from both the city and county of Leicester,” Canon Alison Adams, the sub-dean of the cathedral said ahead of the service.
Maundy Thursday falls one day before Good Friday, the day of Christ’s crucifixion.
The ceremony has its origins in the commandment Christ gave his disciples to love one another, and maundy comes from the Latin “mandatum,” or commandment.
“This (commandment) was at his Last Supper, just after he had washed the disciples’ feet, as an example of loving service.
“In many places the church commemorates that occasion still today by re-enacting the washing of peoples’ feet on that same day,” Adams said. (dpa/NAN)
OYE/SH
=-===
Edited by Celine-Damilola Oyewole/Sadiya Hamza