Maria Saucedo washes the feet of her husband, Octavio, as their daughters, Valarie, Vanessa and Karen, witness nearby. The family attended the trilingual Holy Thursday Mass at St. Peter Parish. (Katie Scott/Catholic Sentinel)
Maria Saucedo washes the feet of her husband, Octavio, as their daughters, Valarie, Vanessa and Karen, witness nearby. The family attended the trilingual Holy Thursday Mass at St. Peter Parish. (Katie Scott/Catholic Sentinel)
“What a joy, what a celebration,” said Father Raul Marquez on Holy Thursday at St. Peter Parish in Southeast Portland. The pastor reminded worshippers the day commemorates the institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood, as well as the call “to give our lives for one another in service, in love.”

The trilingual evening liturgy was a mix of Spanish, English and sign language and included the traditional foot-washing. The ritual was kept to individual families as a pandemic safety precaution. Wives washed husbands' feet; a father washed his daughter’s.

“Tonight connects us to tradition, to where we’ve been and who we are as Catholics,” said Teresa Ramirez, in attendance with her five children, ages 9 to 18. “Every time I participate in Holy Thursday, I understand something new,” she said. “Every year it refreshes me.”