Washing the feet of others was a hated and radical act during the time of Jesus. But Jesus did it to his disciples to prove that He came to serve, and not to be served.

Last year Holy Father broke the papal tradition of washing the feet of priests, instead, selected prisoners which included Muslim women.

This year Pope Francis performed the ritual Washing -of - Feet at the Don Gnocchi Center for the disabled people, located in the suburb of Rome. He washed the feet of 12 elderly and disabled people that including children, women and non-Catholics. The ages of the "chosen-12" ranged from a 16 year old boy to an 86 year old woman.

The chosen people were:  a 16-year-old boy from Cape Verde who was paralyzed in a diving accident last year, a 19-year-old man and a 39-year-old woman diagnosed with cerebral palsy, two 86-year-olds with mobility problems and seven other men with physical and mental disabilities.

The 78-year-old Pope Francis smiled at each of the Twelve whose feet he washed, but clearly struggled to get up from his knees as he moved down the line. He appeared tired towards the end of the short ceremony and two assistants helped him to get up back on his feet.

 This is nothing new to Pope Francis:

 Washing the feet of the poor and the rejected is not new to Pope Francis. In 2001, he washed and kissed the feet of 12 AIDS patients at a hospice in Buenos Aires, the capital of  Argentina. In 2005, when he was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he washed the feet of young mothers at a maternity hospital. In 2008, he washed the feet of recovering drug addicts at a rehab center in the same city.

  No Pope dared to go against Vatican Rules:

 Until last year no Pope dared to go against the traditional rules of Vatican. Traditionally 12 priests are chosen for the Papal ceremony on Holy Thursday.  In the past some Bishops had sought the permission of Vatican to wash the feet of women in their dioceses , and Vatican permitted it.

Vatican ecclesiastical rules say that only "adult males" may have their feet washed at the Mass of the Last Supper (according to the Roman Missal, 2002).This was written according to the biblical tradition that Jesus washed the feet of 12 men.

In choosing to change the practice, Pope Francis seems as radical as Jesus was in his own time. He is emphasizing the spirit to serve rather than the written words of law -- something Jesus himself did by breaking with Jewish tradition in washing his disciples' feet.

But the fact is Pope Francis has the power and authority to rewrite these rules, and as the pontiff of the Church, what he pontificates becomes the new rule.

 Last year photos-Wiping and kissing feet of young prisoners at Casal Del Marmo Juvenile Detention Center.

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