Good Friday

“God is dead.” 

No, I am not referring to the thoughts of the 19^th century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.  Rather I am looking at the situation that the first Christians faced after the death of Jesus, the Son of God, on the cross.

What did the situation look like?  Jesus was tortured and killed.  Judas, one of the twelve apostles, had betrayed him and then hanged himself.  Peter, another of the twelve and the supposed leader, denied him three times.  All of the other apostles, except for the young John, fled and were nowhere to be found.   Only his Mother and a few other faithful followers remained by Jesus’ side until the end.

The situation must have seemed tragic, even without any hope.  For a follower of Jesus it must have appeared worse than any economic collapse or any prolonged war.  It must have seemed like the end, the bitter end.  

“What do we do now?” was probably the whispered phrase that circulated among those who were still around.

Today as Christians we focus on the cross:  a piece of wood that was an instrument of execution.  People wear it now around the neck as jewelry.  Sometimes it hangs on the walls of our homes.  Occasionally we make this sign when we pray.

What, in fact, does it really mean to us?

The cross for Christians was and is the means of salvation.  It gives us eternal life.  It is a sign of hope.  We may not realize its absolute meaning if it remains just an ornament or a trinket.

We are told by Jesus to pick up our cross and to follow Him each day (cf. Lk. 9:23).  The cross has to be a part of our lives.  Who really wants to face this kind of reality or even its ultimate consequence:  death?

Yet, Christians are tied to the cross of Jesus.       

Are we willing to accept this challenge . . . or is God really dead for us?

True followers of Christ through the centuries held on to the belief that the cross was not the end.  They continued to believe.

As Christians today, do we continue to believe?

Lord Jesus Crucified, Have Mercy on Us.

Holy Thursday

Today has always been one of my favorite days to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

It is important for us as Catholic Christians to realize the three significant aspects of today’s celebration on Holy Thursday.

First, when Jesus washed his disciples’ feet, He was giving us all an example of and a mandate to service.  For Jesus, who was God’s Son, to wash the feet of His disciples was an act of humility and an example for us to serve the needs of others.  God who created us humbled Himself to bathe the dirty and sweaty feet of His creatures!  And He told his disciples that we must do the same.  We must serve others.  This is not an option but a requirement of Christianity.  Remember that Jesus told us in the Scriptures that He “did not come to be served but to serve.”  (Mt. 20:28) And now his actions showed us very clearly what His words had told us.

Next, Jesus instituted at the Last Supper the ministerial Priesthood so that he could continue His saving work through the actions and ministry of the priest.  My vocation--this “calling”--is to be a priest as Jesus was a priest for his people.  In every sacrament Christ acts through the instrument of his priest.  When the priest baptizes, it is actually Christ who baptizes.  When the priest forgives sin in confession, it is actually Christ who forgives our sins.  When the priest takes bread and wine at Mass to consecrate, it is actually Christ who works through the priest to give us his Body and Blood.  Christ continues His saving work through our priests and that is why we need to pray that many more men will say “yes” to God if God calls them to be a priest.  Pope John Paul II said it so often quoting the words of Christ:  “Be not afraid!”  Christ is still with us in and through the actions of the priest.  Although priests are imperfect sinners, Christ still uses us as His instruments and works through us to take care of the needs of His people.

Finally, this day Jesus gave us the Eucharist, his very own Body and Blood, to feed us and to strengthen us during our journey of life.  For Catholics, the Eucharist is our greatest gift from Christ because it is the gift of Himself.  While there are many other Christian churches in the US and throughout the world, it is the Catholic Church that has always told us of the importance of the Holy Eucharist because we believe that it is the Real Presence of Christ.  Once the priest consecrates the bread and wine it is not just a symbol or a reminder of Christ--something like a souvenir--but it is actually Christ Himself.  It is His Body and Blood.  We should not take this for granted!  In a little while when we process around the Church with the Holy Eucharist, realize that this is truly Christ remaining among us.

This day we are reminded of the mandate to service, of the institution of the Priesthood and of the gift of the Holy Eucharist.  We need to think and pray about all three of these lessons found in our liturgy today.

May God bless you!