RBWords

     Years ago, when the movie, THE PASSION, came out, I saw it with two friends in San Antonio.  The only thing I could think upon leaving the theater and for some time thereafter was, "He did that for me!"  Yes, the crucifixion and resurrection, and, for that matter the entire life of Jesus, was meant to be for all human persons everywhere at all times.  Jesus joined and continues to join all human suffering to his own, not to take it away but to share it.  But when it touches us personally, the meaning goes deeper, and in turn moves us to compassion for others.

     The focus of Holy Thursday on the Eucharist shifts sharply to a day when the Eucharist is not celebrated at all.  The Good Friday service is not a Mass.  Even if we may receive communion at the service, the focus is on the cross.  Although some liturgists debate the matter, it is a cross and not a crucifix (cross with Jesus body on it) that we unveil and venerate (as best we can during the pandemic).  It is the sharing of the cross with Jesus that binds us together but also personally in this service.  In Luke 9:23, Jesus warns all disciples that following him means taking up the cross daily.  The cross is not simply a symbol or a relic, it is an invitation to follow Jesus.  In John 15:13. Jesus says that there is no greater human love than to lay down one's life for a friend.  The cross on Good Friday is the ultimate act of self-giving on Jesus' part that invites us to compassion for others.  In remembering that Jesus did this for me, I am reminded to do this for others. AMEN