Friends, if we have an ounce of empathy today, we must stand at the foot of the cross of Jesus with Mary, and the Beloved Disciple, and so many others .
Today's feast takes on special poignancy this year as our world, wounded and hurting, is plagued by a pandemic, by untamed devastating and deadly wildfires, by powerful and numerous storms, by long simmering racial and political unrest, and the mass migration of desperate people around the globe.
Lord, we pray for your grace to be steadfast, wise, compassionate, humble and strong.
The early Christian community witnessed the mysteries of God’s Salvation unfolding in the life of Christ in the Holy Land. Wherever an important Christ event took place, they built a shrine to keep that event alive in the minds and hearts of their communities. Invaders came one after another to destroy these important shrines. Once the invaders were defeated and departed, those Christians would rebuild the shrine even better than before. Go to the Holy Land today and you will see many of these shrines dotting the landscape of Palestine and Israel.
There is an important lesson for us today who face these immense physical and spiritual challenges. The lesson is that the Cross of Jesus is Spes Unica, our only hope. And we can be filled with hope only if we approach the Cross with true humility and devotion, knowing that we are not in charge, but it is the Living God whose mysterious plan is at work right now in our own day and at this very hour.
There never was a greater tragedy in all human history than the tragedy of Good Friday. All seemed lost as darkness covered the whole world on that doleful, tragic afternoon. The humility of Mary ignited the explosion of grace that brought to all humanity the joy and hope of salvation. Mary never lost hope. The Christians of the Middle East never lost hope. Nor will we or our families lose hope if we humbly look to the Cross of Jesus for our salvation, peace, consolation and joy. Amen.
