Good Friday Homily

Since the Passion from the Gospel of Saint John is a little lengthy, I decided (as I try to each year) to preach a short homily. Below is my homily from this year's Good Friday service.

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Saint John of the Cross once said, “He who seeks not the Cross of Christ seeks not the glory of Christ.” My brothers and sisters, this is the Hour for which Christ came – this is the Hour of His glory. Yet more does the Cross portray just the glory of Christ, but it also leads us to the Heart of Christ. That pierced Heart which continues to drown the world in mercy and compassion. – That loving Heart which calls all sinners to be reconciled to the Father. The Heart of Christ IS the Glory of God – and it is pierced and exposed for us on this day to seek it out and claim it as our own. In our remembrance, in our active participation of the events which bring us our salvation, we once again conform our lives to that of Christ’s – allowing our hearts to be joined with His, and in that joining, we seek to come to not only know, but ultimately experience the glory of Christ. And though we are repulsed at the sight of His Passion, we realize that the road to glory is not always beautiful, and that love is not always easy. The Lamb of God slain on the altar of the Cross shows us the true meaning of love and glory: laying down one’s life for others. This is the heart of the matter, for this is the Heart of God – that we would unite our hearts with His, so that His glory may become for us a living reality here, now. Today we seek the Cross of Christ so that we may once again unite our hearts to His, so that the glory revealed by the Passion and Death that Christ Jesus suffered – which we memorialize today – may be for us the ultimate reality by which we live our lives so that all hearts may be united to Christ’s. We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You – for by Your Holy Cross, You have redeemed the world.

Tenebrae Reflections

Each year, as in many parishes throughout the country, we held the service of Tenebrae, in which the darkness envelopes the world is shown through the extinguishing of candles. The pastor asked me to do three of the reflections for the evening. Below are those reflections. Enjoy!

Luke 23.32-38                        “Father, forgive them . . .”

The cry of forgiveness from Our Lord on the Cross opens to us the need to turn our stony hearts to the Lord, so that they may become fleshy hearts – hearts of compassion. For it was out of deepest love and compassion that the Son cried out to the Father. So must our hearts cry out to the Lord for compassion upon all who have done us wrong. This turning of our hearts opens us to the humility that comes with forgiveness – the very fact that we do not seek revenge, but, rather, an understanding that we must seek out the good for all people. And that good begins in willing what is best for the other; a willing that flows from understanding and experiencing ourselves how compassionate the Father is when we come to Him seeking forgiveness. The Cross opens the door of compassion to us, for it is the instrument by which ultimate mercy flowed, the instrument by which our stony hearts become flesh, for the Cross becomes the altar of reconciliation – and Christ, the victim and sacrifice of pure peace and forgiveness.

John 19.23-27                                    “Behold, your son . . . behold, your mother.”

“Behold!” In this statement the Church is given Her Mother, and the Mother Her Child. The Lord – even from the agony of His Passion – seeks the comfort, consolation, and care of those dearest to Him. Behold the ultimate Love of God reaching out in those darkest of hours in which the Lord provides part of the promise that He will continue to care for those who draw close to Him. Behold the infinite Love of the Redeemer providing the sustaining companionship that comes from the gathering of those who come together in His Name. Behold – Love on the Tree providing for the needs of those continuing to learn how to love. Behold the Family of God: so weak, so vulnerable, yet so steadfast in faith while Love Himself provides for us that which sustains us through the journey of faith and life. Behold.

John 19.28-29                                    “I thirst.”

The thirst of Jesus is great. His thirst from the Cross is not simply for water or some other drink. His thirst is for you, for me to be joined with Him in His Body. The Lord thirsts for us to make His Life our own. The Lord, in all His anguish and pain, opens for us that wellspring from which we are all to drink from; that wellspring in which we shall quench the thirst which we cannot seem to satisfy. Christ Jesus, Our Lord, thirsts for us to drink from the fountain of the Cross, from which flows the life-giving stream of His graces – especially those of the Sacraments. Our thirst for God is great, but His thirst for us is greater. Come and drink deeply and richly from the wellspring of life, from the fountain of the Cross, from which the Lord’s thirsting for our lives is quenched in the self-giving acts of love we do in His Name and for His Glory. Satisfy your thirst for God at the Cross – and allow the Lord’s thirst for our lives be quenched by the faithful “yes” we give in following His example.

Enjoy the journey . . . 

Playing some catch-up

I cannot believe that it is April already. The time has flown by, and I have been rather lax in my responsibility in keeping up this blog. As always, my apologies. Like anything in life, I just need to make this a priority in life to keep this updated.

With all that said, HAPPY AND BLESSED EASTER!

It's hard to imagine that we are already in the Tuesday of the Easter Octave, and that this great feast is already here. Lent kept me rather busy, always coming and going from one event or location. Confessions, stations, and other events filled the schedule - but I was always taking the time to slow down as much as I could, so that I would not become burned out. Whether it was for an evening or for ten minutes, that time that I could just "be" was precious - and I treasured every moment of it.

But I did so not because I wanted to become lazy, but, rather, so that I could recollect that peace and zeal so as to become grounded once again in the ways of the Lord.

Holy Week and the Triduum were awesome times. Although this was my second season as a priest, the celebrations seemed a little more intense and within grasp. Maybe it's because I was doing this for the second time, or maybe I was so very excited to be using the new translation . . . Well, whatever it was, it was very enjoyable. But I'm still exhausted. I'm really enjoying Easter this year . . . I feel like I've rediscovered the joy that comes with the season. It's been awesome.

Now today is catch-up day for me . . . need to work on some projects and hopefully focus on some other moments of spiritual rest.



Enjoy the journey . . .