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 . . .
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