For Our Offenses April 6

Yet it was our infirmities that he bore,
our sufferings that he endured,
while we thought of him as stricken,
as one smitten by God and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our offenses,
crushed for our sins;
upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole,
by his stripes we were healed.
We had all gone astray like sheep,
each following his own way;
but the LORD laid upon him
the guilt of us all. Isaiah 53:4-6

Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered;
and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. Hebrews (5:8-9)

Piety

Jesus, today, your life, your grain of wheat, falls to the ground and dies. Your death is the supreme sacrifice as you share human suffering. How hard was it for you to die for the sinful? How easy was it to die to save the saintly. Your Mother Mary. Mother Teresa. How hard was it for you to die for Timothy McVeigh? How hard was it to die for Adolph Hitler? How hard was it to die for me as you remembered all the times you tried to spend with me while I rebuked you and spent time engaged in selfish pursuits? Through your supreme sacrifice, help me to have the strength and fortitude to follow the example of the Master.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/040607.shtml

“Woman, behold, your son.”

From the cross, Jesus looks down on his mother and tells her, for one last time, to look on him, her son. Since the first gaze on the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, she laid Him in a manger in Bethlehem. Mary has always looked on her Son with wonder. This baby. This man. This God. Jesus knows that the next time Mary sees Jesus will be after the Resurrection – when His divinity will shine forth like the morning sun.

“Behold, your mother.”

Still conscious on the cross, Jesus addresses the Beloved Disciple as everyman. Through this command, he instructs Mary to replace his mortal being by adopting all humanity as children of God. Looking down on us, he also commands us to turn to Mary for help when we need her.

“I thirst.”

Hanging for three hours nailed to the cross, the liquids in Jesus’ body are draining out through his five wounds. As he dehydrates in the hot, desert afternoon sun, he seeks refreshment. However, Jesus know that his body has not long to remain on earth. During a Typical day at this time of year, you can see the local temperatures in Jerusalem climb to above 85 degrees – dry desert heat that would sap a healthy strong body.

Jesus not only thirsts for water, he thirsts for us to follow him. He wants us to see and understand. He wants us to hear and follow His commands. Jesus thirsts for justice for the poor. Jesus thirsts for disciples who truly understand what he is teaching. Jesus is the source of living waters that he offers to the woman at the well. As the life slips from his grasp, his humanity takes precedence. The blood and water stop flowing from his wounds.

“It is finished.”

Jesus mortal life is about to end. But the story doesn’t end there. Someone must pick up the story and carry on the mission. But Jesus is gone. The Advocate has not yet come. Now, only we remain. It is up to us to make sure that this day, this terribly Good Friday is not the end of the story.

The Jesus narrative began with the universal “Yes” supplied by Mary during Advent when the angel of the Lord is revealed to her. The story continues when Jesus also says “Yes” to going about his Father’s work and “Yes” to accepting the cup that is passed to Him. If we do as Jesus asks, is it really finished yet? We remain to carry on.

Action

There is remarkable strength in saying, “Yes.” Remember how amazed Paul was when he understood the true scope of the Cross.

Say “Yes!” Beginning today. It didn’t matter. If we were sinners or not, Jesus said “yes!” Mary said, “Yes!”

Say nothing but “Yes!” when you get to work, school or shopping today. In the parking lot or at the Roosevelt Bridge or no the Beltway, allow someone to cut in front of you to get a space. Yes.