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We begin
Holy Week, the most sacred week of the Church Liturgy.
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During
this week we will commemorate the sacred and beautiful mysteries of our
Redemption.
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The week
culminates with the Easter Vigil, which anticipates de joy of Easter.
FIRST READING Is 50:4-7
Like in the liturgy
of the V Sunday of Lent, the first reading is taken from the book of the Second
Isaiah or Deutero-Isaiah, chapters 40-55 of the Book of Isaiah.
·
These
chapters are written remembering the first exodus, but announcing a new
exodus.
·
The
reading of Palm Sunday, however, is part of a group of poems about a mysterious
character, anonymous, which we call the servant. Although in the reading for
this Sunday it is not called a servant, but he considers himself so, because he
sees his life as a service.
·
This
servant says to us
o
That God
has given him a tongue of a disciple and ears as a disciple, to listen; this is
what a disciple is supposed to do, and after listening open his mouth to comfort
others.
o
He says
that he has not rebelled against those who insulted him and inflicted suffering
on him; on the contrary he has set his face like flint.
o
But he
knows and experiences that God is with him and helps him, thus he trusts in his
God knowing that he will not be put to shame.
·
We are
also called to put all our trust in our God, who is always with us,
Jesus=God-is-with-us, who never abandons us.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM 22
MY
GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU ABANDONED ME?
Why so far
from my call for help?
All who see
me mock me;
They shake
their heads at me
You relied
on the Lord- let him deliver you
If he loves
you let him recue you
Many dogs
surround me
A pack of
evildoers closes on me
So wasted are my hands and feet
That I can
count all my bones
They divide
my garments among them
For my
clothing they cast lots
But you Lord do not stay far off
My strength,
come quickly to help me.
Then I will
proclaim your name to the assembly.
You who fear
the Lord give praise!
All
descendants of Jacob give honor
Show
reverence, all descendants of Israel!
« This psalm is
the voice of someone who is near death
« God, who in
former times was near, and was experienced as such, is now far away.
« In the
second part of this psalm, and in our responsorial psalm in the last stanza,
the fate changes, because God intervenes and this gives way to joy, praise and
thanksgiving.
SECOND
READING Phil 2:6-11
Paul invites the community of Philippi to have the
same attitude of Jesus
What is this attitude?
Christ Jesus
o
Who is God, and contrary to what Adam did, he did not
regard equality with God something to be grasped at. (he became man, mystery of
the incarnation of the Word of God)
o
He took the form of a slave, any man is a slave before
God, God is our Lord and our Master, and even if we think that we are in
charge, we are only slaves. The Word of God, in order to be like us, humiliated
himself and took the form of slave.
o
The Word made flesh obeyed, Jesus became obedient, and
this means that he opened his ears and listened and opened his mouth to make
known his adherence to the will of the Father.
o
He accepted the most humiliating death, the death on
the cross.
o
As a consequence to all of this, the Father has
glorified him, giving to Jesus a name which is above every other name, this
means that he has given him full authority, thus everything is subjected to him,
because JESUS CHRIST IS LORD FOR THE GLORY OF GOD THE FATHER.
Beautiful fragment of the letter to the church of
Philippi, in which Paul presents Christ, as true God and at the same time true
man, as we confess in the creed.
GOSPEL – PASSION OF
OUR LORD – Lk 22-23
Ø
The
narrative of the Passion in the Gospel according to Luke, is found in chapters
22-23.
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This
narrative is a work of art of the literature of the New Testament.
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There are some actions and events which prepare the
climax of the narrative the CROSS of Christ.
o
The
preparation of the Passover meal.
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The
supper-the Institution of the Eucharist and the instruction about service, that Jesus gave to his 12 disciples.
o
The prayer
in the garden (being of human condition he did not regard equality with God
something to be grasp at… he humiliated himself – he sweats blood, he is afraid,
he is terrified) Jesus is arrested. His
words to Judas.
o
Peter and the
soldiers, and the servants.
o
Jesus
looks at Peter, Jesus speaks to the soldiers.
o
Religious
trial, Roman trial, Jesus brought to Herod, death sentence dictated by the
Roman authority. They all are aware that
they have condemned an innocent man, but since he is a simple and poor man who
does not have any prominent place in society, they feel they can destroy him,
because he is thread for them, for their plans, for their injustices. This
continues to be true in our society, and many times in our hearts also. Whenever
we prefer our interests to the good of others. .
o
The way to
the Golgotha carrying the cross walking together with the two robbers, “he was
counted among the sinners.”
Ø
THE CRUCIFIXION AND DEATH – This
is the climax of the narration but more than that the climax of Jesus life and
ministry, of Jesus coming to Jerusalem.
§
Other two
robbers walk with him towards the Golgotha. Maybe they were against him because their execution was
going to be earlier than what they expected.
§
To help
him to carry the cross they took hold of a man, who was coming from the fields. He carried the
cross behind Jesus. He probably did not know anything about the condemnation of
Jesus. Here there was another angry man because he had to carry the cross of
this Jesus of Nazareth.
§
Among the
crowd that followed him there were many women who cried and lamented him, but
he told them to weep for themselves and not for him. I think that this can be
considered an invitation to conversion.
§
THEY
NAILED HIM TO THE CROSS AND AT EACH SIDE ONE OF THE CRIMINALS.
·
The
crucifixion in one of the worst death penalties invented by men, and it is also the most
humiliating.
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The aspect
of a crucified man is ugly, terrifying and grotesque.
·
Jesus
speaks and as always he speaks words of mercy and love:
o
Forgive
them… Yes it is true that they do not know that we do not know what we are
doing when we sin.
o
To the
thief that asks him to remember him when he gets to his kingdom, Jesus says
“Today you will be with me in Paradise.” Happy this man, who at the end of his
life encounters Jesus, confesses him as his Lord and gives himself to him with
humility!
o
And now
Jesus speaks to his Father, and cries out “Father into your hands I commend my
spirit.” Yes Father I return to you, I give myself unconditionally to you, even
without experiencing your presence, I know that you are here with me, it cannot
be otherwise.
·
Creation,
nature reacts on seeing the behavior of the only being of creation that has
mind and heart, that can know and love:
darkness comes upon the earth, the veil of the temple was torn down. It
is not needed anymore to hide the “holy of holies” because the HOLY ONE is exposed
on the cross forever, he is the real TEMPLE of God.
·
His death,
his crying out helps the Centurion to realize that this crucified man is
different, he is a just man, he is the son of God as we read in the Gospel of
Mark. The centurion has supervised the execution of
many men but he has never seen one like this one.
Ø
After the
death on the cross there are other actions:
o
The people
who were present at the crucifixion, go back home beating their breasts. Maybe
for many of them it was the beginning of a journey of conversion.
o
Joseph of
Arimathea, who awaited the kingdom of God, came to Pilate and asked for the
body of Jesus and buried him.
o
The women,
who had followed him from Galilee, were at a distance looking at the tomb and
at the body of Jesus who was laid in the tomb.
o
The repose
of the Sabbath began:
§
Jesus
reposes of all his works and sufferings. He has accomplished the work he came
to do among us, the salvation of the human race, of all the men and women of
all times from the beginning until the end.
§
The
faithful Israelites observe the repose of the Sabbath as the Law prescribes.
We just have observed Jesus and also some of the other characters of the
Passion narrative. Let us
mention some of them:
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Peter,
Judas and the other disciples, the servants around the fire.
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Simon of
Cyrene and the women who weep along the way
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The
soldiers who do not know him, and they have the responsibility to execute the
death sentence.
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The Roman
Centurion who supervises the execution.
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Joseph of
Arimathea.
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All the
authorities: Jewish and Roman.
After the contemplation of Jesus I invite all of us to dedicate some
time every day during Holy Week to pray-meditate-contemplate in silence the
characters which I have mentioned above. Let us ask ourselves if our behavior
resembles one of them.
BUT OVER ALL LET US REMEMBER THAT WE ARE CALLED TO BE LIKE JESUS.
HAPPY EASTER TO ALL, MAY WE BE FILLED WITH THE JOY OF THE RESURRECTION!
Beside what I saw in these sacred letters
(without seeing anything with my bodily eyes as I have said above) an interior
voice in the depths of my soul, was explaining me their meaning and the way to
practice them… To my understanding I saw everything in Christ
Crucified who, as he was teaching me (to read) the divine letters, was
explaining their meaning to me. As this was the first time that our Lord spoke
to me, I did not understand of these things and I did not know how to comply
with his commands. I was crying abundantly and I told his Divine majesty, whom
I had very present, that seemed to me that I was speaking face to face with the Majesty of God. Venerable María
Antonia Paris, Foundress of the Claretian Missionary Sisters, Autobiography 6.
I came down from the pulpit
filled with the greatest fervor, and at the end of the service we left the
church to go to my lodgings. I was accompanied by four priests, my attendant,
Ignacio, and a sacristan who carried a lantern to light our way, since it was
8:30 in the evening and it had already grown dark. We had left the church and
were walking down the broad and spacious main street. On both sides of the
avenue there were large crowds, and all were greeting me. A man stepped
forward, as if to kiss my ring, when suddenly his arm flew back and he brought
the razor he was holding down upon me with all his might. I had my head down
and was touching a handkerchief to my mouth with my right hand, and so, instead
of slitting my throat as he had intended, he slashed my face across the left
cheek, from the ear to the chin. The razor also caught and wounded my right arm
in passing because I was holding it up to my mouth, as I said. St. Anthony Mary
Claret, Founder of the Claretian Missionary Sisters, Autobiography 575.
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