As we draw nearer to the Sacred Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday) and the conclusion of Lent (Holy Thursday) there are "heavier," more serious words for us in the readings for the daily liturgies. In the gospel words from St. John, Jesus again confronts the Pharisees and their sin. Again we hear Jesus telling them "I AM." He is not the God or Messiah of yesterday. Nether is he the God or Messiah of what will be. He is our God, our Messiah, in the present. He is with and for us in the here and now, at this very moment.
The recent week has been frightening .. at least for me, here in Washington, DC. Bitterness, hatred and vitriol have once again managed to take over so many minds and hearts for display to our nation and the world. The words, the signs and the actions of national leaders and protesters of so much have demonstrated what is truly an evil spirit that has captured so many hearts, mind and tongues with highly caustic criticisms and downright insulting treatment of other human beings. More than a few people proved once again that racial hatred is far from buried. As I listened and watched the behavior of too many "fellow citizens," this thought came to mind: Is this not like the experience of Jesus when the angered crowd shouted at him, "Crucify him! Crucify him!"
Has our national outburst of mistrust and condemnation forgotten the cross of Jesus Christ? There is "the source of all blessings, the cause of all graces" (Pope St. Leo the Great). Let us come before the cross, lifted high with the very source of all forgiveness, the true love of Jesus Christ for every person.
Perhaps our nation's waging two wars simultaneously, perhaps our nation's loss of a true sense of value of all life, perhaps the loss of a genuine sense of dignity -- all these and many other sad and painful realities in our advanced (?) culture -- have brought before us the challenge to open our heats and minds to the cross of Jesus Christ. What value does it speak to you in this very moment? Can you see all those who are the victims of insult, bitterness and genuine hatred hanging on the crucifix?
In a most unusual presentation of the crucifixion presented above, Jesus reaches out. During a homily, a three year old girl who had noticed this particular artistic expression of the death of Christ for the first time, spoke out to her mother in a voice loud enough for many to hear: "Mommy, mommy, look! Jesus is reaching out his hand. He needs us to help him!" Those words could not be truer today.
