JESUS HANGS ON THE CROSS. CROWDS OF PEOPLE STAND AROUND WATCHING THE SPECTACLE, SOME WATCHING IN HORROR, OTHERS WITH INDIFFERENCE; STILL OTHERS WITH A SENSE OF TRIUMPH: THEY MAY BE THINKING, “THANK GOD, THAT ANNOYING AND DANGEROUS PROPHET IS IN THE LAST MINUTES OF HIS LIFE”. THERE HAD BEEN CRIES OF “CRUCIFY HIM“ AND “GIVE US BARABBAS”!. THERE HAD BEEN A DISGRACEFUL SET-UP OF A TRIAL, SARCASM, PHYSICAL TORTURE AND EMOTIONAL ABUSE.
CONNECTED TO JESUS ALL THE TIME BY THE STRONG BONDS OF LOVE AND FINALLY STANDING BENEATH THE CROSS IS HIS MOTHER. IT MUST HAVE BEEN AN ABSOLUTELY SICKENING SIGHT. HUMAN BEINGS NAILED OR TIED TO CROSSBEAMS LIKE ANIMALS.
BLOOD, GORE, SWEAT, BODIES TWITCHING IN AGONY, LIFE BEING TORN OUT OF BODIES THAT SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN DYING. JESUS WAS STILL YOUNG, JESUS AND THE TWO THIEVES WEREN’T SICK,. HUMAN BEINGS WERE DELIBERATELY RIPPING OUT LIFE OF OTHER HUMAN BEINGS, AND FOR WHAT? THE OTHER TWO WERE CALLED THIEVES BECAUSE THEY MUST HAVE STOLEN SOMETHING. WHO KNOWS? BUT JESUS? JESUS WAS ONLY A TROUBLEMAKER. JESUS DARED TO CHALLENGE GOD’S PEOPLE ABOUT THEIR LACK OF FAITH, THEIR CARELESSNESS ABOUT LIVING THE TORAH. JESUS CARED ABOUT THE POOR, HE HEALED THE SICK, PREACHED, TAUGHT, ATE WITH THE MARGINALIZED AND FORGAVE SINNERS.
DOES THAT DESERVE THIS KIND OF DEATH? ANYWAY, WHO AT ANY TIME DESERVES TO HAVE HIS OR HER LIFE TAKEN AWAY? MARY STANDS AT THE FOOT OF THE CROSS WITH JOHN THE DISCIPLE. CAN YOU IMAGINE WHAT THEY WERE THINKING? CAN YOU IMAGINE THE CRUSHING PAIN OF A MOTHER WATCHING HER SON DIE?. DIE, NOT BECAUSE HE HAD DONE ANYTHING WRONG, DIE BECAUSE HE LOVED SO MUCH. THAT’S THE PUZZLEMENT OF THIS WHOLE SCENE.
JESUS LOVED EVERYONE. HE PAID ATTENTION EVEN TO PEOPLE WHO TRIED TO TRICK HIM WITH THEIR UNANSWERABLE QUESTIONS. HE TOOK THEM ON EVERY TIME, BUT NEVER IN A CRUEL OR IMPERIOUS WAYS. HE WAS ALWAYS TO THE POINT, BUT THOUGHTFUL AND KIND, EVEN WHEN CHALLENGED. HE WAS A TEACHER WHO HAD ONE BASIC LESSON: LOVE…. SO, FOR THIS, HE HANGS ON THE CROSS AND HIS MOTHER STANDS AND WATCHES HIM DIE.
THIS IS A TERRIBLY QUIET DAY. IT’S EMBARRASSING TO HEAR THE CROWD YELL AT MOUNT CALVARY. IT BRINGS US FACE TO FACE WITH OUR OWN SIN, AND WE MIGHT WONDER HOW WE STILL MIGHT CRUCIFY OTHER HUMAN BEINGS. ONCE AGAIN, WE DON’T SEEM TO HAVE LEARNED THE LESSON JESUS WORKED SO HARD TO TEACH.
THE EMBARRASSMENT MAKES US WANT TO BLAME SOMEONE ELSE. “THE JEWS KILLED JESUS”. OR MAYBE THE ROMANS, BUT CERTAINLY NOT ME. BUT SAYING THAT CREATES ANOTHER PROBLEM. PEOPLE WHO HAVE BOUGHT INTO THAT WAY OF THINKING HAVE REACTED THROUGHOUT HISTORY WITH THINGS LIKE ANTI-SEMITISM, THE SPANISH INQUISITION, THE CRUSADES, NAZISM AND INTOLERANCE OF MANY DIFFERENT TYPES.
AND SO, WE ARE QUIET TODAY: OUR LITURGY HAS A SENSE OF STILLNESS, AND YET THERE IS MOVEMENT. YESTERDAY, ON HOLY THURSDAY, WE MOVED FROM THE UPPER ROOM WHERE JESUS WASHED THE DISCIPLE’S FEET BEFORE SHARING THE BREAD AND WINE, AND THEN INTO THE GARDEN OF GHETSEMANI; TODAY, WE RETELL THE STORY OF THE ARREST, TRIAL, SUFFERING AND DEATH OF JESUS.
WE VENERATE THE CROSS IN WORD, ACTION AND HYMN. WE SEE THE MOTHER STAND BENEATH THE CROSS AND PICTURE HER RECEIVING HIS DEAD BODY INTO HER ARMS. NO MOTHER SHOULD HAVE TO SEE HER CHILD DIE. WE WANT TO TURN OUR EYES AWAY BUT WE CAN’T.
IF WE DON’T LOOK AT THE CROSS AND UNDERSTAND THAT JESUS IS DEAD, THAT HIS LIFE WAS TAKEN CRUELLY AND YET GIVEN FREELY OUT OF LOVE, IF WE DON’T SEE OURSELVES IN THE HEART OF HIS MOTHER WILLING TO BE THERE WITH HIM EVEN IF IT’S DANGEROUS, THEN WE MIGHT NOT REALLY UNDERSTAND THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION.
GOD THE SON GAVE ALL SO THAT WE MIGHT BEGIN, JUST BEGIN, TO UNDERSTAND UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. ONCE WE UNDERSTAND IT, WE REALIZE WE ARE ASKED TO DO THE SAME IN MANY DIFFERENT AND VARIED WAYS, SOME EASIER THAN OTHERS, SOME , LIKE DEATH ON THE CROSS, WAS A TOTAL GIFT OF SELF FOR OTHERS.
“WOMAN, BEHOLD YOUR SON”.
THEN HE SAIDTO HIS DISCIPLE: “HERE IS YOUR MOTHER”
WE ARE IN THE HEARTS OF BOTH MOTHER AND DISCIPLE. WE ARE GIVEN TO EACH OTHER BY GOD TO CARE FOR EACH OTHER IN OUR FAMILES, WITH OUR FRIENDS, IN OUR COMMUNITY AND WITH OUR NATION, TO GIVE SUPPORT AND LOVE WITHOUT RESERVE, TO BE WILLING TO GIVE WHAT’S IMPORTANT IN OUR LIVES.
WE’VE HEARD THE STORY ONCE AGAIN. WE’VE LOOKED AT THE CROSS AND KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO US. BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE: WHAT HAS THIS HOUR REVEALED US TO BE? WHO ARE WE? WHO HAVE WE BEEN?
WE COULD BE LOVING AND INDIFFERENT, FRANTIC AND PARALYZED, INTREPID AND COWARDLY, LOYAL, FICKLE AND TOUCHINGLY GENTLE. THEREFORE, BECAUSE WHAT WE MAY DISCOVER ABOUT OURSELVES AT THIS HOUR, IF WE ARE WHO WETHINK WE ARE, WHO HAS GOD BEEN FOR US?
JESUS HAS ALWAYS BEEN UNMOORED, RESOLUTE. HE HAS BEEN ALL LOVE,UNCONDITIONAL LOVE, PURE LOVE TO THE BITTER END.
NOW, IN FEW MOMENTS, LET’S LEAVE THIS CHURCH IN SILENCE, THINKING ABOUT THE LAMB OF GOD WHO DIED FOR US, AS WE CONTINUE WALKING THE ROAD OF OUR OWN LIFE JOURNEY.
AMEN
