People motivated by Love

Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion is the second day of the continuing liturgy of the Triduum for which texts of the Roman Catholic Lectionary are chosen.

Looking up and delving deeper

The Book of the Prophet Isaiah tells of the fourth Song of the Suffering Servant for the sins of others.

* [53:4] Struck down by God: the Bible often sees suffering as a punishment for sin (e.g., Ps 6:2; 32:1–5), yet sin sometimes appears to go unpunished and the innocent often suffer (cf. Ps 73; the Book of Job). In the case of the servant, the onlookers initially judge him guilty because of his suffering but, in some way not explained, they come to understand that his sufferings are for the sins of others. One notes the element of surprise, for such vicarious suffering, in the form described here, is without parallel in the Old Testament.

The Letter to the Hebrews declares  Jesus as our High Priest who was tested in every way.

* [4:14–16] These verses, which return to the theme first sounded in Heb 2:16–3:1, serve as an introduction to the section that follows. The author here alone calls Jesus a great high priest (Heb 4:14), a designation used by Philo for the Logos; perhaps he does so in order to emphasize Jesus’ superiority over the Jewish high priest. He has been tested in every way, yet without sin (Heb 4:15); this indicates an acquaintance with the tradition of Jesus’ temptations, not only at the beginning (as in Mk 1:13) but throughout his public life (cf. Lk 22:28). Although the reign of the exalted Jesus is a theme that occurs elsewhere in Hebrews, and Jesus’ throne is mentioned in Heb 1:8, the throne of grace (Heb 4:16) refers to the throne of God. The similarity of Heb 4:16 to Heb 10:19–22 indicates that the author is thinking of our confident access to God, made possible by the priestly work of Jesus.

The Passion Narrative in the Gospel of John ties Jesus on the Cross to Baptism and Eucharist.

* [19:34–35] John probably emphasizes these verses to show the reality of Jesus’ death, against the docetic heretics. In the blood and water there may also be a symbolic reference to the Eucharist and baptism.

Candice Tucci, O.S.F. challenges us to gaze upon the crucified Jesus, or the dead Jesus in the picture detail of the Pieta by Michelangelo, and to see Him as if we are gazing in a mirror.

Does this mirror image take us deeper into our lives and experiences where we felt we were dead, or at the foot of the cross, and wept? Does it take us even deeper to recognize our own sinfulness, brokenness and imperfections that need forgiveness or transformation? Does it tell me how much I am loved and embraced by God? Does it take me to an image of a wounded world in need of healing, peace and wholeness? We may discover our own behaviors that could have contributed to such realities while at the same time we suffer from our own infirmities. As Sebastian Moore wrote, THE CRUCIFIED CHRIST IS NO STRANGER! We are both crucifier and crucified.

Her reflection quotes Sebastian Moore, OSB, a monk of Downside Abbey and the author of some of the most original and influential theological works of the past fifty years, who declares “THE CRUCIFIED CHRIST IS NO STRANGER! We are both crucifier and crucified.”

Friar Jude Winkler shares the connections between the texts of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah and Jesus Passion. The structure of the Gospel of John points to the centrality of the Divinity of Jesus, as Friar Jude explains.

A comprehensive article on the Passion of Jesus on the Web Site of the Spirit of St Stephen’s Community is connected to the theological work of Richard Rohr and Sebastian Moore and it builds on the faith of St Francis as interpreted by John Duns Scotus.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares teaching on The Mystery of the Cross and the effect on those who “gaze upon” (John 19:37) the Crucified long enough.

Those who “gaze upon” (John 19:37) the Crucified long enough—with contemplative eyes—are always healed at deep levels of pain, unforgiveness, aggression, and victimhood. Contemplative gazing demands no theological education, just an “inner exchange” by receiving the image within and offering one’s soul back in safe return. C. G. Jung is supposed to have said that a naked man nailed to a cross is perhaps the deepest archetypal symbol in the Western psyche. [1]

The Passion of Jesus is the door to our becoming mature followers of Jesus who raise children for Christ aware that suffering is not the end but the means to becoming people motivated by Love. References


(n.d.). Isaiah, chapter 53 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved March 30, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/isaiah53:17

(n.d.). Hebrews, chapter 4 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved March 30, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/hebrews/4

(n.d.). John 19:26-27. Retrieved March 30, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/john/john19.htm
(n.d.). Creighton University's Online Ministries. Retrieved March 30, 2018, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/online.html 

(n.d.). Spirit of St. Stephen's - The Mystery of the Cross (Richard Rohr, Ch. 9 .... Retrieved March 30, 2018, from http://spiritofststephens.org/resources/prayers-and-theme-readings/1380-the-mystery-of-the-cross-richard-rohr-ch-9-things-hidden-scripture-as-spirituality 

(2017, April 23). The Mystery of the Cross - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved March 30, 2018, from https://cac.org/the-mystery-of-the-cross-2017-04-23/