Good Friday, April 15, 2022

Jesus completes his mission on this earth

John 18:1—19:42

Chapter 18

1.After he had said all this, Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kidron valley where there was a garden into which he went with his disciples. 2.Judas the traitor knew the place also, since Jesus had often met his disciples there, 3.so Judas brought the cohort to this place together with guards sent by the chief priests and the Pharisees, all with lanterns and torches and weapons. 4.Knowing everything that was to happen to him, Jesus came forward and said, 'Who are you looking for?' 5.They answered, 'Jesus the Nazarene.' He said, 'I am he.' Now Judas the traitor was standing among them. 6.When Jesus said to them, 'I am he,' they moved back and fell on the ground. 7.He asked them a second time, 'Who are you looking for?' They said, 'Jesus the Nazarene.' 8.Jesus replied, 'I have told you that I am he. If I am the one you are looking for, let these others go.' 9.This was to fulfil the words he had spoken, 'Not one of those you gave me have I lost.' 10.Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, cutting off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. 11.Jesus said to Peter, 'Put your sword back in its scabbard; am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?' 12.The cohort and its tribune and the Jewish guards seized Jesus and bound him.

13.They took him first to Annas, because Annas was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. 14.It was Caiaphas who had counselled the Jews, 'It is better for one man to die for the people.' 15.Simon Peter, with another disciple, followed Jesus. This disciple, who was known to the high priest, went with Jesus into the high priest's palace, 16.but Peter stayed outside the door. So the other disciple, the one known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the door-keeper and brought Peter in. 17.The girl on duty at the door said to Peter, 'Aren't you another of that man's disciples?' He answered, 'I am not.' 18.Now it was cold, and the servants and guards had lit a charcoal fire and were standing there warming themselves; so Peter stood there too, warming himself with the others. 19.The high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. 20.Jesus answered, 'I have spoken openly for all the world to hear; I have always taught in the synagogue and in the Temple where all the Jews meet together; I have said nothing in secret. 21.Why ask me? Ask my hearers what I taught; they know what I said.' 22.At these words, one of the guards standing by gave Jesus a slap in the face, saying, 'Is that the way you answer the high priest?' 23.Jesus replied, 'If there is some offence in what I said, point it out; but if not, why do you strike me?' 24.Then Annas sent him, bound, to Caiaphas the high priest. 25.As Simon Peter stood there warming himself, someone said to him, 'Aren't you another of his disciples?' He denied it saying, 'I am not.' 26.One of the high priest's servants, a relation of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, said, 'Didn't I see you in the garden with him?' 27.Again Peter denied it; and at once a cock crowed.

28.They then led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the Praetorium. It was now morning. They did not go into the Praetorium themselves to avoid becoming defiled and unable to eat the Passover. 29.So Pilate came outside to them and said, 'What charge do you bring against this man?' They replied, 30.'If he were not a criminal, we should not have handed him over to you.' 31.Pilate said, 'Take him yourselves, and try him by your own Law.' The Jews answered, 'We are not allowed to put anyone to death.' 32.This was to fulfil the words Jesus had spoken indicating the way he was going to die. 33.So Pilate went back into the Praetorium and called Jesus to him and asked him, 'Are you the king of the Jews?' 34.Jesus replied, 'Do you ask this of your own accord, or have others said it to you about me?' 35.Pilate answered, 'Am I a Jew? It is your own people and the chief priests who have handed you over to me: what have you done?' 36.Jesus replied, 'Mine is not a kingdom of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my men would have fought to prevent my being surrendered to the Jews. As it is, my kingdom does not belong here.' 37.Pilate said, 'So, then you are a king?' Jesus answered, 'It is you who say that I am a king. I was born for this, I came into the world for this, to bear witness to the truth; and all who are on the side of truth listen to my voice.' 38.'Truth?' said Pilate. 'What is that?' And so saying he went out again to the Jews and said, 'I find no case against him. 39.But according to a custom of yours I should release one prisoner at the Passover; would you like me, then, to release for you the king of the Jews?' 40.At this they shouted, 'Not this man,' they said, 'but Barabbas.' Barabbas was a bandit." 

Chapter 19

"1.Pilate then had Jesus taken away and scourged; 2.and after this, the soldiers twisted some thorns into a crown and put it on his head and dressed him in a purple robe. 3.They kept coming up to him and saying, 'Hail, king of the Jews!' and slapping him in the face. 4.Pilate came outside again and said to them, 'Look, I am going to bring him out to you to let you see that I find no case against him.' 5.Jesus then came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said, 'Here is the man.' 6.When they saw him, the chief priests and the guards shouted, 'Crucify him! Crucify him!' Pilate said, 'Take him yourselves and crucify him: I find no case against him.' 7.The Jews replied, 'We have a Law, and according to that Law he ought to be put to death, because he has claimed to be Son of God.' 8.When Pilate heard them say this his fears increased. 9.Re-entering the Praetorium, he said to Jesus, 'Where do you come from?' But Jesus made no answer. 10.Pilate then said to him, 'Are you refusing to speak to me? Surely you know I have power to release you and I have power to crucify you?' 11.Jesus replied, 'You would have no power over me at all if it had not been given you from above; that is why the man who handed me over to you has the greater guilt.' 12.From that moment Pilate was anxious to set him free, but the Jews shouted, 'If you set him free you are no friend of Caesar's; anyone who makes himself king is defying Caesar.' 13.Hearing these words, Pilate had Jesus brought out, and seated him on the chair of judgement at a place called the Pavement, in Hebrew Gabbatha. 14.It was the Day of Preparation, about the sixth hour. 'Here is your king,' said Pilate to the Jews. 15.But they shouted, 'Away with him, away with him, crucify him.' Pilate said, 'Shall I crucify your king?' The chief priests answered, 'We have no king except Caesar.' 16.So at that Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.

They then took charge of Jesus, 17.and carrying his own cross he went out to the Place of the Skull or, as it is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, 18.where they crucified him with two others, one on either side, Jesus being in the middle. 19.Pilate wrote out a notice and had it fixed to the cross; it ran: 'Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews'. 20.This notice was read by many of the Jews, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the writing was in Hebrew, Latin and Greek. 21.So the Jewish chief priests said to Pilate, 'You should not write "King of the Jews", but that the man said, "I am King of the Jews". ' 22.Pilate answered, 'What I have written, I have written.'

23.When the soldiers had finished crucifying Jesus they took his clothing and divided it into four shares, one for each soldier. His undergarment was seamless, woven in one piece from neck to hem; 24.so they said to one another, 'Instead of tearing it, let's throw dice to decide who is to have it.' In this way the words of scripture were fulfilled: They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothes. That is what the soldiers did. 25.Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. 26.Seeing his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, 'Woman, this is your son.' 27.Then to the disciple he said, 'This is your mother.' And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. 28.After this, Jesus knew that everything had now been completed and, so that the scripture should be completely fulfilled, he said: I am thirsty. 29.A jar full of sour wine stood there; so, putting a sponge soaked in the wine on a hyssop stick, they held it up to his mouth. 30.After Jesus had taken the wine he said, 'It is fulfilled'; and bowing his head he gave up his spirit. 31.It was the Day of Preparation, and to avoid the bodies' remaining on the cross during the Sabbath -- since that Sabbath was a day of special solemnity -- the Jews asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away. 32.Consequently the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with him and then of the other. 33.When they came to Jesus, they saw he was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs 34.one of the soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and water.

35.This is the evidence of one who saw it -- true evidence, and he knows that what he says is true -- and he gives it so that you may believe as well. 36.Because all this happened to fulfil the words of scripture: Not one bone of his will be broken; 37.and again, in another place scripture says: They will look to the one whom they have pierced.

38.After this, Joseph of Arimathaea, who was a disciple of Jesus -- though a secret one because he was afraid of the Jews -- asked Pilate to let him remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave permission, so they came and took it away. 39.Nicodemus came as well -- the same one who had first come to Jesus at night-time -- and he brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. 40.They took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, following the Jewish burial custom. 41.At the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in this garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been buried. 42.Since it was the Jewish Day of Preparation and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there." 

Companions for the Journey:

HOMILY FOR GOOD FRIDAY DEIVERED AT UNIVERSITY PUBLIC WORSHIP, MEMORIAL CHURCH 2008 Nancy Greenfield

The last words of Jesus, according to the writer of the last canonical Gospel, were the cryptic: "It is finished".

What is finished?

I think it depends on your perspective.

Let us, in our mind's eye, gather around the cross and observe the reactions of those intimately connected to the fateful events of that day:

For the High priests, this is the end, or so they think, to all those incendiary speeches, dangerous gatherings of people who are beginning to question the authority of the temple, and who are beginning to see the high priests as collaborators in a system which kept the peace with Rome, but did so on the backs of the poor and marginalized. It is an end to a public relations nightmare in which Rome once again looks at this corner of the world as a hotbed of discontent and sedition. The traitor is dead.

It is finished; FINALLY!

Soldiers on a hill, obeying orders from above. Nasty job to pull. But somebody has to. Wretched day. Hot. Humid. Cloudy. Storm brewing. Anybody for a quick game? Thirsty! Listen to that one. He's thirsty! If you are the king of the Jews, get out of this one — if you can. A bad job; but it's over now. Another day, another shekel. (1.) It is finished:

Two thieves, each with a different reaction on their last day on earth: One is desperate for life, disappointed when Jesus can't pull off the final miracle. "I knew you were a fake!" The other, sensing something larger than life is happening here: "This man has done nothing wrong." But for each of them, there is no coming down from that cross alive.

It is finished.

The crowd dwindles. The shouting subsides. Wagging their heads they snort and chuckle. Destroy the temple! Who did he think he was? Rebuild it in three days! He fancied himself at playing Solomon. Good riddance, I say. That was a good one.

But it's finished now.

Somewhere in the shadows lurks a free man. Released from prison his first day out of jail. Barabbas delivered from bondage! His term of sentence?

It is finished.

Off in the distance on the palace balcony stand Pilate and his wife. A nightmare come true, but after all — I didn’t really know him. It wasn’t as though he were somebody important. What's done is done. " What I have written I have written," And that's that.

It is finished (2.)

The disciples--men and women, many of whom have been expecting a radical change in the religious philosophies and the social structures at the hand of Jesus surely realize that it is finished, and not in a good way, on that fateful afternoon when Jesus dies. "I left my family, my good life as a fisherman to follow him. I thought we had every chance of success. I was going to be his right hand person in his new kingdom. He is the only one who understood everything I ever did. What now? I guess it's back to the job of trying to make a living fishing. That 's it. We failed.

It is finished." (3)

What is finished?

When I was a child, I heard over and over again in one version or another: Jesus' job, to die for our sins, is finished. Jesus had to die in order for humanity to be restored to God's favor. Jesus' death settled the debt we owed by sinning, and opened up the gates of heaven for us once more. When Jesus' death is understood in light of salvation spirituality, his was a necessary sacrifice for all mankind. The reasoning, according to St Anselm in 1097, goes something like this: the human race has sinned, from Adam on down, and all crime must have punishment. Therefore, God must require a punishment, a price, before God can forgive our sins or crimes. God's anger will only be appeased by human sacrifice. This human sacrifice must be unblemished and perfect, so no one other than Jesus, the God-Man will be adequate. Jesus died for my sins. The payment has been made, the debt has been satisfied. (4.) Jesus came to save us. And that job is finished.

Sorry folks, I just don't buy it. For many of us, both in and out of the Christian communion, this notion of substitutionary atonement is more of a stumbling block than a help. For many of us, this reasoning flies in the face of our understanding of God as Abba, a loving daddy. What parent would demand the death of a son or daughter as payment for disobedience? Not a normal one.

Oh yes, Jesus came to save us, but not in the way we expected

Jesus became human to show us how to save ourselves from ourselves. He came to give us a vision of how life could be if it were ordered according to the principles of God instead of principles of humans. Jesus came to show us how to love. How to heal, and how to forgive. And this is what he did from one dusty corner of Israel to other. This is what he preached when he spoke of the laborers in the vineyard, or the Prodigal Son. This is what he did when he refused to counter violence with violence in his last hours on this earth. The legacy Jesus left is there for all of us to recall, recounted every time we pick up a gospel reading. . Too often we look on Jesus' death as a one-time solution to all that ails the earth. Too often we pray to God for an end to war, or poverty or injustice, expecting God to make it happen without any change or effort on our part. God has chosen since the beginning of time, to work in and through humans, and if the kingdom of heaven is to be attained, it must be through our own efforts, using the words and works of Jesus as a lodestar.

And when he died on that dark and dreadful day, his part in the drama we call the History of the Earth was over. It was finished. God or no God, by becoming fully human, one in solidarity with all of humanity, it was ordained that he would die--and the manner of his dying showed those who suffer: "I will suffer with you." He had done all he could to leave behind a legacy of love and mission. Unfortunately, the world Jesus left behind is a broken, messy world, riddled with sin and selfishness, and the project of healing is an interactive one between God and us. It is our job to do our part to finish what Jesus started.

And it that sense, it is not finished.

Look around folks.

We got trouble, right here in River City.

Right here on our small planet, we are busy killing one another and have been doing so since the days of Cain and Abel. When we speak of war casualties, --which in this war, numbers 4300 and counting- we rarely count the losses to our "enemy". When we speak of deterrents, we don't always stop to consider that our little planet has enough weapons of mass destruction stockpiled to annihilate every person on this earth. On our small planet, we are punching holes in the ozone layer, polluting the oceans with oil spills and ruining rivers and streams with industrial waste. Some animals, driven out of their habitat by encroaching civilization and industrialization, starve or are killed for profit. Currently, there are over 1000 species of birds and mammals that are facing extinction. And let us not forget that the collateral damage of war is the scorching of Mother earth itself.

IT IS NOT FINISHED!

Right here in this land of the free, last time I looked, bigotry and prejudice were alive and well. Stories of discrimination and hate crimes against Blacks, Asians, gays, women, Jews, Muslims; against "those people" who are not like us--these stories are in the newspaper and on the daily news every day. Every day!

Right here in this prosperous country, the younger you are, the more vulnerable you are. Among industrialized countries, America is the first in military technology, in military exports, in defense expenditures, in millionaires and billionaires, in health technology, but 17th in efforts to lift children out of poverty, 18th in infant mortality, last in protecting our children against gun violence. As our country has grown richer, our children have grown poorer. (5.)

Every 40 seconds a child is born into poverty. Every minute a child is born without health insurance. Every three minutes a child is arrested for drug abuse. Every six minutes a child is arrested for a violent crime. Every eighteen minutes a baby dies. Every two hours a firearm kills a child or youth.

Every day in America 8189 children are reported abused or neglected. (6.)

Every day.

IS SO NOT FINISHED!

Right here in our own small town, today and tomorrow people are surging or sending surrogates into the grocery stores to provision for the Easter feast as if it were the last banquet. As we exit the stores we don't even see the people sitting outside on an upended box with crudely lettered cardboard signs saying: "Homeless. Out of Work. Please help." As darkness closes in, small groups of desperate people arrange their meager bundles for another night in the open. The homeless shelters are full, the lines at St. Anthony's get longer and longer. Right here in our small town, many of the elderly have to make a choice between food and medication, between food and heat. Right here.

IT IS NOT FINISHED!

And we pray to God to fix it.

"Please God, give us peace. Stop people from fighting with us. Please God, stop people from polluting the earth. Please God, end discrimination and poverty and safeguard the most vulnerable. "

I ask you, is this the best we can do to love one another as Jesus has loved us? I think we can do better.

Jesus is no longer with us, and in the words of St Theresa of Avila: " God has no body now but yours. Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on the world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good. Yours are the hands with which he blesses all the earth. "

Instead, Let us pray to God to fix us:

Jesus, Man of Peace,

Give us the wisdom to look beyond military power and brute force to see that the collateral damage of war is often the life of an innocent child, or somebody's mother or hundreds and thousands of homeless and dislocated souls living in refugee camps.

Lord of Consolation,

I want to see with loving eyes all those lonely and hopeless

ones who have no one to talk to, who are locked in their own misery, who are too old to matter to anyone any more. Give me eyes of compassion to look at the faces behind the faces that I meet every day. Help me to see as fellow travelers those tucked into homes lighted for the evening, and in the homeless who arrange their bundles at the end of the day. Give me ears to hear the voices of the needy and the non-voices of silent desperation. Help me to have the courage and the energy to spend something of myself on their behalf Give me a heart that cares and words to heal.

Jesus, brother and friend, you left us an awesome and difficult task--It is not finished.

I am not finished.

I have barely begun.

1. adapted from God Has A Story Too by James A. Sanders, Elizabeth Hay Bechtel Professor of Intertestamental and Biblical Studies at the School of Theology, Claremont, California, and Professor of Religion at Claremont Graduate School. He is also the author of Torah and Canon.. This material was prepared for Religion Online by Paul Mobley. God Has A Story Too was published in 1979 by Fortress Press, Philadelphia

2. Ibid

3. Ibid

4. Crossan, John Dominic and Borg, Marcus: The Last Week, p139

5. Walter Burghardt: To Be Just is to Love, 190

6. Ibid

Exaltation of the Cross

Sept. 14, 2008

Catherine Wolff

My early school days were spent at St. Agnes Grammar School up in San Francisco. I’m old enough that seeing a movie was a major treat in those days, and the nuns who ran St. Agnes must have invested all their savings in the one movie we had in our library – a Spanish film that came out in the mid-1950’s called The Miracle of Marcellino.

My memory of the exact plot is a bit sketchy –Marcellino was a poor little orphan who had been taken in by the monks in a very austere monastery, and there was an episode having to do with a scorpion bite, and a miracle involving bread and wine. But I do have vivid, enduring memories of the conversations that Marcellino would have with Jesus. He was a lonely little boy who visited the chapel regularly to pray out loud in front of a crucifix that seemed to be at least 15 feet tall. After awhile Jesus, from way up on the cross, started talking back in a deep, rich, sorrowful voice. It was a great comfort to Marcellino but it was absolutely terrifying to me as a 6 or 7-year-old. I was worried that any number of crucifixes that hung all over Catholic 1950’s San Francisco would start speaking to me, but really what was most disturbing was that Jesus was somehow still hanging on the cross, now, today.

Now this was in the days just before Vatican II, when there was still considerable emphasis on the cross as ransom for sin, and on our personal and collective culpability in Jesus’ suffering and death. The story of the cross was told in terms of the sacrifice necessary for the redemption of our sins, one that we find in the Synoptic Gospels. This was a story that implied that God was deeply offended, that he required appeasement, recompense, and that since no mere human could make up for the estrangement that we humans had chosen, God had to send His own son to make amends, and to require of Him the ultimate sacrifice of death.

But there is another way to understand the cross. If we consider God’s love to be the real basis for hope, instead of the terrible ransom of Jesus’ life, we can tell another version of the story. It starts with creation itself, where God begins to reveal Himself, freely and forgivingly, as we see in today’s first reading about his care for his hungry and confused people wandering in the desert. And in this story creation is not an event that is contained in the past but is actually ongoing in history, ongoing in our hearts.

The next phase in this unfolding revelation of God’s love is the Incarnation. This is not a desperate salvage job, where God has to intervene in human history to help set it right. We already see him intervening continuously throughout the Old Testament, through the covenant which He kept so lovingly and faithfully and His People kept so badly.

The Incarnation is God breaking directly, physically, into history in human form in the person of Jesus. In fact, the great Franciscan Duns Scotus made a powerful argument that the Incarnation is God’s primary redemptive act. He said that the Incarnation was first and foremost in God’s mind from the beginning. It could not have been dependent on, or occasioned by, any action of humans, especially sin.

The language of John’s Gospel, which we hear today, does not stress Jesus’ death as ransom, sacrifice, atonement, as the Synoptic Gospels do. In John and Ephesians, in Duns Scotus and Karl Rahner, the crucifixion is part of Jesus’ glorification, not only a sacrifice but a manifestation of the lengths to which God is willing to go to bring us closer to him.

All of Jesus’ work was redemptive, all of it ennobled our human nature he took on for us -- his healing, his teaching, and as we heard from Paul today, his obedience unto death, even death on a cross. Jesus was a prophet in a long tradition that believed in the power of suffering to atone for wrongdoing, and because he was so faithful to God’s will, he come to understand that he was to die, and that his death was a sacrifice for others.

Jesus resolutely accepted his fate, and his faithfulness persisted throughout his terrible suffering and into his death. But so did the Father’s outpouring of love. We know that because Jesus was raised from the dead, and we are given new life in the Kingdom that came about as a result.

And yet that Kingdom is often so difficult to realize. We still suffer. You do, I do. I think of my long walk with my brother down the road to his death from brain cancer. I think of my friend Mary who has carried her schizophrenic brother for twenty years now. I wonder where so many Katrina victims are – they never came home again. And when I see pictures of children in Darfur it seems as though much of humankind is still nailed to a cross.

How can we find hope in our suffering, in the suffering of Jesus on the cross? How can we come to comprehend the reality that the cross contains not only the suffering but also the incarnation and the exaltation of Jesus? That it contains not only failure and scandal and pain but also victory and the promise of eternal life? Jesus already triumphed, and yet you and I here today are not yet capable of living fully in the Kingdom he established.

We are more like the Hebrews wandering around in the desert, complaining about wretched food and ravaged by serpents. In the rather mysterious passage we heard earlier, Moses had to appeal to God who told him to make an image of the serpent, mount it on a pole, and to have everybody who had been bitten look at it, and as a result, actually live. God had his people confront that which terrified them, and in doing so they were healed.

In fact, Jesus recalls that very event in the gospel we heard today -- He tells us that as Moses raised up the serpent for his people, the Son of Man is also lifted up so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. The Son of Man lifted up on the cross is a dreadful sight to see. It requires us to confront not only Jesus’ suffering but our own demons, and our own suffering borne in His body.

This is a powerful lesson of the cross – that we cannot turn away from suffering. We must assume our crosses as faithfully as Jesus did; we must suffer in order to be healed. In being healed we will be able to accept Jesus’ reassurance that the cross is the occasion for the great manifestation of God’s love for us, not a condemnation of the world but a promise that the world is saved.

HOMILY FOR GOOD FRIDAY ECUMENICAL SERVICE MEMORIAL CHURCH 2018

John Kerrigan

What would be a crucifixion for me? To feel that I’m absolutely alone, that nobody cared for or wanted me, that it really didn’t matter to anyone whether I lived or died.

About five years ago, I received an email from a former work acquaintance. Her name was Alice and she lived on the east coast. Alice’s note had a frantic tone to it: her son, Chris, enrolled in college in the Bay Area, was failing out of school. Furthermore, he had refused to meet with his academic advisor and stopped attending his therapy sessions. Alice asked if I would meet with Chris; I readily agreed. I sent her son a brief text introducing myself. His reply was hardly encouraging. “What do you want from me?” he wrote. After a few more emails back and forth, he agreed to meet. In my first face-to-face encounter with Chris, I sensed that he was exceptionally paranoid and obscenely angry. Think for a moment about J.D. Salinger’s Holden Caulfield in "Catcher in the Rye" and, then, multiply that character’s cynicism by ten and you’ll start to get a picture of Chris. As we spoke, I quickly learned about his former friends, former girlfriend, and former stellar grades. I also learned about his current struggle with the prescription drug Adderall. Over time, I realized that Chris was experiencing the crucifixion of feeling entirely alone. In his mind, no one cared about him; he also had convinced himself that he could care less about anyone else.During the course of subsequent meetings, I simply listened to Chris and allowed him to vent. Ultimately, he decided to withdraw from school and move back east, primarily for economic reasons. I saw Chris for the last time a few days before his departure and helped him move some boxes from his apartment to a place where they could be shipped back east. As I was about to leave, I handed Chris a hat from the Stanford golf course (just like this one), and told him that it might come in handy as he coped with the summer heat back home. As we said our goodbyes, Chris casually handed the hat back to me. I was confused and said, "Chris, this is a gift; it’s yours to keep." He seemed genuinely surprised and said, “I thought you were joking. You mean I can keep it?" Whereupon, he put it on, and with a grin, said "thank you". It was the first time that I had heard him speak those two words.

Now, why do I share the story with you? For two reasons, actually.

First, because it reminds you and me that Calvary is not just a place nor is it a moment in time. Calvary comes to life whenever and wherever the body of Christ is scourged, stripped, broken, pierced. There is the Calvary of war and bigotry, the Calvary of persecution and poverty. There is the Calvary that dwells in every human heart, whenever we turn toward sin and away from Christ. There is the Calvary of young Chris being bound by the chains of despair and self- loathing. The miracle of Good Friday, though, is the realization that by God's grace, Calvary isn't the end of the story.

Second, I share the story about Chris so that we can spend a moment reflecting on the meaning of a "gift." Gifts are something that are given freely. They can, however, be received or ignored by the person for whom they are intended. Chris’s outer shell was pretty hard; he had a difficulty receiving and accepting a gift, though he did eventually embrace my gesture of friendship. It takes a certain humility to accept a gift and, more so, to accept that it is given freely by someone who thinks enough of us to give us that gift. This Good Friday we need to ask ourselves, “Are we willing to accept the gift of God’s unconditional love in our lives? Are you and I willing to stop making excuses for who we are and accept the fact that the person that God’s loves is the person that God made, you and me, just the way that we are?”

For a moment, let’s also ask ourselves, “Why do we call this Friday "Good?” Perhaps, because God used it to remind you and me that our humanity was something precious. After all, Jesus took on our flesh, he was born in the same way that you and I were born. I have no doubt that God could have worked out our salvation in many different ways. Instead, God decided to save us by taking on our flesh and pitching a tent among us. God became one of us because God wanted to experience what we experience and in the same way that we experience it. Recall for a moment, Paul's letter to the Hebrews: "We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin."

If you and I want to know the meaning of the word God, we need only look at the life, death and destiny of Jesus of Nazareth. Likewise, if you or I want to know what it means to be a human being, we need look no farther than Jesus of Nazareth. The fullness of humanity revealing the fullness of divinity is found in the gift of Jesus of Nazareth. Which brings us back to God's "gift" this somber day. In all of his ministry, through to the Last Supper and passion and death on a cross, Jesus is saying to us, ‘If you want to hold on to your life, if you try to preserve it, if you grasp it and will not let it go, you will lose it. But, if you give your life away, if you hand it over, if you are willing to die, you will discover that you cannot run out of life.’ Hold onto life, you lose it; give it away and life becomes everlasting.

Good Friday reminds you and me that we will lose what we hold onto and can never run out of what we freely give away. Let’s apply this principle to our education and work lives as well. You and I may believe that our schooling and careers are gifts given to us to be grasped, prizes that we have achieved and strive to hold on to so as to advance in our professions or to make more money and provide for our family. And, actually, these are fine outcomes. However, if we think that these outcomes are all that our education and work lives are about, then perhaps we are unworthy of both. For the real reason for our education and life of work is to give us a greater ability to serve others. We never truly grasp the full fruits of our education and work until we give them away to others. The measure of our success is the degree to which people who never came to Stanford or set foot in Silicon Valley experience lives that are richer, fuller, more genuinely human because you did go to Stanford or you do work in Silicon Valley.

On Good Friday, Jesus gave everything, until there was nothing left to give – "Father, I hand myself over to you. It is finished.” To be able to give away everything is what all of us are in training to do, from the moment of our baptism. And in doing so, becoming a little more human. And in becoming a little more human, we become genuinely holy.

A few weeks ago, I spoke with Chris and his mother. Though the road’s been bumpy, he's navigating life much better. But, to one degree or another, isn’t life a bumpy road for you and me also. Alice did tell me, though, that the hat that I gave him as a token of our brief friendship is now threadbare from wear; that fact pleased me greatly.

Thanks to the gift of the Incarnation, you, I and God have one thing in common— we’re all human. Therefore, if we wish to be like God, let’s set our minds and hearts on being more human. And the way to be more human is to help others to be more human. To give yourself away.To discover that fact is to discover everything that is important in the Christian tradition. That is the gift that has been given to us this day. Give it away!

Reflections and Meditations:

A Meditation in the Augustinian Style/Relationship:

The Way of the Cross, (adapted from Surrender: A Guide for Prayer by Jacqueline Syrup Bergan and Sister Marie Schwann, which is volume 4 of a 5-volume series based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius):

1. As Jesus appears before Pilate, I remember a time when I experienced being misunderstood, condemned:

2. As Jesus receives his cross, I recall a time when I received a cross in my life:

3. As Jesus falls the first time, I remember when I experienced my first failure, my own limits

4. As Mary encourages Jesus, I remember someone who encouraged me to follow God's call; I remember how he or she looked at me:

5. As Simon helps Jesus carry his cross, I consider who has been there to lift a burden from shoulders, from my heart:

6. As veronica wipes the face of Jesus, I remember the Veronicas in my life--those who stood by me, comforted me, even at the risk of their own rejection:

7 As Jesus falls a second time, I recall the times when I have experienced the helplessness of failing, knowing I would fail, again and again:

8. As the women reach out to comfort Jesus, I remember the faces of those whom I have reached out to comfort, even in my own pain:

9. As Jesus falls a third time, I recall a time when I felt as if I was totally defeated and could not go on:

10. As Jesus is stripped of his clothing, I remember the experience of feeling so emotionally naked, so publicly demeaned, so vulnerable before others:

11. As Jesus is nailed to the cross, I consider the things that bound me, kept me "fastened" to my own sorrow, failures or disappointments:

12. As I imagine Jesus dying on the cross, I try to recall a time when I loved so unconditionally, so completely, that I gave my all:

13. As I imagine Mary holding the dead body of her son, I pause and remember those who have held me up in life, nurtured me, and grieved with me:

14. As Jesus' body is laid in the tomb, I consider what in my life keeps me entombed, where I most experience death:

Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

Which of the "Seven Last Words of Jesus" in the four gospel accounts of The Passion

speak to you the most? Why?

Mark: My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?

Matthew: My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?

Luke: Father forgive them; they don't know what they are doing.

Today you shall be with me in Paradise.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

John: Woman, here is your son. Here is your mother.

I thirst.

It is finished.

Poetic Reflection:

Read the following poem by A.E. Houseman ( 1896). Imagine that, despite the rather English idiomatic language and context, Jesus is actually the speaker. Which phrases do you think are really true and which are not really true to Jesus himself? Do you think Jesus ever second-guessed his choice to leave home and the trade he practiced for many years?:

THE CARPENTER’S SON

Here the hangman stops his cart:

Now the best of friends must part.

Fare you well, for ill fare I

Live, lads, and I will die.

Oh, at home had I but stayed

‘Prenticed to my father’s trade,

Had I stuck to plane and adze,

I had not been lost, my lads.

Then I might have built perhaps

Gallows-trees for other chaps,

Never dangled on my own,

Had I left but ill alone.

Now, you see, they hang me high,

And the people passing by

Stop to shake their fists and curse.

So ‘tis come from ill to worse.

Here hang I, and right and left

Two poor fellows hang for theft:

All the same’s the luck we prove,

Though the midmost hangs for love.

Comrades all, that stand and gaze,

Walk henceforth in other ways;

See my neck and save our own:

Comrades all, leave ill alone.

Make some day a decent end’

Shrewder fellows than your friend.

Fare you well, for ill fare I:

Live, lads, and I will die.

Holy Thursday, April 14, 2022

Jesus shows us how to live a life of service to others

John 13:1–5

Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered, "You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand." Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" Jesus said to him, "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you." For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, "Not all of you are clean." After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord-and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.

Companions for the Journey

from “FIRST IMPRESSIONS” , a service of the Southern Dominican Province:

Chapter 13 in John brings a major shift in this gospel. It closes the first part called “the Book of Signs”, the account of Jesus’ public ministry. Now we enter the second half of the gospel, called the Book of Glory (ch. 13-17). The word “love” is a key word in this section: Jesus will call his disciples to love and will show them the kind of love he has in mind by offering himself for them. The grain of wheat will die and bear much fruit, as he predicted (5th. Sunday of Lent). The opening verse of this section (13:1) links the final hours of Jesus’ life with the Passover. (Hence the choice of the first reading from Exodus, the account of the origins of the Passover. Jesus will die at the hour the Passover lambs are slaughtered for sacrifice in the Temple.) There is something about what is going to happen to Jesus, his long-awaited “hour”, that is going to complete the meaning of the Passover. The blood of the lamb painted on the lintels of their doors saved the Jews from the angel of death. The blood of this Lamb is going to save all from the death that sin has caused. Jesus isn’t just setting a good example for us as he washes his disciples feet; what he is initiating from this point on in the gospel will save us from the pervasive power of sin over our lives.

Foot washings were a part of hospitality in this culture. The roads were dusty and guests coming for a visit or meal would welcome the chance to have the dust from the road washed from their feet. Normally the washing would have been done before the meal and was the task of the youngest or lowliest servant or slave. The importance of the event is underscored by Jesus’ breaking the pattern of what was customary and acceptable: he interrupts the meal and does the washings himself. His final hour is at hand and he is already emptying himself. His dying has begun; our new life is about to begin. In fact, a sign of the community’s new life brought about by Jesus’ action will be that they will be “foot-washers”, servants to the needy among them. But much more is implied by his actions. Peter objects to Jesus’ humiliation in front of his disciples, he does not want his feet washed. But Peter is no dummy. Maybe he also sees what is implied in Jesus’ actions: if the Master is doing this then Peter may already suspect that the disciples will have to do likewise—himself included. Jesus insists that if Peter is to have any part in his inheritance, he must allow Jesus to wash his feet. And sure enough he learns that the “inheritance” will include washing the feet of others, being a lowly servant in the household where Jesus dwells. However, he will not be required to have a total bath again. As the disciple travels through life in the world, he/she picks up soil from the road. A full bath (another baptism?) is not necessary; but a washing is. We can be washed from our sins and refreshed and renewed as we sit down to the table with other disciples to eat the Passover meal of Jesus.

John is writing for a community like our own who, since their baptism, have many things from which they need cleansing. This account is encouraging for the community members who have failed, as Peter did, to live up to their Christian calling. After he betrayed Jesus, Peter must have been heartened by his remembrance of this incident and the possibility Jesus holds out to be washed from the soil of the road. Since the incident also took place at the table, the suggestion is that forgiveness is offered us through the meal we share in remembrance of Jesus. In our Eucharist, the first thing we do is ask for forgiveness of our failings. It’s as if each eucharistic meal begins with a foot washing. And we are the grateful recipients as we are reminded that what Jesus did for Peter, he does for us.

Thus, there is another way we can imitate the example of the One we call “teacher and master.” We can follow the example he set for us. Besides the call to service, so evident in the foot washing, another response Jesus may be asking of us tonight is to forgive one another as he has forgiven us. Since the ritual will be performed in many places of worship this day, we may want to look around at who else is present at the table with us and wash their feet by forgiving them what we hold against them.

Reflection Questions:

In what aspect of my life would I be ashamed to have Jesus see my “dirty feet”?

When I don’t understand God, do I get impatient?

Whose “feet” am I called to wash in this life of mine?

What does this gospel tell me about the connection between service to others and the Eucharist?

Meditations:

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

From Sacred Space 2022, a service of the Irish Jesuits:

In these quiet moments, I imagine Jesus visiting with me, chatting, and then asking for a basin and a towel. Surprised, I ask “why?” He says “You will understand later!” Can let him kneel and wash my poor feet, just as they are? Am I moved, perhaps to tears, by what he does? Perhaps no one has ever done this for me since I was a child. After a silence, he explains that he himself lives out a life of loving and humble service, and that he wants me as a disciple to copy what he has done for me. I ask him to show me, day by day, whose needs he wants me to meet. I bring him with me whenever I serve others.

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

Today’s gospel speaks of Jesus’ last meal, and it can lead us to think about the

growing crisis of world hunger. "Rising food prices are fueling the global

hunger crisis. It is taking an immense toll on the world's poorest people, who

typically spend up to 80 percent of their income on food. As many as 100

million more poor people could be made worse off by this burgeoning hunger

crisis. After 30 years of progress against hunger and poverty, that is a setback

that the United States and the rest of the world cannot afford to let happen."

http://www.bread.org/learn/rising-food-prices.html

"The prayer which we repeat at every Mass: "Give us this day our daily bread,"

obliges us to do everything possible, in cooperation with international, state

and private institutions to end or at least reduce the scandal of hunger and

malnutrition afflicting so many millions of people in our world, especially in

developing countries." (Sacramentum Caritatis, Pope Benedict XVI, 2007)

Did you know?

- 854 million people across the world are hungry, up from 852 million a year

ago

Every day, almost 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes--one child

every five seconds.

-35.1 million people in the US---including 12.4 million children---live in

households that experience hunger or the risk of hunger.

-The U.S. Conference of Mayors reports that in 2006 requests for emergency

food assistance increased an average of 7 percent. The study also found that 48

percent of those requesting emergency food assistance were members of families

with children and that 37 percent of adults requesting such assistance were

employed.

What can you do?

Poetic Reflection:

How do you think Jesus felu on this night, when Peter, and maybe the others, still did not understand what he was teaching?;

LONELY CHRIST

Lonely Christ

I pray to you.

You are a puzzle to me

as those I love

always are.

My soul is at odds

with the words.

What mad reach of mine

touches any thread of you?

Or what of mine, arms or eyes,

ever shares with people

where they may lie--

as they always do--i

in a hard place!

What of mine shall make good

their taking of a breath,

their rising, caring, feeding

their sleeping in fear--

what shall make good

their slight faith,

their enormous promises

made in iron

for a child, man, a woman--

what of mine shall be with the people

as they caress a special grief

fondled again and again

In bludgeoned love?

What do I bring

with which to clutch

the merest hint of your shadow?

Palm Sunday, April 10, 2022

Jesus, the Obedient Son, the Source of Forgiveness

Luke 22:14—23:56

THE LAST SUPPER

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you.  For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.  But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table.  The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!”  They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this. A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.  Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors.  But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.  For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.  You are those who have stood by me in my trials.  And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me,  so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.  “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”  But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”  Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”  Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.  He said to them, “But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.  It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.”  The disciples said, “See, Lord, here are two swords.” “That’s enough!” he replied.

I put myself in Jesus’ place as his plans for his final evening with friends went totally awry. Ha this ever happened to me? How did I react?

What does it mean to me that the very institution of the Eucharist is re-enacted at each and every Mass?

JESUS PRAYS AT THE MOUNT OF OLIVES

Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.”  He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed,  “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”  An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow.  “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

Have I ever relied on the comfort of friends at a stressful time in my life? How did it go?

Have I ever failed to be there for someone who needed my understanding?

JESUS ARRESTED

While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”  When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?”  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.  But Jesus answered, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.  Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs?  Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.”

Have I ever been misunderstood, publicly shamed or embarrassed, or worse, been blamed for something I did not do?

PETER DISOWNS JESUS

Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance.  And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”  But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.  A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” “Man, I am not!” Peter replied.  About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”  Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed.  The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.”  And he went outside and wept bitterly.

Has fear of shame, fear of losing reputation with my friends or colleagues caused me to lie about another to protect myself?

Have otherwise upright institutions lied to protect their country, church, or ethnic affinity? What has been the result?

THE “TRIAL” OF JESUS

The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him.  They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?”  And they said many other insulting things to him.  At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them.  “If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.” Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me,  and if I asked you, you would not answer.  But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”  They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?” He replied, “You say that I am.” Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.”  Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate.  And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”  So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “You have said so,” Jesus replied.  Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”  But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”  On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean.  When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.  When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort.  He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.  The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him.  Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate.  That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.  Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people,  and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him.  Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death.  Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.” But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!” (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)  Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again.  But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”  For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.” But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed.  So Pilate decided to grant their demand.  He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

How have I reacted in the face of anger or hatred or when a bunch of people turned on me, made fun of me, or worse? Was I silent and dignified, paralyzed by fear and shame, belligerent and accusatory, or did I react in another way?

THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS

As the soldiers led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus.  A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him.  Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children.  For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’  Then “‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!”’ For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”  Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left.  Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.  The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.” The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the Jews.  One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?  We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”  Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”  Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

How hard has it been for me to forgive someone who has hurt me or someone I love?

Do I really believe I will see Jesus in my next life?

THE DEATH OF JESUS

It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon,  for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.  Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.  The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.”  When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away.  But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

How hard is it to surrender my will to that of God’s, even in small things, much less suffering and death?

THE BURIAL OF JESUS

Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man,  who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God.  Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body.  Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.  It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin.  The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it.  Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

What in my life holds me entombed?

Read a commentary for reading the passion narratives (generally) >>

Read additional commentaries on the passion narrative in Luke's gospel >>

Music Meditations

• Jesus, Remember Me—Taize
• Stay With Me Here—Fernando Ortega
• Pie Jesus—Andrew Lloyd Webber, sung by Sarah Brightman
• Give Me Jesus—sung by Fernando Ortega

Opening Prayer

Lord, how often I have whined and cried about the trials and sorrows of my life. How often I have raged at the unfairness of my life or people in it. How often I have failed to summon up deep gratitude for my very existence, and for those who have brighten my days. How often I have failed to forgive those who have hurt or disappointed me. How often I have not been connected to you deeply enough through prayer. Lord, help me to see in the last days of Jesus the model for gratitude, forgiveness and prayer. Help me to be like Him.

Companions for the Journey

This is a short writing from one of the Christian or non-Christian witnesses of our tradition—a person who embodies the theme of the gospel we are studying today.

This is from “First Impressions” 2010, by Jude Siciliano, O.P.:

As we listen to the Passion today we might hear something of ourselves in the narrative. There is a hint in the Passion of the still-unfinished formation of the disciples. Immediately after the blessing of the bread and cup, with Jesus’ solemn injunction to the disciples, “do this in memory of me,” Jesus predicts that one of them will betray him. Luke tells us they debated among themselves who could do such a thing. There is a touch of irony here because the reader, well aware of what’s ahead for the disciples, might intrude on their debate and say, “Anyone of you is possible of betrayal. Soon you will all abandon Jesus.”

Luke moves quickly to the disciples’ failure to perceive what Jesus has been teaching them about what lies ahead. They begin an argument about who among them is the greatest. As we say in baseball lingo, “They are out in left field.” They have completely missed the point of all Jesus has been saying about what following him requires.

Jesus is about to go to his death and those he has been training to carry-on when he leaves are as dense as when they first took up with him back in Galilee. A great sign of his compassion and patience is that he doesn’t throw up his hands, walk out and try, at the last minute, to patch together more suitable candidates for disciples. Instead, one more time he commences to teach them that true greatness is to be found in serving others. Nor does Jesus give up on us when we fail to respond to opportunities to act as his disciples.

Jesus then tells Peter that he will deny him. Peter protests, but Jesus’ prediction will prove true. Though Jesus foresees Peter’s failure, he predicts Peter will eventually prove himself a disciple when he says, “once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brothers.” The gospel is a story of second chances (and third and fourth ones as well!). Peter will be forgiven for acting in fear and denying Jesus—and so are we.

If we have followed Jesus and his disciples through Luke’s gospel we know we have been hearing a story, not of human triumph over adversity; not of heroic actions in the face of insurmountable odds, but of humans found frail and lacking comprehension. Still, without heroic traits of their own, they continue to follow and be drawn to Christ, even if for the wrong goals and with less-than-total commitment. The rest of the Passion narrative will continue to reveal the disciples’ failure to understand who Jesus is and what he is asking of them.

Unlike the recent Winter Olympics, this is not an account of athletes possessing great natural abilities and, with enormous discipline, winning gold medals. No, this is the gospel and more a story of God’s achievement amid very limited humans. Grace trumps human frailty and draws strength and heroism where there were weakness and betrayal. When the story ends who is the winner? God’s grace is—and therefore so are we!

The characters in the rest of the Passion narrative fall far short as well. The religious leaders try Jesus and find him guilty. They then bring him to Pilate and he sends Jesus to Herod who, with his soldiers, mistreat him. Then the chief priests and the rulers of the people all call for Pilate to crucify Jesus. So continues the story of the human response to Jesus as he faces his passion. The crowds also join their voices to that of the religious leaders calling for Jesus’ crucifixion.

This week what is still sinful, incomplete, or weak in us is gathered up by Jesus at his cross. Jesus continues to show compassion even on the way to his execution as he acknowledges the grieving women. As he is dying he attends to the thief on the cross next to him and promises him paradise. Right up to the end Jesus highlights those who would benefit by his surrender to God’s will—the neglected and those rejected and cast out by society.

Not all the religious leaders turn against Jesus. Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Council whom Luke describes as a “virtuous and righteous man,” requests and receives Jesus’ body and places it in a tomb. Luke again mentions the presence of women; they follow Jesus’ body to see the tomb where it is laid. Our attention is now drawn to the tomb and the events that are about to take place there.

Luke’s Passion reveals how much Jesus has lost—his followers and friends have abandoned or betrayed him; his life’s project has collapsed into humiliation and defeat. As we hear the story today we are deeply moved by his loss and our heart goes out to him. But Luke is also inviting anyone of us who have our own losses through the death of loved ones; the dramatic change of life because of job loss or health failure; an unfulfilled dream; the disintegration of our family; the arrest of our child etc.—to identify with Jesus.

It’s clear from the Passion account that Jesus is no stranger to loss and suffering. As we follow the women to his tomb, we also know that he has accompanied us to our own tombs; the places where we have known death and defeat. We also know where this story is going. The tomb is not Jesus’ end, we are about to be surprised by resurrection. Nor is the tomb our end as we hope for new life in the very places we have experienced death. As the television announcers advise us, “Stay tuned for what’s coming next.”

Luke portrays Jesus as an innocent martyr. He has Pilate declare Jesus’ innocence three times. The thief dying at his side makes the same pronouncement. We know Jesus’ suffering continues beyond the Passion account. Perhaps we will hear the story of innocence persecuted and ask: where in our world today are people victimized and the poor burdened by heavy crosses with no modern Simon of Cyrene to help?

Despite his unjust treatment Jesus continues to offer forgiveness right up until his death. He died as he lived—giving and healing. (At his arrest in the garden he heals the ear of one of those who came to arrest him.) Jesus has established how his followers who come after him are to behave. They are to forgive even their enemies. At his death they are scattered; but after Pentecost they will set out from Jerusalem and do what Jesus did—preach and practice forgiveness.

Read additional commentaries on the passion narrative in Luke's gospel >>

Read a commentary for reading the passion narratives (generally) >>

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

Father, forgive them, they know not what they do

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

• Describe a time in your life when you felt a lack of God’s presence in your personal need. How did you handle it?
• Have you ever been anxious or worried about something and found that your usual support system was somehow lacking?
  How did you feel?
• Describe the way Jesus handled his interrogation and torture. What qualities of his that he displayed in these instances do you particularly admire?
• From “First Impressions” 2010:
  Among the loses I have experienced in my life, which was the most painful?
  Did I have any experience of Jesus’ presence with me during that period of pain?
• From “America”:
  How might Luke’s portrayal of Jesus as a good example even in death challenge you in your own life?
• Everybody has a cross to carry in this life, whether it is illness, loneliness, anxiety, personal relationships or professional ones. Can you name one of your “crosses”?
  How can you be more like Jesus as you carry your cross(es)?
  How can you be sympathetic to the “cross” another is carrying?
• From “First Impressions” 2013:
  How have I experienced Jesus helping me carry that cross?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

I think of the times in his short life that Jesus was betrayed by those whom he loved. First, at the beginning of his ministry, some family members were sent to fetch him home, fearing that he was mentally ill. Have there been times in my life that I have been betrayed by someone’s lack of faith in me? Judas, perhaps disappointed by Jesus lack of political activism, or motivated by simple greed, sold Jesus for a handful of coins. Have I ever been betrayed by someone’s expectations that I could not fulfill? Have I been betrayed by someone’s willingness to trade my friendship or my well being for personal gain? Peter, Jesus’ right-hand man and good friend, paralyzed by fear, swore vehemently that he never knew Jesus. Have I ever been betrayed by someone else’s insecurity or fears? Did I turn to God in my distress? Then finally me... Have I ever betrayed Jesus and my relationship with him out of embarrassment, selfishness, greed or laziness? I speak to Jesus about these failures of mine, knowing he loves and understands.

A Meditation in the Franciscan Style/Action:

Jesus: a Victim of Capital Punishment
We worship a God whose Son died as a common criminal despite His innocence. During this week when we recall the execution of Jesus Christ, we hear our Pope and Bishops call us as Catholic Christians to work for an end to the death penalty in our state and in our nation. Resolve this week to learn more about California Governor Newsom’s decision on this issue, and resolve to do something this week to advance the cause of the elimination of the death penalty in this country (and eventually, worldwide). Make this a concrete task, not an aspirational one…

Poetic Reflections:

Read the following poem by W.S. Di Piero (from The Restorers). Have I ever disappointed or betrayed anyone? How did it feel?

“Gethsemane”

He had nerve enough to follow,
dogging his heels, for what? To learn
a new vocabulary, a prayer,
down there in yellow iris that smelled
like carcass? He came back smiling.
The dog had its day, rolling in meat.
This meat was news: The Word of God
wants what we want, to be unchosen.

He must have made up his mind then
What if he said, I don't see Him here,
we’ll check later? Instead he gagged
on words, like a mouthful of water
brought from the garden, that blood squirms
from the blossom loads and cracked boughs,
and in the stagnant lake of the heart
the sprouting trunk splits, groans,
spilling wine, the spongy dirt
inhaling any blood that falls,
and I'm falling into the tree
and dogs at lakeside bark at clouds.

Like that. As if his own speech could
infuriate time while he waited
for an act to come upon him
(as joy sometimes happens). The soldiers
(were they his joy?) got impatient.
So finally his bloodless lips
screamed More life! More salt!
before he gave away his kiss.

Now read the following poem by Mary Oliver. How is its tone different?

“Gethsemane”

The grass never sleeps.
Or the roses.
Nor does the lily have a secret eye that shuts until morning.
Jesus said, wait with me. But the disciples slept.

The cricket has such splendid fringe on his feet,
and it sings, have you noticed, with its whole body,
and heaven knows if it ever sleeps.

Jesus said, wait with me. And maybe the stars did, maybe
the wind wound itself into a silver tree, and didn’t move.
Maybe the lake far away, where once he walked
as on a blue pavement,
lay still and waited, wild awake.

Oh the dear bodies, slumped and eye-shut, that could not
keep that vigil, how they must have wept,
so utterly human, knowing this too
must be part of the story.

Commentary for Reading Passion Narratives

1. We must be careful these days not to caricature the Jewish faith. The Gospels portray its piety and leaders in a very unsympathetic light. Don’t become an unconscious anti-Semite. Such bashing of the Jews can reveal an insecure faith, seeking assurance in caricaturing the faith of others. Jewish people suffered their worst pogroms during Holy Week at the hands of Christians. So, we need to be careful of subtle forms of anti-Semitism.

2. We must be careful to respect the integrity of each Gospel. Don’t harmonize or fill in to make a composite picture. Stay within the text and treat it distinctively, learn how each writer saw and witnessed the Christ event.

For example, notice that no one gospel has all seven phrases of the “Last Words”: “Seven Last Words of Jesus” in the four gospel accounts of The Passion

Mark: My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?

Matthew: My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?

Luke: Father forgive them; they don’t know what they are doing.

Today you shall be with me in Paradise.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

John: Woman, here is your son. Here is your mother.

I thirst.

It is finished.

3. Remember that the principal actor is God. There are some key figures in the stories for meditation (Peter, Pilate, etc.), but in the Gospels this week Jesus absorbs our attention. Put aside all else, even the “moral lessons.” We see nothing but Jesus, and him crucified. What is God doing and saying to us this week?

4. The Triduum is a unity: this contradicts the conventional wisdom that sees each day as a separate unit. Note that in each day of the Triduum there is explicit reference to the whole paschal liturgy. Each particular day commemorates the whole of the mystery, while at the same time emphasizing one aspect of the events. So we experience Good Friday in its defeat and pain in the light of the hope of the resurrection; we experience Easter in its glory, reminded of the seeming hopelessness of Good Friday. The renewed emphasis isn’t on “holy week” but on the consciousness of the passion and resurrection as intimately bound to our own lives as church.

5. I want to be careful how I think about suffering and death during these days. I wonder how we can think of them as positive? In the Scriptures of the Jewish people, suffering and death are to be avoided and, where possible, alleviated. The hope we have as Christians is that God will do away with both at the end. It seems to be always the poor who suffer the most, who always are the victims. So, during these days we might resolve to become more fully involved with God’s plan to alleviate suffering by alleviating the suffering of the poor through deeper involvement in social programs. Good Friday, for example, should not be a day that keeps a silence of inattention to the suffering of others. If we keep a silence this day, it may be to ponder the suffering of those around us and to resolve to do something about it. If we fast, or partially fast this day, it might be to do so in solidarity with those who have too little to eat, using whatever we did not spend a give it away to someone in need, or to an organization that helps feed the poor.

Commentaries on the Passion Narrative in Luke’s Gospel

LIVING SPACE/SACRED SPACE PALM SUNDAY 2022

AFTER FIVE WEEKS of preparation we now enter the climax of the Lenten season and what we call Holy Week. In a way, the whole week from today until Easter Sunday should be seen as one unit – the presentation of what we call the Paschal Mystery. This Paschal Mystery includes the sufferings, death, resurrection, ascension of Jesus into glory and the sending of the Spirit on the disciples of Jesus to continue the work he began. Although it is, for liturgical and catechetical reasons, spread over a period of seven weeks, it should also be seen as an indivisible single experience.

This week sees the climax of the mission of Jesus Christ in which the deepest meaning of his life is unfolded and in which his teaching becomes incarnated in his own words and actions.

Today’s celebration (for, strange to say, the terrible happenings we are about to listen to are truly a cause for celebration on our part) is divided into two distinct parts: the procession with palms and the Mass proper. (The particular Mass you attend may not include both parts as many parishes will only do the first part at one of the day’s Masses.)

Joy and triumph

In the first part the prevailing atmosphere is one of joy and the vestments in today’s liturgy are a triumphant red and not the violet which has prevailed during the other days of Lent. For the reading from the Gospel in this first part recalls the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem as King. He gets a rapturous reception from the crowd who acclaim him with words we still use in the “Holy, holy, holy…” of the preface to the Eucharistic Prayer. This scene is important for, in a few days’ time, the same triumphant Jesus will be reduced to a battered wreck of humanity, calling forth the words of Pilate: “Look, it is a human being!” (Ecce homo!)

As we process through our church, with our palms (or their equivalent) in our hands, we too sing with enthusiasm: “Christ conquers, Christ is king, Christ is our ruler” (Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat). There is a difference in our case for we know the end of the story and what is to come. Because of that, we sing with even greater conviction about the greatness of Jesus and a realization of just why he is our King.

But even here there is shadow. For not all are spreading their clothes on the ground for Jesus to walk over or waving their branches. His enemies are watching and what they see only gives greater urgency to their desire to see the end of Jesus. In one way, they will succeed with a frightening ruthlessness to destroy Jesus but, of course, they will also fail utterly. Our presence here today is proof enough of that.

The mind of Christ

In a way the real key to Holy Week is given in today’s Second Reading, which seems to be a hymn, incorporated by Paul in his letter to the Christians at Philippi, in northern Greece. It expresses the “mind,” the thinking of Jesus, a “mind” which Paul urges us to have also if we want to identify fully with Jesus as disciples. “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” The key word in the passage is “emptied.” This kenosis, or emptying, is at the heart of Jesus’ experience during his Passion.

In spite of Jesus’ identity with the nature of God, he did not insist on his status. He first of all took on himself in the fullest sense our human nature – “like us in all things, but sin”. But, even more, he reached down to the lowest level, the lowest class of human beings – the servant, the slave. That was still not the end. He let go of all human dignity, all human rights, let go of life itself to die, not any “respectable” form of death, but the death of a convicted criminal in shame and nakedness and total abandonment.

To understand the sufferings, death and resurrection of Jesus one must fully grasp what Paul is saying here and, not only grasp it, but totally appropriate it into one’s own thinking so that one would be prepared, with God’s help, to go exactly the same way. Our normal sensitivities even over trifling hurts just show us how far we have to go to have the “mind of Jesus.”

We are now – hopefully – prepared for listening to Luke’s version of the Passion of Jesus, up to but excluding the climax of resurrection.

So much to reflect on

Although efforts are now made to make the listening of the Passion less of an endurance test, there really is too much to be fully digested as we stand listening to one or three readers. Perhaps we should set aside a short period later in the day to go through the dramatic telling more at our leisure. Or perhaps we could focus on a particular passage which speaks to us more at this time.

There is:

--the last meal of Jesus with his disciples, a bitter-sweet experience for all

--Jesus’ struggle with fear (even terror) and loneliness in the garden, ending in a sense of peace and acceptance

– Peter’s denial of ever having known Jesus, the same Jesus with whom he had just eaten and who had invited him into the garden

– the kiss of Judas, another disciple, sealing the fate of Jesus, and leading to bitter remorse and suicide

– the rigged trial before the religious leaders and again before the contemptuous, cynical Pilate, the brief appearance before the superstitious and fearful Herod

– the torture, humiliation and degradation of Jesus

– the way of Calvary – the weeping women, the reluctant Simon of Cyrene

– the crowds, so supportive on Sunday, who now laugh and mock

– the murderous gangster promised eternal happiness that very day

– the last words of forgiveness and total surrender (emptying) to the Father.

The drama is truly overpowering and needs really to be absorbed one incident at a time. It would be worth reflecting in which of these scenes I can see myself, with which characters I can identify as reacting in the way I probably would.

 Jesus – the focal point

Through it all there is Jesus. His enemies humiliate him, strike him, scourge him. Soldiers make a crown with thorns, a crown for the “King of the Jews” (an element of contemptuous racism here?), Herod mocks him. Pilate, Roman-trained, makes a half-hearted attempt at justice but fear for his career prevails.

Jesus, for his part, does not strike back, he does not scold, he does not accuse or blame. He begs his Father to forgive those who “do not know what they are doing.” Jesus seems to be the victim but all through he is, in fact, the master. He is master of the situation because he is master of himself.

So, as we go through this day and this week, let us look very carefully at Jesus our Saviour. We watch, not just to admire, but also to learn, to penetrate the mind, the thinking, the attitudes and the values of Jesus so that we, in the very different circumstances of our own lives, may walk in his footsteps.

If we are to be his disciples, he invites us to walk his way, to share his sufferings, to imitate his attitudes, to “empty” ourselves, to live in service of others – in short, to love others as he loves us. This is not at all a call to a life of pain and misery. Quite the contrary, it is an invitation to a life of deep freedom, peace and happiness. If it were anything else, it would not be worth considering.

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COMMENTARY ON PALM SUNDAY FROM WORKING PREACHER

The Gospels’ passion narratives press us to consider multiple realities regarding Jesus’ prosecution and death

• We see the politics of human society. On one level, it’s an all-too-familiar story. Powerful and privileged people conspire with Roman officials to engineer the destruction of someone whose message and popularity pose a serious threat to the business-as-usual abuses perpetuated by religious and imperial systems.

• We see God behind the scenes. On another level, it’s a story of cosmic significance. Having relinquished himself to his Father’s will (Luke 22:42), Jesus embraces a fate that mysteriously aligns–somehow–with a divine design (Luke 22:37; 24:25-27; Acts 4:24-28). Luke’s Gospel declares that Satan also plays a role (Luke: 22:3, 53).

• We see reflections on human responsibility. There are marked differences across the accounts of Jesus’ trial that we find in the four Gospels. These differences draw attention to the questions of “how?” and “why?” that the post-Easter church asked. Anonymous Jewish “crowds” and “people” play roles in Jesus’ rejection. In this way, the evangelists attribute theological significance by assigning blame more widely (see Acts 2:22-23; 13:27-28). At the same time, historical analyses of these scenes convincingly conclude that Jesus’ movement from Gethsemane to Golgotha would have involved a speedy, clandestine process carried out at the highest levels of Judean sociopolitical power. Common folk probably had very limited involvement, if any.

These three currents flow as a single stream. The Gospels and Acts show no interest in trying to parse the relationship between divine will and human activity, at least not with the precision that would satisfy our philosophical questions. The mixture of realities proclaims that Jesus’ execution was the result of willful opposition and tragic ignorance, and yet this ugly death was somehow totally understandable and even purposeful.

(This seems as good a place as any to mention that I’ve just published a book–titled The Trial Narratives: Conflict, Power, and Identity in the New Testament–which explores Jesus’ trial in the Gospels and the trials of Peter, Paul, and others in Acts. What I have to say here about Luke’s passion narrative is developed in greater detail in chapter 5 of the book.)

The Passion in Luke: A Contest of Wills

Luke’s passion narrative frustrates many interpreters. The crucifixion lacks the raw agony of Mark’s and Matthew’s versions, and there isn’t the clearly scripted theological emphasis like John’s. Elements of the Lukan trial scenes are bewildering, for it isn’t clear what motivates Pilate, Herod Antipas, and “the people” (whom Pilate summons for the first time in 23:13) to act as they do.

In many ways, it’s a story about whose “will” or intentions will hold sway, and how.

It’s a story that insists that, at the end, God’s will is accomplished. Moreover, this will is accomplished by manipulating other powers and the structures of human society. No matter how corrupt or bent on self-preservation those forces are, God’s will nevertheless perseveres.

• Luke 22:14-46. Jesus prepares his followers and Luke’s readers by speaking knowingly and confidently of what is to befall him. Submission, warning, and reassurance are dominant themes.

• Luke 22:47-71. The priestly aristocracy of Jerusalem finally have their “hour” (see 22:52-53), and Peter is overcome. The temple-based authorities railroad Jesus toward execution. His words to them indicate that dialogue or persuasion is pointless in the face of their calculated intentions.

• Luke 23:1-12. Roman authorities refuse to allow the Jerusalem aristocracy to presume upon Roman muscle to secure their desired outcome. Pilate and Herod mock Jesus, the notion of Jewish kingship, and the priestly prosecutors who breathlessly pursue their case. Roman power plays a game to discredit and humiliate the whole lot of them.

• Luke 23:13-25. In a shocking scene, Pilate overplays his hand. He assembles residents of Jerusalem along with the aristocracy, presumably to embarrass the latter in the eyes of the former. But as soon as he broaches the idea of releasing Jesus, “the people” resist. They restart the trial by clamoring for Barabbas, a man with perhaps a more impressive track record of pursuing social change. Suddenly the emperor’s representative can no longer control the scene. Luke depicts a showdown between what Pilate wants (see thelō in 23:20) and the will of the temple authorities and people (see thelēma in 23:25). In the background, readers remember Jesus’ prayer about his Father’s will being accomplished (see thelēma in 22:42).

• Luke 23:26-56. As soon as the crucifixion begins, Luke begins to mitigate the role of “the people” by distinguishing them from their priestly leaders. Many of “the people” lament in 23:27. “The people” watch Jesus die while “the leaders” scoff (23:35; compare 23:48). Later, in 24:20, Jesus’ followers blame only their “chief priests and leaders.” As for Jesus, he continues to do what he came to do: accomplish salvation. Witness the criminal who turns to him in their final hours.

Luke offers a political drama in which truth and justice are overwhelmed by the will of those who reject Jesus and by the will of a governor bent on exploiting Jesus for political gain.

But Pilate cannot fully control the venue that he is supposedly empowered to control. When the story is done, neither the imperial machinery nor the temple establishment are the agents who ultimately manage (or thwart) justice, at least not in Jesus’ case. Nor, really, are the strangely fickle “people.”

And so, Luke also offers a theological drama in which God’s will accomplishes itself through the course of human misperception and political maneuvering. In the strange coexistence of these two dramas, Luke declares that God’s salvation actualizes itself even within the apparatuses of opposition.

The Passion Narrative, God’s Will, and Preaching

Although it is the heart of the Christian story, the passion narrative is not the totality of that story. Luke’s account of Jesus’ demise compels preachers to consider the passion in light of God’s wide-ranging design for the world’s salvation.

For Luke, the passion is the pinnacle of the inevitable rejection of God’s specially anointed prophet. It is also the route that this Messiah must take toward his eventual glorification.

Jesus’ rejection is messy. The participants exhibit behavior that is both familiar and improbable, highlighting the misperception and fear behind it.

By asserting that God accomplished God’s design through Jesus’ passion, even through the messy power struggles waged among those human beings who brought about Jesus’ death, Luke hardly fixes everything or makes the passion palatable.

• These assertions raise difficult questions about God and God’s ways–questions that must drive us, with preachers’ help, to accept mystery. Then we can render praise in response to the clearer statement that God’s saving will is done.

• These assertions characterize the world as resistant to God and God’s ways. This leads to calls for repentance (see Acts 2:36-39; 3:17-19).

• They rightly give comfort to people who are beaten down by such power struggles on a regular basis, promising them that Jesus’ death and resurrection will one day mean the end to such oppression.

• They warn people who presume that they can find security from God in their institutions and in the trappings of power. They likewise warn those who think that they can create their own social and institutional systems that will align with God’s purposes.

God cares too much about the work of saving the world to leave it in our hands. Salvation required God’s incursion into all aspects of our existence. It still does.

By Matt Skinner