Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion

The readings today offer us a number of themes for reflection. It is probably best to choose something that can deepen your appreciation of the depth of Christ’s love reflected in his willingness to suffer and die for us. I will offer something more personal here instead.

One can imagine that the last supper must have been a rather somber one—especially after Jesus announced that one of the Twelve was going to betray him. Talk about putting a damper on a festive meal! At any rate, when the meal ended, the little group crossed the Kidron Valley to the Garden of Olives. They were on their way to Bethany, where they generally enjoyed the hospitality of Jesus’ friends, Lazarus, Martha, and Mary. It was also Jesus’ custom to stop and pray in the Garden of Olives. That night, the full moon would have shone on the golden roof of the Temple.

The feeling of doom had probably been heightened by all the tombs that they passed on their way. As they prayed in that garden, we know that Jesus was filled with dread at the thought of what he was to undergo. So great was his dread that we are told that he even sweated blood as he prayed to be spared the cup of suffering. He saw his enemies coming in the moonlight. Yet he stayed. It would have been so easy for him to escape! In another 20 minutes or so, he would have been at Lazarus’ house; in another half hour, he could have been totally lost in the Judean desert just outside Bethany.

Fidelity to his vocation, love for all of us, deep compassion for humankind; all these helped determine his choice. “Greater love than this no one has….” Do we really appreciate his sacrifice?

Let Us Pray:

O loving Jesus, melt the hardness of my heart so that I can learn to love others with the love that you have for me.