There have been many a Good Friday in the course of my life. I have heard the Passion narrative. I led the Passion narrative during Good Friday liturgies. Over the many years of Bible study I have covered the Passion narrative more than a few times. And now thru the gift of my friends Jerry and Maureen, I experienced Good Friday in a way not to ever be forgotten.
Continue readingIt seems to me that over the last year in homilies, bible studies and our OCIA classes for the folks entering the Catholic Church on Saturday evening at the Easter Vigil – that I have returned to a consistent theme: the efforts and the extent to which God strives to be present to us. One overarching theme of the Old Testament is a story of God drawing near and the people, hesitant to draw close and even eventually stepping back, keeping God at a distance. “Return to God” – a constant cry of Moses, Joshua, the Judges and Prophets of Israel – the signs of God’s care and compassion are everywhere. God wants to be close to us.
Holy Thursday’s first reading is taken from the story of Exodus. In that book the signs of God’s presence are everywhere: in the miracles done attempting to persuade Pharaoh, the great sign of the Passover, the parting of the Red Sea, leading the people through the wilderness as a pillar of fire by night and a cloud during the day. While encamped at Sinai after the “Golden Calf” incident, God instructed Moses to build the Tent of Meeting – literally a place where God could meet the people. The Tent was with them during the 40 years in the wilderness, and came with them into the Promised Land. Did you know that later the Tent was replaced by the great Temple in Jerusalem. There is a description in First Chronicles of the dedication of this new “Tent of Meeting.” During the dedication the glory of God is seen filling the Temple – the presence of God among people. Throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, God continually showed his people signs pointing to his presence, revealing His desire to be close to them. I could go on and on, but I think you get the point. All the while the people hesitated to draw close; they eventually drift away despite all the signs, the warnings of the prophets, and so much more.
All the while the compassion of God remained: the desire to be close to us.
Continue readingThe gospel reading for the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday evening is always taken from the Gospel of John 13:1-15. This week I have been posting about the Passion, but here on Holy Thursday, rather than posting the biblical commentary over days, if you are interested to read short commentary on text, simply click the button below.
Image credit: Image credit: “The Last Supper,” by Ugolino da Siena, circa 1325-30, Italian. (Metropolitan Museum of Art) | Public Domain
Luke adds a poignant detail to his description of Jesus’ journey to the cross; with him march two criminals. Jesus, who had been described by his opponents as a “friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Lk 7:34), would not only live with such friends but die with them.
32 Now two others, both criminals, were led away with him to be executed. 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left. 34 (Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”) They divided his garments by casting lots. 35 The people stood by and watched; the rulers, meanwhile, sneered at him and said, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Messiah of God.” 36 Even the soldiers jeered at him. As they approached to offer him wine 37 they called out, “If you are King of the Jews, save yourself.” 38 Above him there was an inscription that read, “This is the King of the Jews.”
Continue readingA reflection for the Readings on Spy Wednesday: Holy Week is a story told in three acts.
Act 1: Love Portrayed. All Lent we have seen Love Portrayed: Jesus transfigured on the mountain top. The glory of God revealed and yet what would seem to be the final scene of the play is but the beginning. We’ve more to hear, more to see. Especially in the daily gospels we have acts of love. A man born blind who now sees. Lessons on unlimited forgiveness. Teachings on the great commandments of loving God and neighbor. And so many more scenes of love portrayed. The disciples believe because they have seen and heard the power of God in the world.
Love is portrayed by the people of the city of God, Jerusalem, who welcome Jesus with palm branches waved and laid upon the road as one who greets the arriving king. Cries of “Hosanna…. hosanna in the highest” The cry reserved for the Messiah. Their love is portrayed in the hopes they pray the Nazarene can fulfill. All believe – in the enthusiasm of the moment it is easy to believe.
Continue readingUp to this point in the narrative the chief priests, scribes, and leaders have been the ones who have been active throughout the arrest, hearing and trials of Jesus. While in the privacy of the Sanhedrin gathering, the charges brought against Jesus by this group were religious. Once the assembly moved to the public forum involving Pilate, the charges became secular – “misleading our people; he opposes the payment of taxes to Caesar and maintains that he is the Messiah, a king.” (23:2) In the start of this section, “the people” are now present. Previously the people have supported Jesus – what will they do now?
Continue readingThe refrain from today’s psalm is “I will sing of your salvation.” Will you? If you are the average Catholic your answer might be “yes” but I wonder what you answer would be if the question was “Will you sing of your salvation outside of Mass or your shower?” Granted we all sound great in the shower, but we are more reluctant to sing at all apart from the choir of the faithful or our personal Niagara Falls.
Are you willing to sing of your salvation, to give witness, in the public forum when all eyes are upon you? How about in the local WalMart or Wegmans? Your average Catholic only needs to stand next to a born-again, evangelical Christian to understand how private we are about our life in faith. Of course, you’re thinking, “All that public praying and witnessing, that’s their thing. Our faith is more discrete, more private, more, well…… more sophisticated than asking someone in the local WalMart if they had been saved. Ours is a faith steeped in tradition, liturgy, sacraments. This is how we serve the Lord.”
Continue readingWhere in the scene of Peter’s Denial (Luke 22:54-65), the focus and center of the narrative was Peter, here the focus returns to Jesus. In this trial (hearing, meeting) by the religious authorities of Jerusalem, the role of Jesus as prophet and Messiah is at the forefront of the narrative. Jesus had foretold the primary events of this scene—both Peter’s threefold denial before the crowing of the cock (v. 34; vv. 56–61) and his own maltreatment (esp. 18:32; cf. 20:10–11 and 22:63–65).
Continue reading“Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.” (John 12:3)
As Jesus draws nearer to His Passion, today’s gospel (John 12:1-11) presents a moment of striking intimacy and devotion. Six days before Passover, Jesus is at the home of Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead—a miracle that already pointed to His power over life and death, and foreshadowed His own resurrection. Amidst the gathering, Mary, a sister of Lazarus, performs a beautiful and extravagant act of love: she anoints Jesus’ feet with costly oil and dries them with her hair.
Continue readingThe Last Supper has concluded during which Judas’ betrayal and Peter’s coming denial were revealed. Jesus has offered some final words to the disciples (Luke 22:35-38). From there the scene shifts to the Garden of Gethsemane and the “Agony in the Garden.” Suddenly the forces of the religious leaders burse onto the scene.
The arrest of Jesus leads into three successive and connected scenes: Peter’s denial (vv. 54-62), the mocking of Jesus (vv. 63-65), and the trial before the religious authorities (vv. 66-71). What is interesting is that in the midst of the Passion narrative of Jesus, there is the scene in all four gospels that concentrate on Peter and his response. Luke’s account is unique in the following respects: sequence – in that the denials occur in the courtyard before the mocking and interrogation; structure – Luke does not connect the denial as a caused by the trial; and detail – such as the servant girl sitting at the fireside where there is light to clearly recognize Peter – and most vividly, it is Luke that reports Jesus looked Peter “dead in the eye,” bring the full gravitas of the denials to Peter.
Culpepper (p.439) notes that failure comes in many forms – but that we can never fail God without also failing ourselves. Conversely, in some sense when we fail ourselves we always fail God. The call to faith, as Peter learns, can at times call us to reverse our natural impulse to self-preservation, security, etc., and to stretch to a high calling of faithfulness and commitment to others. Failure can also be calculated as was Judas’ or can be spontaneous as was Peter’s. What is the difference in their failures? Where Judas contemplated his commitments and intentions, Peter did not. Even as faithful as Peter’s intention, the failure to reflect and contemplate upon those commitments and intention was a failure that eroded the very intention. In Luke’s hands, Peter’s failure becomes a lesson in discipleship.
54 After arresting him they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest; Peter was following at a distance. 55 They lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat around it, and Peter sat down with them. 56 When a maid saw him seated in the light, she looked intently at him and said, “This man too was with him.” 57 But he denied it saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” 58 A short while later someone else saw him and said, “You too are one of them”; but Peter answered, “My friend, I am not.” 59 About an hour later, still another insisted, “Assuredly, this man too was with him, for he also is a Galilean.” 60 But Peter said, “My friend, I do not know what you are talking about.” Just as he was saying this, the cock crowed, 61 and the Lord turned and looked at Peter; and Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times.” 62 He went out and began to weep bitterly. 63 The men who held Jesus in custody were ridiculing and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and questioned him, saying, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?” 65 And they reviled him in saying many other things against him. (Luke 22:45-65)
The scene shifts. Those arresting Jesus bring him to the house of the high priest (22:54-65). Here he will be interrogated and beaten throughout the night (22:63-65). These scenes are not unknown in our own day.
Peter had followed Jesus to the courtyard of the High Priest’s house and mingled with the crowd around a fire built to cheat the cold night air (22:54-62). But Peter’s attempt to merge with the crowd fails; a maid recognizes him in the light of the fire: “This man too was with him.” Peter vigorously denies that he even knows Jesus. But a little later the danger comes again as another person recognizes him, then “an hour later,” another who catches Peter’s Galilean accent. Each time Peter, the leader of the twelve, denies that he ever heard of Jesus.
In the Luke’s gospel, Peter’s denials are not intertwined with that of the trial. While the Markan intertwining has more of a dramatic effect, the impact of Peter’s actions are no less impacting: Peter’s assertions of loyalty at the Last Supper (22:33) and his cowardice or fear in the courtyard stand in stark contrast. Jesus’ prophecy is coming true. What is unique to Luke’s gospel is Jesus’ assurance that Peter would be reconciled and returned to heal his brothers (22:32).
The first readers of this gospel, Peter was known as the fearless leader and missionary of the Church. This scene must have been shocking especially given the unique elements. The scene is captured in that Peter and Jesus are within sight of each other: the warming fire and the knot of soldiers torturing Jesus are in the same courtyard. As the cock crows–the very signal that Jesus had foretold to Peter (22:34), Jesus turns and looks at his disciple. That gaze penetrates Peter’s heart; he remembers Jesus’ words, words warning of failure – and hopefully the promise of forgiveness – as he leaves the courtyard weeping in remorse.
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