Once Jesus has done all this, poured out His love so incredibly, we deny Him. We turn down His love in the most horrifying way . . . by putting Him to death.
He accepts it. He embraces it. He hangs on the cross and says, “I thirst.”
This summer I read about Blessed Mother Teresa. At the center of her spirituality were these two words of Jesus: “I thirst.” Her love and devotion to Christ can be summed up in that simple phrase. She understood what Christ meant when He spoke those words.
Sometimes God seems far from us. Sometimes it seems as if He’s forsaken us completely.
When I was sixteen, my dad died from lung cancer. Both during his illness and after his death, I felt very alone, both in a worldly sense – none of my friends had lost a parent—and in a spiritual sense. Part of me believed that God let my dad die, and that he’d left me alone to suffer and grieve.
You see, Mary is our Mother, whether we want her to be or not. God, our Father has made it so through His son’s words. He knew our need for a motherly presence in the spiritual realm. So, with His dying breath, “Jesus saw His mother and the disciple there whom He loved, He said to his mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son.’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother’” (John 19:26-27).
It’s true! For a long time, even though I knew that Christ offered me forgiveness, I got tired of asking to be forgiven because I knew that no matter how hard I tried, I kept falling into the same sins. Even for sins that I committed once, I had a hard time receiving His forgiveness because I didn’t feel worthy of being forgiven. Even after going to confession, I still felt guilty and ashamed for what I had done because I didn’t believe enough in His mercy.
This week’s Sunday, Sunday, Sunday podcast is a special edition with Mark Hart and Lino Rulli, the host of the “Catholic Guy Show” on Sirius/XM Satellite radio. Listen as Mark and Lino talk for an hour and half about the entire Triduum, the three days of Jesus’ Passion, death, and Resurrection. Read more [...]
Joanna and I became friends in college, when I was a junior and she was a freshman. Her family had converted to Catholicism when she was a teenager and she struggled to embrace their new beliefs. I was a theology major who loved my Catholic faith and a good discussion. Joanna would often knock on my door, offer me a pudding snack, and spend hours grilling me about the Church. Not Just a Symbol Joanna’s biggest issue with the Catholic Church was the Eucharist. Having been raised Episcopalian, Read more [...]
Editor’s Note: I never guessed 40 days could fly by so fast! But here we are in Holy Week and I’m not so sure my heart is prepared to fully enter into the Triduum – the most epic time of year for us as Catholics. What about you? Are you prepared? If you feel like you need a recap of this journey through the desert we just took, listen to Fr. Mike Schmitz’s homilies from the last couple weeks. If that sounds boring to you – you’ve never heard this holy man preach! Just press play . . . you Read more [...]
And then they took Him and they scourged Him. All the world saw simply a man bound and bent over a pillar so they could whip Him and beat Him.
You know what God the Father saw? He saw His Son bent over with His arms around YOU, protecting you . . . saying, “Don’t come near him, he’s mine . . . you won’t hurt her, I will take the punishment for her sins. Don’t come near her.”
And then they went and they made Him carry a beam up a hill, and God the Father saw Him carrying you . . . when you’re too weak, when you’ve given up hope, lost faith (as we all do), when you struggle to believe, when you want to turn your back, when you don’t want to go any further. He saw His Son droop down and pick you up and say, “I will carry you; I will carry you up the hill.”
Prepare for Easter with our friend Matt Maher in this series of new video reflections. Come back each day of Holy Week for a new reflection. Make sure to share them with all your friends.
Readings for the Solemnity of the Resurrection of the Lord the Mass of Easter Day: Acts 10:34a, 37-43; Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Col 3:1-4; I Cor 5:6b-8; Jn 20:1-9 or Mt 28:1-10 or Lk 24:13-35.
Readings for the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter: Genesis 1:1-2:2 or 1:1, 26-31a; Psalm 104:1-2, 5-6, 10, 12, 13-14, 24, 35; Genesis 22:1-18 or 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Psalm 16:5, 8, 9-10, 11; Exodus 14:15-15:1; Exodus 15:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 17-18; Isaiah 54:5-14; Psalm 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11-12, 13; Isaiah 55:1-11; Isaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6; Baruch 3:9-15, 32C4:4; Psalm 19:8, 9, 10, 11; Ezekiel 36:16-17a, 18-28; Psalm 42:3, 5; 43:3, 4 or Is 12:2-3, 4bcd, 5-6; Romans 6:3-11; Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Mark 16:1-7.
I think most of the time I’m the thief on the left cross. I’m tempting Jesus. I’m yelling at Him. I’m talking to Him like he’s my equal. “Hey if you’re really God do this. Hey Jesus, if you really love me, get me out of (insert impossible situation here). And if you do, (insert impossible promise here that I’ll break in a week).” I’m the thief on the left.
This Life Teen produced video takes you through the crucifixion through the eyes of Simon the Cyrene.
So here it is: soon it will be Holy Week, and the only thing running through your head is, “Where’d Lent go?” Maybe you never nailed down exactly what you were giving up, or your best efforts still came up short. If you’re anything like me, you’re wishing you could get a Lenten do-over… and this time take it more seriously. Until next year, there aren’t any chances to go back to Ash Wednesday – but that doesn’t mean we’re out of luck. (With our God, how can we ever Read more [...]
Jackie Francois stops by to talk about serving God in high school, Matt Maher leads us deeper into Lent, and we hear a homily from Andrew of Crete.
Monday Lent is a journey. We go through this time “in the desert” with the Lord, looking forward to that Easter morning, when we celebrate his incredible resurrection. For me, the journey of Lent usually is difficult. It’s difficult not because of the things I chose to fast from during this time, but usually it is because some sort of trial has come my way. Maybe it’s a relationship that is struggling, or someone saying something totally false about you, or feeling distant from God or your family. Read more [...]
