"Good Friday: 'Jesus, Remember Me'"
'Tis Good Friday, act two of the Paschal Triduum, the Friday of Holy Week: Good Friday-link & Wikipedia-link Good Friday, & Wikipedia-link Sacred Triduum; Holy Week-link & Wikipedia-link Holy Week.
Liturgical Readings—Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord
The Book of Isaiah, chapter fifty-two, verse thirteen thru chapter fifty-three, verse twelve;
Psalm Thirty-one, verses two & six, twelve & thirteen, fifteen & sixteen, & seventeen & twenty-five
(R/. the Gospel according to Luke, chapter twenty-three, verse forty-six);
The Letter to the Hebrews, chapter four, verses fourteen, fifteen, & sixteen & chapter fifteen, verses seven, eight, & nine;
The Gospel according to John, chapter eighteen, verse one thru chapter nineteen, verse forty-two.
Commentary: Triduum Readings.
Friends, today’s Gospel is John’s wonderful narrative of Christ’s Passion. On the cross, Jesus entered into close quarters with sin (because that’s where we sinners are found) and allowed the heat and fury of sin to destroy him, even as he protected us.Video reflection by Father John M. McKenzie (U.S.C.C.B.): Triduum Reflection.
We can see, with special clarity, why the first Christians associated the crucified Jesus with the suffering servant of Isaiah. By enduring the pain of the cross, Jesus did indeed bear our sins; by his stripes we were indeed healed.
And this is why the sacrificial death of Jesus is pleasing to the Father. The Father sent his Son into godforsakenness, into the morass of sin and death, not because he delighted in seeing his Son suffer, but rather because he wanted his Son to bring the divine light to the darkest place.
It is not the agony of the Son in itself that pleases his Father, but rather the Son’s willing obedience in offering his body in sacrifice in order to take away the sin of the world. St. Anselm said that the death of the Son reestablished the right relationship between divinity and humanity.
Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Triduum Reflection.
Papal Quote o' the Day
"The journey also brings sacrifices, but these must not stop us. Jesus is on the Cross: you want to kiss Him? You cannot help bending over the Cross & letting yourself be pricked by some thorns of the crown that is on the Lord's head."Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day
—Pope Blessed John Paul I (1912-1978, r. 1978; feast: 26 August)
"You need a deep freedom to be like Jesus. See, He could have been born in a palace, yet He chose to be poor… Are we so free that we can be completely naked with Jesus there on the cross?"Saint Quote o' the Day
—Saint Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)
"Jesus took upon Himself the scourging that would have been our due in order to save the creatures He formed & loved."
—Saint Odo of Cluny (880-942, feast: 18 November)
"The fruit of this tree is not death but life, not darkness but light. This tree does not cast us out of paradise, but opens the way for our return."
—Saint Theodore the Studite (759-826, feast: 12 November)
"Keep your eyes on the crucifix; for Jesus without the cross is a man without a mission, & the cross without Jesus is a burden without a reliever."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)
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