To suffer with the other and for others; to suffer for the sake of truth and justice; to suffer out of love and in order to become a person who truly loves—these are fundamental elements of humanity, and to abandon them would destroy man himself. … The Christian faith has shown us that truth, justice and love are not simply ideals, but enormously weighty realities. It has shown us that God —Truth and Love in person—desired to suffer for us and with us. … Man is worth so much to God that he himself became man in order to suffer with man in an utterly real way—in flesh and blood—as is revealed to us in the account of Jesus’s Passion. Hence in all human suffering we are joined by one who experiences and carries that suffering with us; hence con-solatio is present in all suffering, the consolation of God’s compassionate love—and so the star of hope rises. #39

Through the Good Friday service and the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) our parishes offer us an amazing opportunity to walk with Jesus and to accompany him on the way to the cross. This accompaniment works in three ways. At an historical level we are walking with Jesus and honoring the Passion that he suffered. At a personal level God also accompanies us and brings meaning and hope to the suffering that we experience. These services however are done in the context of a worshiping community; this context forces us to contemplate a social level of accompaniment. We honor all the suffering that people bring to the cross and as we witness the adoration to the cross that is done on the Good Friday service. We witness and honor all the suffering and intention that people bring to the foot of the cross. We accompany Christ, God accompanies us, and we accompany one another.

Jesus’ life and passion transcended every social barrier and structure. The mystery of the incarnation reminds us that Jesus’ very existence incorporated the human with the divine thus transcending any barrier between God and humanity. But the manner that God chose to relate with the human community also demonstrates an intent to transcend social barriers by incorporating a lowly and marginalized existence. Scripture attest to the poverty of Christ but he is further marginalized by being a Galilean from Nazareth. Far from being in the epicenter of Jewish activity and identity Jesus was born on the margins where the Jewish and gentile community intermingled. To accompany Jesus on his way to the cross is to accompany a marginalized and poor Jew who empowered the poor and marginalized people of his society and for that reason was executed by the socially dominant Jewish and Roman authorities. To accompany Jesus in this social context is to accompany the poor and marginalized members of our own society that continue to face either persecution or neglect from the dominant social powers of our day. Theologian Roberto Goizueta describes this accompaniment from the perspective of U.S. Hispanic theology in this way:

Our mestizaje and exile are symbols of our identification with a Jesus who also transgressed boundaries. The public character of so much of our popular religion, especially pilgrimages and processions such as that of Good Friday, reflects our refusal to have our lives, identities, and above all, our God circumscribed and limited by the spatial boundaries which U.S. society has erected. This transgression of boundaries – even if only temporary – is already an act of subversion and, thus, of liberation.[i]       

In his recent World Day of Peace of Peace message Pope Benedict XVI invited us to address the two related issues of religious fundamentalism and secularism. Pope Benedict defines secularism as “sophisticated forms of hostility to religion which, in Western countries, occasionally find expression in a denial of history and the rejection of religious symbols which reflect the identity and the culture of the majority of citizens.” Many of us in the United States can attest to what is accurately perceived as either the trivialization or elimination of religious symbols for the sake of an overly strict concern regarding pluralism or political correctness. Celebrations such as Christmas or Easter have been redefined in such a way as to almost completely rob them of any religious significance.

The conservative Christian community has raised this concern in recent years but I suggest that progressive Christian community and those of us who preach the social message of the Gospel ought to also defend these religious symbols that offer a vision of justice that transcends social barriers. The Hispanic American experience has a rich tradition of engaging the community at this socially transcendental level with their celebration of Posadas during Christmas where they accompany the Holy Family and one another with their experience of poverty and homelessness and with the Via Crucis where they accompany Jesus, the sorrowful Mother and one another amidst the suffering of injustice and torture. Pope Benedict invites us during this time to challenge the errors of secularism and his invitation is built around the pursuit of justice and human rights.      

Today too, in an increasingly globalized society, Christians are called, not only through their responsible involvement in civic, economic and political life but also through the witness of their charity and faith, to offer a valuable contribution to the laborious and stimulating pursuit of justice, integral human development and the right ordering of human affairs. The exclusion of religion from public life deprives the latter of a dimension open to transcendence. Without this fundamental experience it becomes difficult to guide societies towards universal ethical principles and to establish at the national and international level a legal order which fully recognizes and respects fundamental rights and freedoms as these are set forth in the goals – sadly still disregarded or contradicted – of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Let us commit ourselves to the challenge of promoting these religious symbols and offering our society a transcendental public witness towards the universal ethic of justice and peace by accompanying Jesus and one another on Good Friday.   

The special insignia of every Passionist is the “Sign”, the heart-shaped emblem you see on this page. It catches, in an image, the meaning of Passionist life. 

In the middle of the emblem are the Words, Jesu XPI Passio. Written in Greek and Latin, the languages of the early Church, those words mean: “the Passion of Jesus Christ,” (The three nails at the bottom and the cross at the top remind us symbolically of His suffering and death.)

Every Passionist takes a special vow, a solemn promise, to spend his energies in promoting remembrance of the sufferings of Jesus. This vow defines the purpose of the Passionist community. We pledge to keep deep in our hearts the memory of the cross and to do what is in our power to remind others of it.

Why promise to do something like this? The answer lies with the meaning of the cross and death of Jesus Christ for the world. First, the death of Jesus was no mere brutal execution of an extraordinary Jewish teacher and prophet long ago. His death was an event that changed human history. Jesus died that others might live. God so loved the world that he allowed his only Son to give his very life for us. The cross becomes the symbol telling us God’s love is stronger than death. Passionists want to tell the world about that love.

But there are other reasons for the Passionist vow. Jesus’ death on the cross was a death in the cause of justice. He was executed because he challenged accepted values. He sided with the poor and the outcasts. He condemned oppressive structures. Jesus was a prophet and prophets meet strong opposition.

His cross reminds us that Christians must listen to the cries of the poor. We are in solidarity with those whom society may forget or even exploit. The cross is a sign of justice. To remind the world about the cross is to challenge the world for its injustice and neglect. Passionists are pledged to that challenge.

Finally, remembering the cross means remembering those in the world who bear the cross today: the disabled, the sick, the dying, the grieving, those isolated and alone — all who bear the burden of pain.

Jesus identified himself with the “least”. He shared their burdens and brought them hope. He, too, bore the cross.

Christians who believe in Jesus find strength in the memory of his Passion. Jesus knew pain and death. He also tasted the victory of everlasting life. Death is not the final word for those who believe. This , too, is part of the Resurrection message Passionists proclaim to the world.

The special sign we wear is meant to symbolize a solemn commitment to proclaim God’s great love made known through the cross of Jesus. We nourish that memory in our hearts through prayer. We share that good news with all the world. We proclaim it through preaching, in our parishes and retreat centers, through radio and television, and by our presence in hospitals, classrooms, campuses, missions and those ministries of service to the community.

• Isaiah 52:13–53:12
• Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9
• John 18:1–19:42

Quote:

Jesus’ death on the cross was a death in the cause of justice. He was executed because he challenged accepted values. He sided with the poor and the outcasts. He condemned oppressive structures. Jesus was a prophet and prophets meet strong opposition.

His cross reminds us that Christians must listen to the cries of the poor. We are in solidarity with those whom society may forget or even exploit. The cross is a sign of justice. To remind the world about the cross is to challenge the world for its injustice and neglect. Passionists are pledged to that challenge.
-Fr. Don Senior, CP

Thoughts for your consideration: By Fr. Ronan Newbold, CP

We are coming up to Good Friday, the day that we recognize the Passion, crucifixion and death of Jesus. Isaiah is the most dramatic in his horrible description of the physical wounds of the Servant of Yahweh. It is not a question of our compassion for Jesus anymore. Indeed, he was so beat up and battered that no one could recognize him. The terror and trauma that he experienced in his Passion and Death represents the greatest demonstration of God’s being with humanity in the face of evil.

What part of humanity is God with? Is it not in those who are beat up and battered today? Or could it be the earth that continues to take a beating from humans who are not aware of what they are doing. That is what we have to think about.

On this day, Good Friday, we bring all of our sufferings, our anxieties, and our worries to the Lord. There, in the Kedron valley, we walk with the Lord, Jesus. With our own sufferings in mind, we can look at the Lord and both of us can sense what is going on.

Our redemption did not take place through the construction of a new building, a new plan for fighting poverty, or from someone’s theory of justice in the world today. It took place through the cross of Christ. But Christ did not suffer and die for just me or for just a few people. He redeemed us all. And this redemption took place under the social injustice that Christ suffered in being executed by the governing social and religious powers of his time. Through the Cross our dignity has been reconciled with God the Father. Our redemption is to live and celebrate the dignity of all creation amidst the social and personal injustice that continues to compromise this message.

“We adore thee, O Christ, and we praise thee.

Because by thy holy Cross, thou hast redeemed the world.”

Questions for Reflection in your Faith Sharing Group:

• Who is experiencing the passion today?
• Share your list with others in the group.
• After you share your lists, make them the focus of your prayer.