Good Friday is always full of reflection, liturgy, and prayer. My day began with Stations of the Cross at 12pm, where we did reflection at each of the fourteen stations. We then had what is known as Tre Ore, which is translated 'Three Hours'. It traditionally goes from 12-3pm, and is a reflection on the last seven phrases of Jesus while He was on the cross. The four Gospels (Mark, Matthew, John, and Luke) all have different accounts of what was said while Jesus was on the cross, which is why we reflect on seven total phrases. At my Catholic Campus Ministry, we have seven different students each pick a phrase, then each one will reach the Gospel passage, give a brief reflection, read a prayer on the passage, then snuff one of the candles (there are seven in all, one for each of the phrases that was said). There is then a song that is sung, and then time for silent reflection before the next phrase.
This year I was asked to do a reflection for Tre Ore, and I have to say, it was such a tough decision to decide which one I wanted to choose. After much prayer, I finally decided, or well God decided for me, and I wanted to share with everyone.
Luke 23: 44-46
"It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, while the sun's light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, 'Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit!' And having said this he breathed his last."
Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice; He endured various forms of torture, ridicule, and pain, He carried a cross on His back to the top of a hill, had to greet His mother through all this pain, was nailed to a cross, and then He died. Despite all the pain and suffering, He still managed to have complete trust in God.
When you look at the agony in the garden (Luke 22: 42) Jesus said, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still not my will but yours be done"
He was terrified, for He knew exactly what was going to happen, and even with this knowledge, He still put all His trust in God He could have backed out, said no, and just walked away from it all, but He didn't. Instead, He had trust in His Father, a trust that was there even at that final moment when He finally said, "Into your hands I commit my spirit." At that moment, Jesus truly gave God everything; mind, body, soul, and spirit. A trust beautiful beyond compare, one that we all must strive to have with our Father.
Not only was there trust, but intimacy. With both the prayers Jesus said; in the garden and on the cross, they began with 'Father' for Jesus was addressing Him personally, something that we all must do every single day with in both our prayer and when we speak of God. When we talk about Jesus we need to use the present tense, that Jesus IS not Jesus was.
Trust and intimacy; two things that we NEED to have with our Father.
During liturgy of the hours, night prayer ends each night with the prayer, "Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit." In the Divine Image of Jesus Christ, the words "Jesus, I trust in you" are written below the image. We have all these ways to express our trust with God, but do we really trust in Him?
It's hard to trust God when the path on which we walk is rocky and we have many crosses to bear. It's hard to have an intimate relationship with God when there is so much pain and suffering in the world. Why is it so hard to trust?
To trust someone, they have to merit it by actions, by love. We as humans have to gain trust. We can trust family, friends, boyfriends, girlfriends, and all those who are close to us because they have gained our trust with their love for us, with their self service and dedication to us. We see this through small actions that they do for us. In order for us to trust God, we first need to fully understand what He did for us, that He gave us His only Son who died on the cross for us.
How much does He truly love us? Look up at the cross at the front of any Catholic Church and you will see Jesus with His head bowed. Why is it bowed? More importantly, who is He bowing His head to? He is bowing His head to us, to you, because He died on the cross for you. Kings are bowed to by their servants, but this King of heaven and earth is bowing to us, to show us just how much He truly loves us. Mother Teresea even said, "When we look at the cross, we know how much he loved us then. When we look at the tabernacle, we see how much he loves us now."
Next time you look at that cross, stop and think of what He did for you, thank him, and then, bow your head in return. He loves us so much that He would die for us, the greatest act of love known to man, so why shouldn't we trust in Him? Bow your head back to Him, show Him how you want that intimate relationship, how you trust in Him and what He has in store for you. Then say with all your heart and with meaning,
Jesus, I trust in you.
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