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There is neither Jew
nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor
free, there is neither male
nor female; for you are all
one in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:28
Introduction:
Helen went down to Jerusalem, from Rome, the city of the kings, to bow down to the Cross. She took hold of all the Jews and asked: "Come and show me the place of the Cross." They replied and said to her: "We have a great man. If you take hold of him he will show you the place In which the Wood of the Cross is placed."
Hymn: An appropriate hymn can be used, such as Old Rugged Cross or Were You There When They Crucified My Lord.
Prayer
Jesus, Who because of Your burning love for us willed to be crucified and to shed Your Most Precious Blood for the redemption and salvation of our souls.
We trust completely in Your Mercy. Cleanse us from sin by Your Grace, sanctify our work, give us and all those who are dear to us our daily bread, lighten the burden of our sufferings, bless our families, and grant to the nations, so sorely afflicted, Your Peace, which is the only true peace, so that by obeying Your Commandments we may come at last to the glory of Heaven. Amen.
Theme: "Cross gives Meaning to our Human Existence"
Reading 1 Numbers 21: 4-9
The people became irritable and cross as they travelled. They spoke out against God and Moses: "Why did you drag us out of Egypt to die in this godforsaken country? No decent food; no water - we can't stomach this stuff any longer."
So GOD sent poisonous snakes among the people; they bit them and many in Israel
died. The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke out against
GOD and you. Pray to GOD; ask him to take these snakes from us."
Moses prayed for the people.
GOD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put
it on a flagpole: Whoever is bitten and looks at it will live."
So Moses made a snake of fiery copper and put it on top of a flagpole. Anyone bitten by a snake who then looked at the copper snake lived. The Word of the Lord ...
PAUSE
Reading 2 Philippians 2:6-11
He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death - and the worst kind of death at that: a crucifixion.
Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honoured him far beyond
anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth -
even those long ago dead and buried - will bow in worship before this Jesus
Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious
honour of God the Father. The Word of the Lord ...
Some Questions for Reflection:
How can we reconcile the existence of evil with the existence and love of God? How to explain the suffering of the innocent people, of children?
In the Book of Job, we face this problem: What is the origin of evil? We see how it is not the result of retributive justice, but it is a part and parcel of God’s Providence. Evil is in the heart of Man. It is a power against love and life. It is
Jesus and Suffering: Jesus, the only Incarnation, helps us to cope up with the problem of evil and suffering, rather with the mystery of Suffering.
Jesus was a Man of Suffering. "Behold the Man!" Jesus fulfilled God’s Will, his saving plan in his entire life, and particularly as a climax on the Cross (cf.Phl 2:6-11). Cross is the epitome of Love. It is a victory over the power of Evil.
God is Love (cf .1 Jn 4:8; see Jn 3:16). God’s plan of love was "accomplished" (teteletai in Greek) on the Cross. His ‘hour’ has come when he was lifted up on the Cross, as he himself prophesied: "When I shall be lifted on the Cross, I shall draw all men to myself" (Jn 12:32).
We see how the Cross, which was an instrument of humiliation, torture and death, became the symbol of love and salvation. The sign of shame and ignominy became the sign of victory.
QUIET AND SHARING
Prayer Intentions
Almighty God, whose Son our Saviour Jesus Christ was lifted high Upon the cross that he might draw the whole world to himself: Mercifully grant that we, who glory in the mystery of our redemption, may have grace to take up our cross and follow him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting.
This is the kind of life you've been
invited into, the kind of life Christ lived. He suffered everything that came
his way so you would know that it could be done, and also know how to do it,
step-by-step. We pray ... R/ By his wounds, we were
healed.
He never did one thing wrong,
Not once said anything amiss. We pray ...
R/ By his wounds, we were healed.
They called him every name in the book and he said nothing back. He suffered in
silence, content to let God set things right. We pray ...
R/ By his wounds, we were healed.
He used his servant body to carry our
sins to the Cross so we could be rid of sin, free to live the right way. His
wounds became your healing. We pray ... R/ By his
wounds, we were healed.
(1 Peter 2)
O God, who by the passion of your blessed Son made an Instrument of shameful death to be for us the means of life and peace: Grant us so to glory in the cross of Christ, that we may gladly suffer shame and loss for the sake of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. AMEN.
Conclusion - Some Thoughts for the Day:
What shall be our response in today’s context?
The Risen Lord wishes to deliver us from all evil. But how? Not removing every difficulty, but by giving us courage to face it and overcome it. Let the hardships be stepping-stones in our life.
Let suffering become redemptive in our Christian existence by looking at his Cross, as today’s readings tells us.