We are now five weeks into Lent, which has served as a time of prayer, penitence and abstinence, and are entering Passiontide, the name given to the two weeks before Easter (Passion Week and Holy Week). Like Lent, this name of Passiontide is given as a symbol, representative of Jesus’ experience to aid our spiritual understanding of Christ’s journey to the Cross. This day, Passion Sunday, memorializes not only the Passion of our Lord but conversely, the antipathy felt by the religious leaders against Jesus.
How timely that in the past few days we have seen the world come together in the name of religion – eyes glued to their televisions and their twitter feeds in anticipation of a new Pope. Catholics, Protestants and non-believers alike, celebrated the white smoke as it rose from the Vatican, heralding the birth of a new chapter.
But why? In a time when much of the worldwide population no longer identifies themselves with organized religion, what is it about this man that causes his name to dominate the media? I would suggest that it is because he symbolizes something bigger. He is God’s representative to the Catholic Church – one of the most influential religious institutions in the history of the world. And while the role of the Catholic Church in the promotion of the gospel has been often contested, in his first homily on Thursday, Pope Francis said, “Without the cross, we’re just a pious NGO, not the Church.” And how very true this is. Many people celebrate Christmas and recognize the birth of Christ but it is his death on the cross that sets us apart, makes us holy and allows us to receive all the benefits of salvation. As we journey in the next two weeks take time to consider the passion of the cross, the sacrifice of Jesus and the hope we have in his resurrection.
Leave A Reply