Good Friday prompts reflection on where the shadow of the cross falls in our world today. Media capture the immense suffering in places like Gaza or Ukraine; beyond the lens lies “the vast river of poverty traversing our world” (Pope Francis in 2013). At Christmas 2023, Rev Munther Isaac, Lutheran pastor in Bethlehem, highlighted the harsh reality for Palestinian children, asserting that if Jesus were born today, it would be amid the rubble of Gaza.
The Christian community is also suffering greatly in our time. The cross exposes the shame of abuse and shattered lives that we yearn to restore but cannot. Addressing abuses and the failures of authorities in the Church is a via sacra that only honesty and humility will help in our pilgrimage to transformation and resurrection.
Suffering often results from our own actions, personally or institutionally. The human tendency to cling to possessions and attachments leads to sorrow when they are lost or must be relinquished. Matthew 6:19-21 advises, “store up treasures in heaven rather than on earth”, to be wise about transient concerns and grateful for the blessings in our lives but not cling to them.
The Buddhist tradition mirrors this guidance of Jesus, encouraging passionate living while maintaining relative detachment from life’s situations. The practice involves being still in consciousness, separating oneself to appreciate one’s life and existence apart from emotions or external events. Such intentionality opens our awareness that God accompanies us in the uncertainty and ambiguity of life assuring that “I am with you always”. (Matt 28:20)
The centrality of Jesus’ death for Christians elicits detractors’ accusations of wallowing in suffering or of avoiding it through the escapism of resurrection. However, suffering is a universal experience – for believers and non-believers alike. Christian theology evolves beyond atonement as a ransom to emphasizing the Incarnation, where God becomes human in Jesus, sharing in human suffering and ultimately redeeming it through Christ’s death and resurrection.
We all know witnesses to Jesus’ agape love which demonstrates transformative self-giving, people whose life and death inspire others where “the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, to produce much grain”. (Jn 12:25). Alexei Navalny, once a “militant atheist” and whose legacy is now an embedded touchstone in Russian history, spoke of the gospel’s clarity during his trial after bravely returning to Russia. Referring to the Sermon on the Mount, he highlighted the satisfaction and guidance that faith provides, making life’s dilemmas much easier.
On Good Friday we contemplate Jesus’ way of transforming the realities of suffering and death. The theology of solidarity, exemplified by Jesus’ self-surrender, extends beyond religious boundaries, resonating with all who find in faith a solace and purpose amid life’s challenges.
Save us Saviour of the world, For by your Cross and Resurrection You have set us free.
(Eucharistic acclamation)
Fr Brendan Carr C.S.Sp
