As our Holy Week begins today, we see Jesus both proclaimed as King, with songs of praise and acclamation, only very quickly to witness his condemnation to death on a cross. Of course, we know this all ends in the Resurrection, but for these next few days, we recount his passion and death, the Institution of the Priesthood and Eucharist, as necessary elements of the whole mission of Jesus in saving the world and the human family in the name of God’s love and mercy.
St. Gregory of Nazianzen gives us good advice for these days of Holy Week when he preached this message: “Let us regard as our home the heavenly Jerusalem, not the earthly one; the city glorified by angels, not the one laid waste by armies”.
Caiaphas the High Priest laid the foundation for Jesus’ eventual condemnation when he unwittingly prophesied: “it is better for you that one man should die instead of the people, so that the whole nation may not perish”. (John 11)
Several scriptures highlight Jesus’ death as a universal sacrifice for all humanity. St. Paul states that “He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again.” (2 Corinthians 5:15) Additionally, in St. Paul’s First Letter to Timothy he emphasizes Jesus’ role as “the Savior of all, especially of those who believe.” (1 Timothy 4:10)
Jesus, as the Son of God, sinless and pure, by his blood and death alone is capable of bringing salvation to the world.
What does all this mean for us?
We who share Jesus’ consecration in Baptism also share his mission, AND his suffering and cross. We cannot seek only the acclamations that come with our association with Jesus. We, too are called to share in his sufferings and death – as well as his resurrection. And here is precisely why the holiness of our life matters.
Since it was Jesus’ sinlessness that alone allowed his sacrifice and death to atone for the sins of the world, we are to constantly strive for holiness in our life, that when suffering and the cross come our way, especially because of our association with Jesus, when joined to Christ’s suffering ours may also bear good fruit by God’s loving hand. As our Opening Prayer today states, “may we heed his lesson of patient suffering”, and do so humbly.
St. Paul instructed Timothy: “do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God.” (2 Timothy 1:8)
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