Tomorrow, we begin the holiest of events in our faith life – The Triduum. We have so much to remember and experience during the next few days.
Holy Thursday reminds us to have a servant-like attitude and to remember that Jesus truly loves us as He institutes the Eucharist.
Good Friday speaks of what length Jesus went to redeem us. Broken as we are, Jesus will never leave us; He is the divine healer!
The quiet and uncertainty of Holy Saturday reminds us to take time and remember how Jesus has loved us to His death. There is an emptiness, and yet an enduring hope.
With the Easter Vigil we get to remember, celebrate, and believe. Now on to Easter Sunday!
Alleluia, Alleluia, let the Holy Anthems ring!!! We are now able to sing our Alleluia’s again, for the Lord has truly risen. Alleluia!!!
I was thinking that for us, we know the story; kind of a ‘spoiler’, as they would say. Can you imagine Mary Magdalene as she came to the tomb? Put yourself in her place. A man whom she loved dearly and knew He had changed her life was brutally crucified and then placed in this tomb. What happen next is even more disturbing; He is not in the tomb!
She must have been filled with anxiety and fear. Have you ever found yourself in this kind of situation? Losing someone you loved and then feeling lost and anxious as what to do next? Mary wasn’t about to give up, and so she questions an individual she thought was the Gardener. You know the story and you know the ending.
We sometimes forget that Mary was the first one to preach the good news that Jesus was alive. For Mary Magdalene, her faith was alive, and her passion to speak of the Risen Lord kept her going. You see, she recognized that our faith life is not a spectator sport. We need to be passionate about who we are.
Can we speak of ourselves as having the passion to live our faith life, our Catholic faith, to the fullest? Somehow, I have my doubts that God comes first in many peoples’ lives and the alleluias are sung because it is an OBLIGATION. What happens after the celebration of a Sunday Mass? Do we take those Alleluias out into our families, workplaces, or even to the people we meet? Check the parking lot out after Mass!
Do we really listen to others? Can I respect someone with a different opinion? Do I really believe that I am God’s child and loved by Him? Believing means COMMITMENT. Am I committed to living the Alleluias?
My hope is that this Lent has given us all plenty of opportunities to deepen our relationship with God so that we can shout those Alleluias. The question is, did I take advantage of the opportunities? There is no worry if we have fallen short, because every opportunity, every day, is a chance to deepen our relationship with God. God so loves us, He died for us; that speaks volumes.
May your week be filled with prayer and Alleluias, remembering that God loves you so very much! Nothing you do will stop Him from loving YOU!
Till next week,
Sister T
