"The People of Life, Born from the Cross"
"When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, 'It is
finished'; and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit"
(In 19:30). Afterwards, the Roman soldier "pierced his side
with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water"
(In 19:34).
Everything has now reached its complete fulfillment. The
"giving up" of the spirit describes Jesus' death, a death like
that of every other human being, but it also seems to allude
to the "gift of the Spirit", by which Jesus ransoms us from
death and opens before us a new life. It is the very life of
God which is now shared with man. It is the life which
through the Sacraments of the Church - symbolized by the
blood and water flowing from Christ's side - is continually
given to God's children, making them the people of the New
Covenant. From the Cross, the source of life, the "people of
life" is born and increases" (The Gospel of Life, n.51).
As the quote above indicates, the Church as the People of
Life is born from the Cross. Jesus' passion and death are
his self-giving, and the power of that self-giving is given to
us, that we might give ourselves to one another in serving,
protecting, and celebrating the gift of life.
In particular, Jesus endured the rigors of the passion -
described in today's liturgy in great detail - precisely
because of how much he values human life. He did it for us.
He did it because he wanted to raise human life to the
heights of heaven.
Through his Passion and resurrection, he does not only
conquer his own death; he overturns the very kingdom of
death. We cannot listen to or believe the Gospel of the
Passion without marveling at how much God loves each
human life, and without feeling impelled to respond when
that same human life is trampled underfoot. He gave his life
!or us; we are to give our lives for one another.
Christ died once for all, but Calvary continues today as
innocent people are killed in abortion clinics nationwide.
As John Paul II wrote, "It is precisely in the "flesh" of every
person that Christ continues to reveal himself and to enter
into fellowship with us, so that rejection of human life, in
whatever form that rejection takes, is really a rejection of
Christ" (The Gospel of Life, n. 104). The Gospel of the
Passion continues in our day ...
Have a Blessed and Holy Week, Fr. Ken
"El Pueblo de la Vida, nacida de la Cruz"
Cuando tome Jesus el vinagre, dijo: "Todo esta cumplido".
E inclinando la cabeza entrego el espiritu ». (In 19, 30). Y el
soldado romano ({ Ie atraveso el costado con una lanza y al
instante salio sangre y agua » (In 19, 34).
Todo ha alcanzado ya su pleno cumplimiento. La ({ entrega
del espiritu » presenta la muerte de Jesus semejante a la
de cualquier otro ser humano, pero parece aludir tambiim
al « don del Espiritu », con el que nos rescata de la muerte
y nos abre a una vida nueva. EI hombre participa de la
misma vida de Dios. Es la vida que, mediante los
sacramentos de la Iglesia -de los que son simbolo la
sangre y el agua man ados del costado de Cristo-, se
comunica continuamente a los hijos de Dios, constituidos
asi como pueblo de la nueva alianza. De la Cruz, fuente de
vida, nace y se propaga el « pueblo de la vida ». (Ioannes
Paulus PP.II, Evangelium vitae n.51)
Como indica la cita mas arriba, la Iglesia como un pueblo
de vida, nace desde la Cruz. Jesus en su poderosa
abneqacion de si mismo, a traves de la Pasion y su muerte
nos ensana a darnos a nosotros mismos en el servicio,
protegiendo y celebrando el don de la vida.
En particular, Jesus so porto los rigores de la pasion que
en gran detalle se describe en la Iiturgia de hoy,
precisamente a causa del valor que Ie tiene a la vida
humana. Lo Hizo por nosotros. Lo hizo por elevar la vida
humana a las alturas del cielo. No solo conquista su
propia muerte a traves de Su paslon y resurrecclon, sino
que tamblen anula el reino de la muerte. No podemos
escuchar 0 creer en el Evangelio de la Pasion sin ser
maravillado por 10 mucho que Dios ama a cada vida
humana, y sin sentirse impulsado a responder cuando la
vida humana misma es pisoteada. EI dio su vida por
nosotros, estamos para dar nuestras vidas por los demas,
Cristo murio una vez por todas, pero el calvario continua
hoy en dia a traves de las personas inocentes que mueren
en las clinicas de aborto a nivel nacional. Como escribio el
Papa Juan Pablo II, "Precisamente en la « carne» de cada
hombre, Cristo continua revelandose y entrando en
cornunien con nosotros, de modo que el rechazo de la vida
del hombre, en sus diversas formas, es real mente rechazo
de Cristo." (Evangelium Vitae, #104) EI Evangelio de la
Pasion continua en nuestro dia ...
Que tengan una Bendita Semana Santa, Padre Ken
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