The Passion and Death

I suggest that you listen to this as you read: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQmGs3L1bvs&feature=related. I'm sorry I can't figure out how to post links here, but copy and paste that URL into your browser. It is a piece called "Crucifixion" from the Passion of the Christ soundtrack.

Today is Good Friday, and the church celebrates the passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. Appropriately, my parents and I watched The Passion of the Christ before we went to the Good Friday mass at Christ the King this afternoon. This has been a tradition in my family for the past several years now. The movie is very emotionally draining and intense, but it is a good reminder of what Jesus went through for us. It's really sad to think that the movie is just a glimpse of what He went through and that it is nowhere near close to the pain that He endured for our salvation. I cringe every time I see the scene in the movie where Jesus is scourged. My eyes flood with tears every single time. How could someone love me that much that He would endure that much pain? And coming from a different perspective, how could those men scourge Jesus so much...and laugh about it? How could they use those horrible weapons? How could they spit in His eye? How could they drive that crown of thorns into His head? Ugh...it makes my stomach twist every time. Another scene that really gets me is when Jesus is walking with His cross and his mother Mary sees Him fall. We immediately see a flashback to a time when Jesus is a young boy. He is playing and falls down, and Mary comes rushing after Him calling out His name. She has a look of motherly panic on her face as she rushes to Jesus' side and then says, "I'm here." When it flashes back to Jesus carrying His cross, Mary does the same thing...she rushes over to Him and says, "I'm here." It's really a beautiful scene and captures the love between Jesus and His mother Mary.

Mass this afternoon at Christ the King was really beautiful. There was a lot of time for reflection, and I really appreciated the fact that the imagery of The Passion of the Christ was still fresh in my mind from just having watched it. This allowed me to really visualize the Gospel as it was read aloud during mass.

Lord, thank You for what You did for us on the cross. No words, no actions, no thing could ever show You how much I appreciate what You did. Thank You for the opportunities You gave me today to reflect on your passion and death. I pray that You open my heart to receive more of You during the Easter vigil mass tomorrow evening. Amen.