Note From Fr. Joseph Johson
Week of 03/30/2007 to 4/07/2007
“If they keep silent, the stones will cry out!”
We now begin Holy Week with the commemoration of the Lord Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem. Our spiritual journey is the opposite of His. He entered in triumph and ended the week in a procession of shame and suffering to the Cross. We endure the sufferings of the present on our way to the victorious welcome that awaits us in the Heavenly Jerusalem. His Passion opens the way to the Resurrection. Our faithful discipleship, daily carrying our own cross, is how we claim a share in the eternal life He has won for us by His supreme sacrifice of Love.
Let’s remember, though, that it isn’t really about “me.” Has Lent been more about my sacrifices of prayer, penance, and almsgiving than about Jesus? We need to focus less on our own aches and pains, or inconveniences, and more on God’s infinite Love revealed in the Lord Jesus. Has our faith been reinvigorated through our participation in this season of grace? Have I borne testimony to Jesus as Messiah in the love that I bear to others and the time I spend in His service each day?
And what next? Our Lenten penances and practices will cease in a few days. We don’t want to be like that crowd in Jerusalem that acclaimed Jesus as Savior one day but went back to ordinary life the next. My discipleship and witness need to last longer than the palms we use for the procession! Our world needs to know of God’s Love. If we keep silent, the very stones of our church cry out! How can we join our voices and the way we live to this great hymn of praise?
Let’s start by keeping Holy Week “holy!” We should set aside extra time for prayer and meditation this week. We should make it a point to participate in the liturgies of the Sacred Triduum. We should make sure that we don’t celebrate the Lord’s Resurrection by going back to our old and less holy way of life. We have been given the opportunity for a new life in ever-increasing union with God. May every fiber in our being shout out our joy that Jesus Christ has died to save us and rose from the dead that we may rise above our sinfulness!
St. Vincent de Paul, pray for us!
In Christ,
Father Joseph Johnson
Back to Home page.